A consortium of high-tech companies has decided to develop its research center for the next generation of computer chips at the State University of New York in Albany, Governor Pataki announced July 18.
A similar investment by the consortium, International Sematach, in Austin, Tex., set off a high-tech boom in that university city beginning in the 1980s.
International Sematech is a joint venture of seven U.S.-based
IBM, Intel, Motorola, Hewlett-Packard, Texas Instruments,
Advanced Micro Devices and Agere Systems; along with Hynix
(based in Korea), Infineon Technologies (Germany), Royal Philips
Electronics (Netherlands), ST Microelectronics (Switzerland)
and Taiwan Semiconductor.
The planned $400 million investment will leverage the advanced chip-making research based at UAlbanys School of Nanosciences, headed by Alain E. Kaloyeros. He said the Sematech facility will make Albany the lead R&D hub in the world for this industry.
Governor Pataki said the semiconductor industry's choice of New York "makes clear that our Center of Excellence initiative, supported by our tax-cutting policies that have improved our business climate and investments to improve our quality of life and our schools, has been an unqualified success."
Business Council President Daniel B. Walsh said This is another sign of upstate New Yorks economic comeback. It shows what you can achieve when you have a proactive government focused on job creation, and when you leverage the resources of a superb system of higher education such as we have in New York.
Juri Matisoo, vice president of technology for the Semiconductor Industry Association, added: "It's clear that New York will become a powerhouse in the semiconductor industry" as a result of the site location decision.
New York lost out to Texas in the competition for Sematechs original siting in 1987. The Governor said negotiations for this new project lasted a full year.
International Sematech said it has signed a letter of intent with UAlbany to begin negotiations on formation of a strategic alliance, to be known as International Sematech North, to conduct research and development in advanced lithography infrastructure for extreme ultraviolet lithography. As currently envisioned, the program will be managed by International Sematech and housed in UAlbany's state-of-the-art, 300mm wafer cleanroom complex
"Together, International Sematech and UAlbany can help the global semiconductor industry by tackling a key technical challenge -- the development of a new infrastructure to support next generation lithography," said Bob Helms, president/CEO of International Sematech.
For the International Sematech announcement, www.sematech.org/corporate/news/releases/20020718.htm.