TI opens its first semicon fab in China

CHENGDU, CHINA: Texas Instruments Inc. (TI) has announced its first wafer fabrication facility, or "fab," in China. This important milestone puts manufacturing close to the company's growing customer base there.

Located in the Chengdu High-tech Zone (CDHT), which is considered by many to be China's next major technology hub, TI Chengdu will further expand TI's analog production capacity.

The fab is a fully equipped 200mm manufacturing facility and was purchased from Cension Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. It includes an operating 120,000-square- foot fab that can support more than $1 billion in annual revenue and a 134,000-square-foot fab reserved for future production needs.

"TI has been committed to serving the China market for 25 years," said Gregg Lowe, TI senior vice president for Analog. "Increasingly, customers there are using TI's analog chips for the real-world functions in their electronic applications. This fab in Chengdu will strengthen our ability to support customers' growing requirements and deliver analog products when and where customers need them."

This announcement follows TI manufacturing expansions in the US, Japan and Germany over the past 24 months.