GlobalFoundries (GF) recently announced the official opening of its US$4 billion (S$5 billion) expansion fabrication plant (fab) in Singapore. The 23,000 sqm fab will create 1,000 high-value jobs in Singapore, 95% of which will include equipment technicians, process technicians, and engineers. The official opening ceremony was graced by Lawrence Wong, Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, along with Ahmed Yahia Al Idrissi, Chairman of the GF Board of Directors, additional GF Board members, and GF executives, including President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Thomas Caulfield, Chief Manufacturing Officer Kay Chai (KC) Ang, and Senior Vice President and General Manager of GlobalFoundries Singapore Tan Yew Kong, among others.
This new facility will boost the company’s global manufacturing footprint and reinforce its ability to deliver product security and flexibility to customers across its manufacturing sites in three continents. And as Singapore’s most advanced semiconductor facility to date, the expansion fab will produce an additional 450,000 wafers (300mm) annually, raising GF Singapore’s overall capacity to approximately 1.5 million wafers (300mm) annually.
Singapore’s semiconductor output currently comprises 11% of the global semiconductor market. And this is set to grow as the country advances towards its Manufacturing 2030 vision to become a global hub for advanced manufacturing.
The new facility spans a cleanroom space of over 23,000 sqm. And the first tool was moved into the facility in June 2022, just within a year of the groundbreaking ceremony. The building’s design is engineered to prioritize sustainability, earning both the Administration and Manufacturing buildings Green Mark Gold status from Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority. Plus, it is outfitted with the latest technologies and solutions to manage resources and waste, recycle and reuse water and increase overall energy efficiency.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are thrilled to ramp our operations at the Singapore expansion site. This site is instrumental in ensuring that we have the capacity our customers need as they seek to strengthen their supply chains. This new facility is the result of our close partnership with our customers and the Singapore government, and testament to the hard work and effort put in by our employees.”
— Dr. Thomas Caulfield, president and CEO of GlobalFoundries
“GlobalFoundries’ fab expansion in Singapore will extend its leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, amid expectations of robust long-term growth for the sector. The new facility will invigorate Singapore’s sophisticated semiconductor ecosystem that serves different parts of the value chain, through the creation of 1,000 good jobs and partnerships with local small-and-medium enterprises. EDB looks forward to working towards the next milestone with GlobalFoundries.”
— Jacqueline Poh, Managing Director of EDB
