Nexperia, the expert in essential semiconductors, has announced the latest stage of its global growth strategy, confirming a $700 million investment over the next 12-15 months at its European wafer fabs, assembly factories in Asia and global R&D sites.
The new investment will boost manufacturing capacity at all sites while supporting research and development into areas such as gallium nitride-based (GaN) wide bandgap semiconductors and power management ICs. It will also underpin recruitment activities, with Nexperia looking to attract new chip designers and engineers.
“This is an exciting time in the global semiconductor market, which has mounted a resurgence since the challenges of the first half of last year,” says Achim Kempe, Nexperia’s Chief Operating Officer. “Nexperia reported robust product sales of $1.4B in 2020, with demand accelerating rapidly in Q3 and Q4. That momentum has been maintained so far this year, and we expect it to continue over the long term. The $700 million investment will ensure that we continue to provide the technology and manufacturing capacity needed to deliver products in volumes that support increasing demand.”
As a result, the capacity of the Hamburg fab in Germany – which currently produces more than 35,000 wafers (8-inch-equivalent) per month (70 billion semiconductors per year) – will further increase by 20 per cent from mid-2022. While in the UK, at Nexperia’s dedicated TrenchMOS fabrication facility in Manchester, the capacity will rise by 10 per cent by mid-2022 from the current 24,000 wafers (8-inch-equivalent) per month.
There will also be a significant expansion of research and development activities, with new laboratories and other facilities across all sites. This includes Nexperia’s headquarters in Nijmegen, where the Analog & Logic business group is located. Recruitment activities will be stepped up, as Nexperia looks to fill over 200 global vacancies primarily across various technical roles.
The investments are in line with the company’s strategy to achieve growth across the globe, increase its industrial footprint and market share. “Even before the pandemic started, Nexperia had a strong global growth strategy in place,” says Toni Versluijs, general manager of Nexperia’s MOSFETs and GaN FETs business. “These efforts are now paying off. An example is the imminent release of our first power MOSFETs from the new 8-inch production line in Manchester. As the recovery continues, we are committed to ongoing investment in products, processes and people across our factories and R&D facilities. This sustained activity reflects our belief in the long-term prospects for the power semiconductor sector.”
For more information visit www.nexperia.com/about
About Nexperia
Nexperia is a leading expert in the high-volume production of essential semiconductors, components that are required by every electronic design in the world. The company’s extensive portfolio includes diodes, bipolar transistors, ESD protection devices, MOSFETs, GaN FETs and analog & logic ICs. Headquartered in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, Nexperia annually ships more than 90 billion products, meeting the stringent standards set by the automotive industry. These products are recognized as benchmarks in efficiency – in process, size, power and performance — with industry-leading small packages that save valuable energy and space.
With decades of experience in supplying to the world’s leading companies, Nexperia has over 12,000 employees across Asia, Europe and the US. Nexperia, a subsidiary of Wingtech Technology Co., Ltd. (600745.SS), has an extensive IP portfolio and is certified to IATF 16949, ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001.