Intel Corp. is in the process of a $3 billion expansion at its Ronler Acres factory in Hillsboro, Oregon. The first tool toward the expansion was delivered recently, marking a construction milestone at the facility.
Unlike tools that are used in construction, fab tools are enormous and cost millions of dollars. It takes teams to place and install the tools inside a factory.
The first piece of equipment was a thin film deposition tool that arrived on two semi-tractor trailers weighing 10 tons.
Over the next six months, the thin film deposition tool will be joined by a dozen more tools. Intel said that once a fab is completed, it will be filled with about 1,200 chipmaking tools.
The expansion of the Oregon facility is part of Intel’s overall strategy to expand its semiconductor manufacturing presence in the U.S. and worldwide to compensate for the lack of domestic chipmaking and the aggregation of chipmakers located in Asia. This would also help dampen the blow in the event of another global pandemic or geopolitical issues.
Intel is expanding or building new facilities in Arizona, New Mexico, Ireland, Israel and Costa Rica. This includes the two new fabs the company is building at its Ocotillo campus in Chandler, Arizona, where it is investing some $20 billion.
