DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) — The Biden-Harris Administration announced on Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Semiconductor Research Corporation Manufacturing Consortium Corporation (SRC) are entering negotiations for the Department to provide SRC $285 million to establish and operate a manufacturing institute headquartered in Durham, North Carolina.
This means the Bull City will be home to what some leaders say will advance semiconductor production in the first-of-its-kind chips manufacturing USA Institute also known as “Smart USA.” The federal program aims to speed up the development of semiconductor technology and shorten the time and cost of chip production.
Durham Mayor Leonardo Williams said he’s excited about the news.
“It feels good to be able to say in Durham, we are building opportunities that provide a decent quality of life to everyone, from jobs to high salaries to innovation,” Williams said.
Semiconductors are used in nearly all forms of modern technology, including in cell phones, refrigerators, data centers and military capabilities. The new institute will focus on using digital twin technology, a kind of technology that makes virtual models of physical counterparts that will ultimately improve decision-making.
“To be an innovation and research state like we are, this is going to pave the way for so many new great paying jobs in the semiconductor arena. We already have a good ground, hold onto that and I believe that this funding will allow us to even expand even more,” NC Governor Roy Cooper said.
The new institute will focus on using digital twin technology, a kind of technology that makes virtual models of physical counterparts that will ultimately improve decision-making.
The institute will use digital twin technology which is a kind of technology that the executive director of Smart USA, Dr. Todd Younkin says is a “virtual representation of an object” that can, in part, improve decision-making by allowing a kind of virtual experimentation.
“You’ve heard about optimized designs, improved production yields, and streamlining planning and operations. All of this can be accomplished with digital twinning,” Dr. Younkin said.
“What we’re talking about today is truly a novel effort to develop and validate and use digital trends to improve domestic semiconductor manufacturing, advanced packaging, assembly and test processes,” Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology Laurie Locasio said.
The announcement comes just two weeks after Durham semiconductor Wolfspeed cut hundreds of jobs, but Mayor Williams is thinking positively about the national investment in Durham.
“I was a little sad,” Mayor Williams said. “Wolfspeed just cut a few jobs. But you know what? We’re making up for it, we’re producing the talent pool that is capable and ready to go into these jobs. And so, therefore, why not create the job opportunities right here in Durham?”
SEE ALSO | Durham-based Wolfspeed to close production facility; tout Chatham County investment
The “Chips Act” was signed by President Biden in August 2022 to boost the country’s role in producing semiconductors. Laurie Locasio, who’s the Undersecretary of Commerce says she hopes the investment continues under the Trump administration.
“It really was a bipartisan effort to bring back semiconductors in the United States and continue us on this trajectory of being the research and development powerhouse in the world. we hope that with this new administration, you’ll also be excited about that opportunity to ring this to the United States,” Loscasio said.
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