Apr 20, 2001 Fujitsu plans to spend $811 millions over the next five years to create a semiconductor research and production centre in Tokyo. The construction work will begin even as the company shifts chip production away from its own Japanese fabs to Taiwanese manufacturers.
Essentially, Fujitsu is parcelling out production of low-margin parts like DRAM, while focusing its own efforts on more profitable, complex chips aimed at embedded applications like networking equipment.
So, Taiwanese fabs will take on 20-30 per cent of Fujitsu's semiconductor production, up from around ten per cent. The company hopes that the move will help it trim ten per cent off its manufacturing costs.
The new plant is expected to begin test production in the autumn, when it will churn out around 1000 wafers per month, ultimately rising to 10,000 wafers per month. The plant will develop and use a 0.1 micron process.
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