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GREENSBORO - This week's layoffs at RF Micro Devices are a reminder that even a shining star of local business can be upset by swings in the global economy.

Microchip manufacturer RF Micro represents a litmus test for the Triad's ability to build and sustain high-tech companies - the kinds of businesses that create high-pay, high-skill jobs.

"It reminds us there's this great big global world out there that's going to bite us," said Keith Debbage, a professor of urban geography at UNCG.

But this likely isn't the beginning of the kind of economic meltdown that has swept away textile, tobacco and furniture jobs because the community is building strong defenses.

"This news breaks on the very day when our community, very wisely, has once again put significant faith in building our schools," Debbage said of the $457 million school construction bond package that passed Tuesday. "And the long-term future of our city is much more predicated in ramping up excellence in K-12 (education), and we continue doing that in this community."

To call the 200 local layoffs - 350 worldwide for RF Micro - disturbing is too strong a term, said Dan Lynch, president of the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance.

The economic developer doesn't dismiss the devastating impact on the people affected at RF Micro, Lynch said.

"This is the first time in RF's existence that they've had to go through this, and it's very dramatic, but it's not uncommon for companies to have to cut back at different times," Lynch said. "If this allows RF to compete in a global environment then this is the right decision."

RF said it is shifting its research away from the transceiver component of cellular phones because of increased competition and lower profits on that component. It expects to eliminate $75 million in annual product development costs as a result.

The company cut 80 jobs in mid-April when it shifted chip testing to a plant in China.

The new cuts don't mean RF will be shipping jobs to China, where many cellular manufacturers have plants.

"This was a strategic move in terms of which product they're going to support," said Mike Burton, a principal for equity research for ThinkPanmure in San Francisco. Burton said he believes the move will make RF Micro a stronger company.

"This doesn't mean they're cutting 350 jobs and doing manufacturing in China. I don't think they go into these decisions thinking they want to lay off people in North Carolina at all," Burton said. "It seems to me this company has been adamant in saying that it wants to stay in North Carolina. Some investors may have wanted them to do more to increase profits."

Lynch said his group is already working to link the unemployed workers with companies that are hiring.

Debbage also remarked that global competition may have bruised RF Micro, but the global economy also brings business back to the Triad.

Honda Aircraft Co. is a prime example at Piedmont Triad International Airport. And the arrival of the new FedEx hub next year should bring cargo and business from the European Union to PTI.

"It goes both ways," Debbage said. "It's not just a one-way street, it's just that the job losses tend to grab attention."

Contact Richard M. Barron at 373-7371 or dbarron@news-record.com