(L-R) are Consulate General of the Republic of Korea Yoonjoo Park; Director, 3D Systems Packaging Research Center (PRC) at the Georgia Institute of Technology Madhavan Swaminathan; SKC CEO Won Cheol Park; Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson; Senator Jon Ossoff; Absolics CEO Jun Oh; Mayor of Covington, Steve Horton; and Newton County Chairman Marcello Banes.
A new $600 million manufacturing facility that will supply advanced materials to the U.S. semiconductor industry is set to be built in Covington, Ga., following a groundbreaking ceremony Nov. 1.
Absolics Inc., a subsidiary of SKC Co. Ltd., a South Korea-based conglomerate, was formed last year. Its first factory will employ more than 400 people with high-skilled jobs in Georgia when the plant is open. The facility is being constructed to help strengthen the U.S. semiconductor supply chain by manufacturing a new material that supports next-generation computing systems.
The Georgia site will make Absolics' inaugural product, a glass substrate, or thin layer of glass, upon which processing and memory chips can be mounted together to create the brains of a computing system. The material reduces the space needed for a multi-chip package, allowing up to four times more chips to be packed into a single device, according to a company news release.
The glass substrate is considered a technological breakthrough because it can significantly increase the performance and energy efficiency of chipsets. SKC and Absolics originally developed the expertise as part of a research consortium with the Georgia Tech.
Absolics will be the first company in the world to mass produce the material.
The manufacturing facility is slated to be built in two phases, Absolics noted. The first phase, planned for completion by the end of 2023, will be a $240 million investment expected to create 140 jobs and focus on small-volume manufacturing. Mass production in this part of the factory is planned to begin in the second quarter of 2024.
The second phase of the Georgia plant is expected to be a $360 million investment that creates another 270 jobs and ramps up to high-volume manufacturing. This phase should be completed over the next three to five years.
Georgia Plant to Help Meet Product Demand
The planned investment announced at the factory's groundbreaking, attended by officials including U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff and state Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson, represents an increase from the $473 million originally announced in October 2021. SKC and Absolics raised projections for the investment based on the need for more advanced manufacturing equipment to meet expected demand.
"Absolics will be an integral part of the semiconductor ecosystem in the U.S.," said Woncheol Park, SKC's president and CEO. "We are pleased to build a factory and create hundreds of jobs that will have a positive impact on the city of Covington and the state of Georgia."
In his remarks to those in attendance at the ceremony, Ossoff said, "I am working every day to bring jobs and business to the state of Georgia. This new plant will create Georgia jobs, support U.S. national security, and bring more advanced manufacturing to our state."
Material Enables More Chips in Less Space
Absolics' glass substrate nears completion in its manufacturing process. The material will reduce the space required for a multi-chip package, allowing for more chips to be packed into a single device.
The manufacturing standard today is to place chips, like the ones Absolics plans to make, on a thin layer of silicon imposer that sits on top of a plastic substrate. The company's new glass material replaces both layers, simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing the thickness of the package by almost half. Certain components, such as multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCC), can be embedded in the glass substrate, freeing more space on the surface for chips.
Absolics noted the packaging part of the semiconductor industry is becoming more important as companies try to reach new levels of performance for their computing devices.
The energy efficiency of the glass substrate also reduces overall power consumption by up to 50 percent, driving down costs and environmental impact, especially when applied at scale in large data centers.
The company expects the first phase of the Covington factory to have an annual production capacity of roughly 14,352-sq.-yds., with the second phase ramping up to annual production capacity of 86,111-sq.-yds.
"The development of Absolics is an exciting opportunity to grow the semiconductor industry in Georgia and the entire United States — a need that is growing daily as we plan for an increasingly electrified future," said Wilson. "Located at SKC's existing campus in Covington, this new venture came about through research conducted at Georgia Tech, and it is the perfect example of how the state of Georgia is participating in the innovative solutions of the future."
SKC CEO Won Cheol Park speaks to U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff about the breakthrough technology that will be manufactured at the new Covington facility.
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