Monday, July 10, 2017
Globalfoundries 22FDX attracts orders from Shanghai Fudan
Josephine Lien, Taipei; Jessie Shen, DIGITIMES [Monday 10 July 2017]
Globalfoundries' 22nm FD-SOI process, dubbed 22FDX, has obtained orders from Shanghai Fudan Microelectronics, according to industry sources.
Shanghai Fudan will likely become the first China-based customer of Globalfoundries' 22FDX, said the sources. Shanghai Fudan will use the process to manufacture mainly processor chips for artificial intelligence (AI) and Big Data applications.
Shanghai Fudan's first product manufactured using Globalfoundries' 22FDX is expected to be available in the second half of 2018, the sources indicated.
Shanghai Fudan is already partnering with Globalfoundries in the smart card IC segment, the sources added.
MediaTek will potentially be another customer of Globalfoundries' 22FDX, the sources noted. The Taiwan-based mobile chip supplier is evaluating the feasibility of using Globalfoundries' 22FDX to manufacture its IoT-related chips, the sources continued.
Globalfoundries and the Chengdu municipality recently disclosed plans to jointly build a FD-SOI ecosystem in China with an investment of more than US$100 million, which has attracted the participation of many EDA and IP providers including Cadence, Synopsys, Invecas, Verisilicon and Encore Semi. The announcement followed the pair's joint statement on the establishment of a new 12-inch wafer fab in Chengdu.
Construction of the new Chengdu fab has commenced, and is scheduled to complete in early 2018, according to Globalfoundries. The fab will begin production of mainstream process technologies in 2018 and then focus on manufacturing 22FDX, with volume production expected to start in 2019.
Globalfoundries in 2015 rolled out its 22FDX developed specifically for the rapidly-evolving mainstream mobile, IoT, RF connectivity and networking markets. The technology delivers FinFET-like performance and energy-efficiency at a cost comparable to 28nm planar technologies.
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Confirming the value of this, see https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickmoorhead/2017/06/09/globalfoundries-gets-22fdx-china-vote-of-confidence-with-100m-chengdu-investment/#2a1e05fc3668
ReplyDeleteI believe the odds are with all things equal, Chinese SoC and chip companies will choose you as their partner if the government is invested. That’s why the $100 million investment from the Chengdu government is a big deal as it confirms the municipality’s commitment to the project and the growth of the industry around it. The goal is to attract chip companies to move to Chengdu and hire engineers to create multiple design centers and turn Chengdu into a center of excellence for designing 22FDX chips for mainstream mobile, IoT, automotive, RF connectivity and other growth markets. The Chinese government and local municipalities are becoming increasingly interested in creating a home-grown semiconductor industry inside of China and this project in Chengdu is one of those key efforts.
GlobalFoundries could be on the brink of something very big with the project in Chengdu as the company is expanding into a very large market with an appetite for modern high-growth technologies. Because chip fabrication is such a high-skilled process that attracts other highly-skilled jobs, it only seems logical that the Chinese government in Chengdu would want to participate in facilitating that growth. Globalfoundries has done a good job of having large semiconductor customers like AMD, MediaTek and Rockchip express their interest in the Chengdu project and encourage others in China to follow.