an assembly plant in Mexico (near the United States border); parts are shipped into Mexico and the finished product is shipped back across the border
An assembly plant in Mexico owned by a company from the United States or another foreign country, using cheap local labour and imported components, and which then exports its products to the company's country of origin; also (by extension) similar factories in other countries.
The word comes from Mexican Spanish maquiladora, which is derived from the verb maquilar meaning "to assemble." It originally referred to factories that assemble goods.