DANIELA PIRES
OPERATIONS
A
quick text, a long video call, checking the inbox or playing a video game. Most things done on mobile phones run through mobile networks these days, allowing people to stay connected without being tethered to an ethernet port. In the US, 60 % of this mobile network traffic runs through Ericsson equipment. The very first, and largest, US manufacturer of 5G radio network technology is located in Lewisville, Texas and led by Daniela Pires. Inside this 300,000-square-foot manufacturing site, advanced technology, automation, data and people are working together every day to create the hardware behind connectivity.
Daniela joined Ericsson 27 years ago and has spent most of her career in manufacturing and supply chain leadership roles. Before moving to the US in 2017, she worked at Ericsson’ s factory in São José dos Campos, Brazil. Here, Daniela shares her insights with Manufacturing Digital on how automation supports her team in creating the invisible backbone of America’ s connectivity.
DANIELA PIRES
TITLE: HEAD OF THE USA 5G SMART FACTORY
COMPANY: ERICSSON
INDUSTRY: TELECOMMUNICATIONS
LOCATION: LEWISVILLE, TEXAS, US
Daniela Pires leads Ericsson’ s USA 5G Smart Factory in Lewisville, Texas. Over the course of 27 years at Ericsson, she has held manufacturing and supply chain leadership roles, including at the company’ s São José dos Campos plant in Brazil.
Q. CAN YOU GIVE US SOME HISTORY ON THE FACTORY
» The USA 5G Smart Factory officially opened in March 2020, during the early days of the pandemic, and we began producing commercial products that very same month. The factory was created as a strategic investment in US manufacturing, strengthening supply chain resilience while enabling us to be closer to our customers.
78 October 2026