Intel Haifa: Working from WiFi bomb shelters

Staff at Intel Corp's Haifa research center have been forced into bomb shelters as Hizbullah rockets rained on the northern Israeli city, but they are still working, thanks to wireless connections underground.

The US chip giant's R&D center in Haifa, responsible for developing the Centrino and many other Intel chips, has equipped its bomb shelters with a wireless network, said Kobi Bachar, a spokesman for Intel Israel.

"We can work from the bomb shelters because there is wireless there," he said.

Around 2,400 people work for Intel in Israel's third-largest city, 35 km (20 miles) south of the Lebanese border.

Bachar said most employees worked at the office on Sunday - when eight Israelis were killed in a Hizbullah rocket barrage on the city -- while only essential staff were called in on Monday.

"Those working from home have connections and laptops with wireless, so there is no problem with connectivity," he said. "Work is still going on, and we don't see any impact on output."

Microsoft sends workers home

IBM, which has 400 employees in Haifa, said it did not discuss specifics of its security arrangements, but spokesman Joseph Shoval said: "IBM Haifa Labs have deployed a program, developed in advance for these circumstances," he said referring to the rocket attacks.

"It is designed to maximize personal employee safety, while enabling the continuation of business and technical activity," he added.

Israeli media said Microsoft has ordered its 180 workers at its development center to remain home and work from there if possible.