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Dive brief:
- The Commerce Department agreed to provide Edwards Vacuum with up to $18 million in proposed direct funding under the CHIPS and Science Act, the government announced on Thursday.
- Edwards Vacuum will use the money to build its $319 million facility in Genesee County, New York, to produce dry vacuum pumps and create approximately 600 jobs.
- The investment aims to strengthen the US supply chain for semiconductor manufacturing, as pumps are crucial for advanced and legacy fabs, the statement said.
Diving knowledge:
Edwards Vacuum first announced the project in 2022 and began its first phase of construction in April. The 240,000-square-foot campus facility will be located in the Western New York Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park, according to New York Governor Kathy Hochul. press release.
The facility will include manufacturing, warehouse and administration facilities, with an initial capacity to produce 10,000 dry pumps per year. The all-electric facility will also seek LEED certification, with the majority of power generated by hydroelectric power, according to the release.
Dry vacuum pumps are installed under semiconductor fabs and maintain the chamber environment where wafers are processed by evacuating toxic fumes and chemicals.
The project aims to fill a gap in the semiconductor supply chain, as there is no domestic production of semiconductor-grade dry vacuum pumps, the Commerce Department said.
UK-based Edwards dry pumps are currently manufactured in Asia.
“By bringing manufacturing to New York, Edwards’ customers, including Micron and GlobalFoundries in New York and Intel in Ohio, will experience shorter lead times, improved responsiveness and reduced CO2 emissions from a manufactured product in the United States,” Hochul stated. The company estimates that when the first phase is operational, it will reduce CO2 emissions by 13,000 tons per year.
The company also has manufacturing facilities in Chandler, Arizona and Haverhill, Massachusetts, according to a 2022 report. press release.
The project will work alongside the New York State workforce center Investing in America to prepare people for jobs in the semiconductor supply chain.
Edwards Vacuum also partners with Genesee Community College for workforce training and is a member of the NY SMART I-Corridor Consortium Technology Centerwhich focuses on computing with artificial intelligence.
Edwards Vacuum plans to claim up to 25% of capital expenditures through the Treasury Department’s investment tax credit.
The Commerce Department can still negotiate the terms of the award after conducting due diligence, according to the release.
