Where your Moto X gets made (pictures)

Go inside the Fort Worth, Texas, factory where the first phone from Google's Motorola is being assembled by American workers. It takes up an area roughly equivalent to three football fields.

Eric Mack

Sept. 13, 2013 8:20 p.m. PT

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Moto X-making masses

Motorola claims the Moto X is the first smartphone ever to be assembled in the United States, and on Tuesday, CNET got a look inside the Fort Worth, Texas, factory where the device gets made. The Moto X facility employs more than 2,000 people in a space used to make Nokia cell phones many years ago. The Moto X operation takes up an area roughly equivalent to three football fields, with room to expand.

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Components everywhere

Bins of components are constantly being shuttled around the Moto X factory floor, which operates 24 hours a day on 12-hour shifts.

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Colorful assembly

Batches of Moto X components are put together and then sent down a long assembly line that grows more colorful as custom backplates and accents are added toward the end of the process.

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Quality assurance

The Moto X goes through a number of quality checks as it heads down the assembly line.

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Monitoring the parts

A Moto X factory worker ensures that a gasket is properly in place with the help of a monitor above his work space.

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Reflections on a smartphone

Moto X factory workers are reflected in one of the tools of their trade. The facility employs more than 2,000 people.

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Wrapping up

At the end of the assembly line, stickers, cords, and glossy paperwork are added to the final Moto X package.

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Hard at work

Moto X production began in earnest at the Texas factory on August 6 and has ramped up to 100,000 units of the customizable smartphone per week, according to Mike McNamara, CEO of Flextronics, the contract manufacturer that runs the Fort Worth facility.

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Factory floor

Mike McNamara, CEO of the contract manufacturer that runs the Moto X facility, points out that there's plenty of room for the operation to expand.

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At work

The Moto X factory floor operates 24 hours a day on 12-hour shifts. While the factory floor was about half empty when CNET visited, the busy side of the room was filled with enough production lines to fill a space roughly the size of a football field.

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Moto meets Mac

Even in a building dedicated to creating Android devices, there are a few Apple products being used in service of the mission.

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Sharing a Moto moment

Google Chairman Eric Schmidt and Texas Governor Rick Perry were among the guests attending Tuesday's official opening ceremony at the Flextronics factory in Fort Worth, Texas, where the Moto X is being assembled.

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Texas mesquite

The custom wood backing for the Moto X reveals itself to be more than a unicorn. Texas Governor Rick Perry cheekily asked if he could have his "made from mesquite."

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Made in Texas

Motorola flew its newly revamped colors, as well as those of the Lone Star State, at the official opening ceremony held at the Flextronics factory in Fort Worth, Texas, where the Moto X is being assembled.

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Made in the US

A sign outside the Flextronics facility makes it clear that the first phone from Google's Motorola is being made in America. Motorola says the Moto X is the first smartphone ever to be assembled in the United States.