A new semiconductor foundry will be built in upstate New York as part of a newly formed joint venture between Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) and the Advanced Technology Co., AMD said March 4.
The new company will operate under the name Globalfoundries. It will serve as a supplier for AMD and service third-party customers.
The company plans to begin construction on a $4.2 billion manufacturing facility in Saratoga County, N.Y., in 2009. This new facility will be named Fab 2 and is expected to create approximately 1,400 new direct jobs and more than 5,000 indirect jobs in the region.
The company also is proceeding with plans to expand its Dresden, Germany, manufacturing lines by bringing a second 300mm manufacturing facility with bulk silicon capabilities online in late 2009.
"Despite the negative impact of the economic slowdown on the semiconductor industry, the long-term growth of the industry remains strong," the company said in a statement. "An increasing number of chip-makers are exiting manufacturing in the face of growing cost and complexity and instead looking to independent foundry companies for a secure outside source of production. At the same time, they are also looking for more advanced manufacturing technologies to help improve the performance, efficiency and cost of their products."
Globalfoundries named former AMD senior vice president of manufacturing operations Doug Grose its CEO.
