For more than 50 years, Intel has been innovating, investing, and supporting global semiconductor manufacturing and R&D to advance the digital age.
2023 was no exception, with Intel teams around the globe installing new tools, delivering new cleanrooms, and completing the construction of new buildings.
Consider these incredible facts: in 2023, around 145,000 tons of steel were used to build and expand these new facilities. Throughout last year, the construction team also poured more than 2 million cubic yards of concrete across all of Intel's projects, enough concrete to build 32 times the Empire State Building in New York.
"Intel's global manufacturing network is fundamental to the success of our operations as we build a resilient, trustworthy, and sustainable supply chain for the entire industry," said Keyvan Esfarjani, Intel's executive vice president and chief global operating officer. "We must continue to invest in the future and develop a plan for success to support the expected growth in long-term global semiconductor demand. ”
Here's a look back at Intel's 10 largest construction projects in the world (in Arizona, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Ireland, Israel, Magdeburg, Penang and Kulim in Malaysia, and Poland) and what to expect from these construction sites in 2024.
Arizona, USA: Fab 52 and 62 concrete superstructures completed
Progress to date: Intel is investing more than $32 billion to build two new leading-edge chip factories and modernize an existing fab at the Ocotillo campus in Chandler, Arizona, where Intel will produce some of the world's most advanced logic chips. In December 2023, the construction team achieved an important milestone for Fab 52: the completion of the "cheese slab" concrete pouring, which forms the foundation of the plant level.
To date, the construction team has poured more than 430,000 cubic yards of concrete, enough to fill 132 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
The team also began installing the plant's Automated Material Handling System (AMHS). Think of it as a fully automated highway that winds around the fab, transporting wafers from one station to another.
New Mexico, USA: Fab 9 and Fab 11x continue to install tooling before foundry capacity ramps up
Progress to date: Last year was a tough one for Intel New Mexico as the team provided pristine cleanroom space and facilitated tooling installations for Fab 9 and Fab 11x.
In late January, Intel celebrated the opening of Fab 9. This is the company's advanced packaging manufacturing center and the only high-volume advanced packaging facility in the U.S. to date. Intel is investing more than $4 billion to provide equipment for Intel's advanced semiconductor packaging manufacturing operations at its Rio Rancho campus in New Mexico. Later this year, the team will install and validate more tools in Fabs 9 and 11x.
Ohio, USA: More than 248,000 dump trucks loaded with dirt were moved
Progress to date: In Ohio, Intel's latest U.S. factory construction in more than 40 years is well underway. There are a lot of amazingly cool numbers: think of more than 4 million cubic yards of earthwork last year, which equates to the load of about 248,000 dump trucks. The team also installed 10 miles of underground utilities and 32 miles of pipeline.
Intel broke ground on its New Albany, Ohio, facility in September 2022 and invested more than $28 billion to build two new leading chip factories. The initial phase of the Ohio project is expected to create 3,000 Intel jobs, 7,000 construction jobs, and approximately 10,000 indirect jobs.
In 2022, Intel committed an additional $100 million to build partnerships with educational institutions to build talent pipelines and support research projects in the region. The investment includes a $50 million global partnership with the National Science Foundation and $50 million to fund the Ohio Semiconductor Education and Research Program (SERP).
This year, the team will continue to build the above-ground utility level of the new fab and will receive overloads (oversized truck-loaded manufacturing equipment) from Manchester in Adams County to Intel's One Ohio Campus in New Albany.
Oregon, USA: Gordon Moore Park breaks ground on a new manufacturing support building
Progress to date: In September 2023, Intel celebrated the groundbreaking of MSB2, a new support building adjacent to the existing D1X fab, Intel's largest technology development site. Intel plans to invest more than $36 billion in Hillsboro's R&D division, which will enable Intel to deliver industry-leading process technology beyond 2025.
With the construction progress accelerating, the site is still lively this year. When completed, the MSB2 will provide an additional 35,000 square feet of cleanroom space, six truck docks to provide the D1X with a tool installation ramp faster than ever before, and a 65,000-pound elevator to handle the heaviest parts in ASML cuts with a high-NAU extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography scanner at the edge. (ASML delivered its first high-NA EUV system to Intel in December.) ）
Lexlip, Ireland: Fab 34 is the first chip factory in Europe to use EUV in high-volume chip manufacturing
Current progress: In September, Fab 34's Mod 1 officially began mass production using Intel 4 process technology. Fab 34 is the first plant in Europe to use EUV in high-volume manufacturing.
"Intel's Irish operations are the cornerstone of our global manufacturing footprint and an important part of building an end-to-end semiconductor manufacturing value chain in Europe," Esfarjani said at the celebration.
"As we continue to advance our €17 billion investment, this marks a significant milestone and victory for our Irish business as it brings Intel's latest and greatest Intel 4 technology, which leverages EUV, to Fab 34, Ireland and Europe," he said. ”
In January, Fab 34 celebrated its first Meteor Lake shipment. With Mod 1 up and running, all eyes are on bringing the next cleanroom – Mod 2 – to life.
Kiryat Gat, Israel: A new $25 billion plant is under construction
Progress to date: Kiryat Gat – currently home to Intel's state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Israel – will soon receive Fab 38. The $25 billion expansion adjacent to Fab 28 will produce advanced chips using EUV lithography.
The Israeli plant currently employs about 11,000 people in four locations: Haifa (a key hardware and software development center for processors and artificial intelligence), Petah Tikva (a communications and AI solutions development center), Jerusalem (home to Mobileye's global development center for autonomous vehicles, and a communications, software, and cybersecurity development center) and Kiryat Gat.
The year 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of Intel Israel's operations.
Magdeburg, Germany: Good Neighbour and New Apprenticeship Scheme
Progress to date: In June 2023, Intel announced the signing of a revised letter of intent with the German government to expand the scope of government incentives for Intel's planned state-of-the-art wafer fabrication facility in Magdeburg.
In September, Intel leaders showed how Intel intends to be good neighbors to the local community as the Magdeburg factory grows: they participated in the Ottersleben Summer Fair, a popular community event that includes Intel demo booths and panel discussions.
The team is excited about the launch of a new technical internship program this year. The apprentices will spend two years in Magdeburg and then a third year at Intel's Irish facility to see first-hand how factory tools work.
It's also important for Intel to work with local communities to help shape the region's future. Recently with SC Magdeburg and 1. This is evidenced by the technical cooperation of FC Magdeburg Sports Club.
Malaysia: A US$7 billion state-of-the-art packaging facility and a new ATM factory are taking shape
Progress to date: In late 2021, Intel announced a major expansion of its factory in Penang, Malaysia. The $7 billion investment represents Intel's largest advanced packaging facility for 3D packaging technology, which will occupy 710,000 square feet of cleanroom with two floors of manufacturing space.
This isn't Intel Malaysia's only expansion project. In Kulim, about an hour's drive from Penang, Malaysia's fifth assembly test manufacturing (ATM) factory is under construction.
Both teams are preparing the construction site for the first capital tools:
In Kulim, the Intel team will begin moving into factory tools in the first half of this year.
In Penang, the Intel team is looking forward to opening the new factory later this year. The joint team has already started shipping critical plant tools: the first cleanroom equipment began to be shipped to the site in wooden crates from a nearby warehouse in November. Each crate weighs up to one ton.
Wroclaw West, Poland: Promoting science and technology courses in cooperation with local universities
Progress to date: In June 2023, Intel unveiled plans to build a new assembly and test facility in Wroclaw's West District, Poland, which will support approximately 2,000 employees.
The $4.6 billion project will be the largest greenfield investment in Poland's history. The location was chosen for several reasons: existing infrastructure, a strong talent base, and an excellent business environment.
Intel continues its activities with local communities and collaborates with universities. Intel's recent agreement with the Wroclaw University of Science and Technology is an example of this. Areas covered by the agreement include joint R&D projects, the development and adaptation of educational programs to bring them closer to the real needs of the industry, and the ability to teach by Intel experts.
Intel is engaged in activities to develop human resources and support education. For example, agreements with the Ministry of Education and GovTech to introduce AI teaching to secondary schools as part of Intel's ® Digital Ready Education program, as well as collaborations with universities such as Poznan University of Technology, AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow, and others. The Silesian University of Technology, where Intel Labs was opened, and a new field of research was introduced.
[Source: Semiconductor Industry Observation]