Japanese device maker Fujitsu announced plans to restructure its handset operations, in a move to “increase productivity and create a highly flexible production facility agile enough to withstand volume fluctuations”.

The company is to join “Fujitsu Mobile-phones Products Limited”, which it describes as being focused on producing handsets, with “Fujitsu Peripherals”, which manufactures products such as tablets, PC peripherals, and smartphones.

In a statement, the vendor said that as the lines between PCs and smartphones blur, it is “important to shift away from handset manufacturing that relies on conventional mass production” to apply a “quick and flexible approach that breaks the current mould of what a smartphone is and meets the needs of customers”.

It also said that it is taking an “open approach to its entire mobile phone business, in which development is increasingly shared and more efficient”. It will reallocate staff from throughout its mobile phone business to new areas, including enterprise solutions and automotive sector units.

While Fujitsu has a strong presence in its home market through its relationships with NTT Docomo and KDDI, the company has struggled to build its presence on the international stage – meaning it is not able to achieve the same scale benefits as its more international rivals.

Last year the company began an international push with a smartphone targeting “senior” users, which is a variant of a device offered by NTT Docomo, inking a deal with Orange to offer the product (Stylistic S01 is still listed on the website of Orange France).

While in October last year the vendor said it “plans to continue exploring opportunities to introduce the smartphone in other countries”, it does not appear that this has come to fruition.

And the competitive landscape of the Japanese market has also shifted in recent years, as the increasing penetration of smartphones has seen growing share for international vendors such as Apple and Samsung.

Against this backdrop, a number of other Japanese vendors have also had their struggles. NEC, for example, has ended its smartphone development, as has Panasonic. Toshiba has also exited the market via a joint venture (now ended) with Fujitsu, with Casio following a similar path through a joint venture with NEC.