Vermont Business Magazine GlobalFoundries has invested $55 million into its Essex Junction plant to make another 5 million chips a day, the semiconductor firm announced today. Those semiconductors will mostly go into most cell phones and tablets used around the world. The investment was announced today with a press conference featuring plant executives and Governor Peter Shumlin. The capital investment in the company’s Essex Junction facility has been in the works for nine months. It was initiated by former plant owner IBM shortly after it was announced that GlobalFoundries would buy IBM’s chip making plants in Vermont and New York State.
Most of the investment went into the purchase, upgrade or moving of massive tools (some 12 by 12 feet) into its 200mm (8-inch) wafer fab in Essex Junction. Much of the rest of the expenditure went into the associated infrastructure the tools required.
An ASCI wafer, on the left, used for networks and wafer with about 20,000 mobile device chips on the right. TOP PHOTO: Dale Miller, left, listens as GlobalFoundry Site Manager Janette Bombardier speaks about the $55 million investment. Governor Shumlin and Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger also spoke at the press conference Wednesday. VBM photos.
The wafer manufacturing facility produces semiconductors for customers whose parts can be found in products touched by consumers every day. The 15 percent increase in output will result in a total of about 10 billion chips being produced in Vermont annually.
Most noteworthy is the growth potential of smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices worldwide and their ability to deliver voice, music, data, and video over a spectrum of global wireless networks. Many of these capabilities can be tied directly to advancements made at theEssex Junction facility. Over the past three years, the Essex Junction facility has shipped a staggering 10 billion parts that go into these mobile devices.
“I’m extremely encouraged by the investments GlobalFoundries has made and their continued commitment to growing in Vermont,” Governor Shumlin said. “The Essex Junction facility is home to one of the best workforces you can find anywhere in the world, and I am so proud of the success they have had since GlobalFoundries took over last year. I want to congratulate the leadership at GlobalFoundries and the hardworking employees at the plant. I look forward to continued success at the Essex Junction facility.”
Site Manager Janette Bombardier said that there are still about 3,000 employees at the site despite 100 voluntary buyouts that GlobalFoundries sought last month. GlobalFoundries said there were only "a few" layoffs ini Vermont. The Poughkeepsie Journal reports that GlobalFoundries has laid off about 150 in New York State, with chip plants in East Fishkill and a new one in Malta. But in Vermont, Bombardier said that 50 supplemental workers (contract workers either full or part time) have been converted to regular employees.
Supporting the fastest growing segment of the business, this facility continues to innovate and develop new technologies that will help meet the performance, power, and cost requirements of these devices in the future. GlobalFoundries has made a substantial investment in new capacity to help meet the sustained demand in this market segment.
The “Uplift” Project, which took place throughout 2015, adds physical capacity to the fab with new installations and upgrades of semiconductor process equipment, delivering the following results:
- Increased total factory output capability by approximately 15 percent
- Increased factory output of semiconductors for mobile devices by 30 percent
“This investment is further proof that GLOBALFOUNDRIES is excited about the future potential of the Essex Junction facility and the strength of our strategic alliance with our customers, who shared in this investment ,” said Janette Bombardier, GLOBALFOUNDRIES senior location executive. “The capacity uplift has already borne fruit by increasing the overall capability of the facility.”
ABOUT GLOBALFOUNDRIES
GlobalFoundries is the world’s first full-service semiconductor foundry with a truly global footprint. Launched in March 2009, the company has quickly achieved scale as one of the largest foundries in the world, providing a unique combination of advanced technology and manufacturing to more than 250 customers. With operations in Singapore, Germany and the United States, GLOBALFOUNDRIES is the only foundry that offers the flexibility and security of manufacturing centers spanning three continents. The company’s 300mm fabs and 200mm fabs provide the full range of process technologies from mainstream to the leading edge. This global manufacturing footprint is supported by major facilities for research, development and design enablement located near hubs of semiconductor activity in the United States, Europe and Asia. GLOBALFOUNDRIES is owned by Mubadala Development Company. For more information, visit http://www.GlobalFoundries.com.