X-FAB manufactures MEMS components including pressure and acceleration sensors, microphones, and microfluidic systems used, for example, in automobiles, smartphones, and medical technology. X-FAB is investing a total of around €40 million in expanding its MEMS production capacity in Erfurt, the capital of Thuringia. The Thuringian Ministry of Economic Affairs is supporting the project with approximately €11 million from funds allocated through the joint federal and state program "Improvement of Regional Economic Structures" (GRW). The establishment of this highly innovative business sector is a major gain for the Thuringian economy, said Tiefensee: "The new production facility will sustainably strengthen Erfurt as a traditional microelectronics hub." Thuringia needs economic drivers like X-FAB that generate growth, employment, and innovative impetus locally. The Ministry of Economic Affairs will continue to support X-FAB's development to the best of its ability. “MEMS technologies are in high demand worldwide, and the growth prospects for this sector are very positive. The new MEMS factory not only expands our technological capabilities and production capacities, but also significantly strengthens the X-FAB site in Erfurt,” said Rudi De Winter, CEO of the X-FAB Group. “With the Thuringian Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Thuringian Development Bank, and LEG Thüringen we have strong partners at our side who have provided outstanding support for our investment in a new MEMS factory and made the decision to locate in Erfurt possible in the first place.” X-FAB received the funding commitment in September 2012. In May 2014, a lease agreement was signed between X-FAB and LEG Thüringen for a hall complex at the company's headquarters. Following the granting of the building permit, construction of the cleanroom began in the summer of 2014. With the completion and commissioning of the cleanroom, the installation and preparation of the production equipment is now underway. Prototype production is scheduled for the second half of the year, so that volume production can begin in the first quarter of next year. X-FAB MEMS Foundry currently employs around 70 people. Further hiring is planned.
About X-FAB
The X-FAB Group is a leading analog/mixed-signal and MEMS foundry, manufacturing silicon wafers to customer specifications for applications in the automotive, industrial, medical technology, and consumer goods sectors. Customers worldwide benefit from the highest quality standards, excellent manufacturing, and innovative solutions based on modular CMOS, BiCMOS, and MEMS processes in geometries ranging from 1.0 to 0.18 micrometers. Analog-digital integrated circuits (mixed-signal ICs), sensors, and MEMS components are manufactured in five wafer fabrication plants in Germany, Malaysia, and the USA. X-FAB employs approximately 2,400 people worldwide. Further information is available at [website address - not provided in the original text] www.xfab.com. Joint press release from X-FAB AG and the Thuringian Ministry for Economic Affairs, Science and Digital Society
