The iPhone 5 is more susceptible to be scratched, a Hon Hai executive has been quoted as saying.

In a report citing an unnamed Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. executive as its source, the Digits blog of The Wall Street Journal explains why there is a shortage of iPhone 5 units even though it has already been almost a month since the latest Apple smartphone has been released.

Hon Hai is the owner and user of the Foxconn trade name which is world-renowned as the company which assembles the iPhone in China.

In the report, the Hon Hai executive says that the iPhone 5 is such in short supply because it is the hardest device the company has made yet.

“The iPhone 5 is the most difficult device that Foxconn has ever assembled.  To make it light and thin, the design is very complicated,” he is quoted as saying.

“It takes time to learn how to make this new device. Practice makes perfect. Our productivity has been improving day by day,” he says.

However, in a subsequent paragraph, Digits says that:

“The executive said Hon Hai has taken steps to improve its productivity and address scratches on the metal casings of some new iPhones that were shipped. Hon Hai has recently implemented a new quality check procedure to reduce the chance of damages.  But he noted the iPhone 5 uses a new coating material that makes it more susceptible to scratching.” [Emphasis added.]

Digits goes on further, quoting the executive as saying “It’s always hard to satisfy both aesthetic needs and practical needs.”

Apple has said the iPhone 5 has sold very well initially that it is the best-selling iPhone they have yet.

Meanwhile, addressing recent news of riots in Foxconn plants, the Hon Hai executive told the publication that there were two disputes in a Zhengzhou Foxconn plant but that these disputes did not stop work at the factories.

Foxconn denied some of these strikes and riots.

Hon Hai and its Foxconn arm has long been the centerpiece of controversy amid alleged unfair and unsafe working conditions at its plants.

Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou has also been criticized previously for likening the company’s employees to animals.

The company has reacted by pledging to improve work conditions which includes raising wages.

Still, reports have come out time and again to allege unfavorable working conditions at Foxconn factories.

However, the company has also released the results of an investigation saying underage workers have been used at its plants.

Foxconn has also been in the news recently for having allegedly used college students who were forced to work by authorities and schools as the iPhone 5 launch neared.

The iPhone 5 was debuted on September 12 and was released less than two weeks after.

Images from Prachatai on Flickr (CC)

About Solon Harmony Dolor

A passion for technology and journalism makes this upcoming writer very interested in social media and technology news. Fresh from finishing an English and Journalism degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman, he aims to bring interesting news to our readers .