KEDAH, MALAYSIA – AT&S is beginning construction on a state-of-the-art factory for IC substrates here.

The firm plans to invest RM 8.5 billion (€1.7 billion) for phase one of the new 100,000 sq. m. campus. The official groundbreaking is Oct. 30, with commercial operations targeted for 2024.

AT&S plans to hire approximately 6,000 employees at the site, which will house 2,000 machines.

“I want to thank the Malaysian government, as well as the MIDA (the government's principal promotion agency under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry) for the great support throughout the entire process, from the start of our location scouting until today,” said AT&S CEO Andreas Gerstenmayer. “Already today, Malaysia is an important hub for the chip supply chain. We are convinced Malaysia can further strengthen its position as a technology country and will develop its position in the region as a high-tech manufacturing hub in Asia.”

“AT&S brings the latest generation of high-end technologies to Malaysia and will establish a completely new technology sector in one of the future global microelectronic hotspots. In addition to manufacturing high-tech products, extensive R&D activities will also be conducted at this new site,” said AT&S COO Ingolf Schroeder.

AT&S is investigating cooperation and partnerships with leading universities in Malaysia.

“These partnerships will not only help us discover new paths for the microelectronics industry,” Gerstenmayer said. “They will also make an important contribution to the development of extensive know-how in the various areas of the microelectronics industry for Malaysia and, at the end of the day, contribute to the positive development of the society.”