The US CHIPS Act and DPS Group

For those of you who have been tracking the progress of the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America (CHIPS) Act through Congress, you will have heard that the US Senate and House of Representatives have approved the provision of $58 Billion in funding for the development of the domestic US semiconductor supply chain.

So, what is the purpose of the CHIPS Act, and how will the funding be distributed? The overall package will be broken into $38 Billion for direct construction aid and $14 Billion for support and investment provided as tax credits for investment in semiconductor manufacturing improvements and an innovation fund for the development of the supply chain.

As the funding is designed to improve the US domestic Semiconductor industry, it is expected that Intel, GlobalFoundries, Micron, Texas Instruments, and Samsung will receive most of the funding to aid in their plans.  While not all the ‘big five’ have their roots in the US, all have a significant presence, with currently over 30 Fabrication plants in the US directly employing tens of thousands in their manufacturing organizations.

Why is this important to DPS Group?  Four of the top Five companies are DPS clients, and all five have published plans for expansions or the addition of new facilities once the CHIPS Act is approved.

Intel has announced the addition of five new facilities, 3 in Arizona and 2 in Ohio.  GlobalFoundries has announced the expansion of their Malta Facility in New York with approval to add a new Fab in the same location.  Micron has announced plans to build a new US “Super Fab” similar to the scale of the fab in Asia, and Texas Instruments is building a new facility in Sherman, Texas.    Samsung has already started the construction of a $17B facility in Austin, Texas, and has submitted planning permission for a total of 11 facilities in the greater Austin area.

While historically, the timeframe for a project would be approximately two to three years, the total timeframe for the schemes announced by the big five is now being measured in decades.  Intel’s outline plans in Ohio have a total of 8 Fabrication plants with a build plan of 15 years.  Samsung’s 11 plants are spread over 20 years, and GF, Micron, and Texas Instruments have all indicated that they are reviewing build plans that will result in 10-15 years of continuous build.

DPS is already partnering with these and other organizations by providing Design, Engineering, Procurement, Construction Management, and Commissioning services from our US-based advanced technology groups based in Arizona, New York, Oregon, and most recently, Ohio, with a global team of approximately 600 subject matter experts focused on the semiconductor industry.

As our clients continue to expand their facilities, DPS Group will be ready to support them and grow in line with their plans. The positive impact on DPS as a company and our employees will be evident in the development of a significant long-term backlog of projects and stability in our industry.

The future is very bright for the US semiconductor industry, and we see tremendous growth opportunities for DPS and our professionals.