GlobalFoundries to Build New Chip Plant in Upstate New York
Semiconductor manufacturer GlobalFoundries (GF) announced its expansion plans for its most advanced manufacturing facility in upstate New York over the coming years. These plans include immediate investments to address the global chip shortage at its existing Fab 8 facility, as well as construction of a new fab on the same campus that will double the site’s capacity.
GF’s Essex Junction plant, known as Fab 9, is not being left out.
Corporate Communications Manager Gina DeRossi told VBM: “In addition to expanding our operations in Singapore and in Malta, New York, as demand for GF’s solutions has increased worldwide, we will also be making targeted investments in our Burlington, Vermont, facility in the next two years.”
In May, GF announced that Raytheon Technologies will license its proprietary gallium nitride on silicon technology and technical expertise to GF, which will develop the new semiconductor at the Fab 9 facility in Vermont. The new GaN-on-Si semiconductor will enable game-changing radio frequency performance for 5G and 6G mobile and wireless infrastructure applications.
Fab 9 makes chips for cell phones, gaming devices and other consumer products.
The Malta announcement was made as the company convened leaders from government and industry to progress the national discussion around solving US semiconductor supply chain challenges.
CEO Tom Caulfield was joined by US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, US Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo, former Pentagon officials, and executives from leading companies throughout the semiconductor supply chain.
GF will invest $1 billion to immediately add an additional 150,000 wafers per year within its existing fab to help address the global chip shortage. Following that, GF plans to construct a new fab that will create more than 1,000 new direct high-tech jobs and thousands more indirect jobs including high-paying construction jobs for the region. Following the successful investment model of Fab 8, GF is planning to fund the new facility through private-public partnerships including customers, federal and state investments. This new capacity will serve the growing demand for secure, feature-rich chips needed by high-growth markets including automotive, 5G connectivity and the Internet of Things. The facility will also support national security requirements for a secure supply chain.
These investments to expand GF’s U.S. manufacturing footprint are part of the company’s broader global expansion plans that include the recently announced new fab in Singapore and $1 billion planned investment to expand in Germany, all to meet the growing demand from customers worldwide.
“Our expansion and job creation in Malta requires a new economic model, based on the bold public-private partnerships being championed in Washington by visionary leaders Senator Schumer and Secretary Raimondo, as well as close collaboration with our customers,” said GF CEO Tom Caulfield. “Our industry is expected to grow more in the next decade than it did in the past 50 years and GF is stepping up to do its part as we work together to address the growing demand for technology innovation for the betterment of humanity. We are honored to be joined by government and automotive leaders, national security experts, and our valued customers to continue the critical discussions needed to create a reliable supply of American-made chips to support the U.S. economy and national security.”
GF employs more than 15,000 worldwide with 7,000 people across the U.S., and nearly 3,000 at its headquarters in Malta, New York. GF has invested more than $15 billion in its Fab 8 facility over the last decade to support innovation and increase manufacturing capacity. As an accredited supplier of advanced semiconductors to the U.S. government, GF delivers secure and reliable semiconductor solutions at Fab 8, which is compliant with the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Moreover, GF offers the highest industry, customer and government criteria for secure manufacturing, worldwide, through its GF Shield program.
