Tool represents first equipment procurement under EDA Build Back Better Program at NeoCity in Osceola County, Florida
OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–SkyWater Technology (NASDAQ: SKYT), the trusted technology realization partner and BRIDG, a not-for-profit, public-private-partnership for the fabrication of microelectronics, today announced the delivery and installation of Nordson TEST & INSPECTION’s D9650 C-SAM system at the Center for Neovation located at NeoCity in Osceola County, Florida. The new tool will be utilized by SkyWater Florida to enhance onsite metrology capabilities for advanced packaging and heterogeneous integration technology.
Made possible through an award granted to the Central Florida Semiconductor Coalition from the U.S. Department of Commerce EDA Build Back Better Regional Challenge (EDA BBBRC), announced in September 2022 with Osceola County, the Nordson D9650 acoustic micro imaging instrument represents the first new tool acquired by the coalition to support facility and equipment enhancements at the Center for Neovation. This grant will be used to grow Osceola County’s NeoCity as an innovation center for semiconductor research, design and manufacturing, and will help address the microchip shortage, lower costs and boost local high paying jobs.
Coalition partners include the Orlando Economic Partnership, the University of Central Florida (UCF), BRIDG, SkyWater, the Florida High Tech Corridor, Valencia College and the Osceola Chamber. The Osceola County coalition was one of 21 winners out of over 500 submissions and the only recipient from the semiconductor industry.
“During a time when our nation’s semiconductor industry is losing global market share, we’re working together at NeoCity to change this trajectory,” stated Don Fisher, Osceola County manager. “Through funding made possible from the EDA BBBRC award, we welcome our newest inspection tool to the Center for Neovation – the first of several tools to come!”
“Investments made in semiconductor technology R&D are critical to our nation, and partnerships are essential to building an attractive economic ecosystem,” said Jim Vandevere, BRIDG president. “We’re proud to leverage the EDA BBBRC award in Osceola County, Florida to reach this key milestone and continue investing in our region, strengthening our role as the domestic hub for advanced packaging.”
“The implementation of Nordson TEST & INSPECTION’s D9650 C-SAM system at SkyWater Florida represents a significant addition to our metrology capabilities for heterogeneous integration technologies that we’re establishing,” said Dale Miller, VP and general manager of SkyWater Florida. “This system will primarily support package and assembly inspection operations and can also support the hybrid wafer bonding technology we have licensed from Adeia as well as other advanced packaging applications we continue to implement at the Center for Neovation.”
About Nordson TEST & INSPECTION
Nordson TEST & INSPECTION, a division of Nordson Corporation, offers its customers a robust product portfolio, including Acoustic, Optical and Manual X-ray Inspection, Autonomous X-ray Inspection, X-ray Component Counting and Nordson X-ray Technologies. Nordson TEST & INSPECTION is uniquely positioned to serve its customers with best-in-class precision technologies, passionate sales and support teams, global reach, and unmatched consultative applications expertise.
About D9650 C-SAM System, by Nordson TEST & INSPECTION
The D9650 is an industry-leading lab-based acoustic microimaging inspection system, powered by C-SAM technology, that delivers unrivaled accuracy and robustness for failure analysis, process development, material characterization and low volume production inspection. The D9650 is designed for component screening applications and provides non-destructive analysis in the semiconductor packaging industry. Ideal for 300mm wafers as well as large substrate panels and commonly used to identify voids or delamination in electronic packaging applications such as hybrid wafer bonding and molded or underfilled devices. CSAM can also create cross-sectional, 2-D plane images, and thickness images of samples.
About BRIDG
BRIDG is a not-for-profit, public-private partnership specializing in digital, RF, and photonics silicon interposer technology development coupled with advanced packaging capabilities. As an ITAR-certified and DMEA trust-ready supplier, BRIDG offers R&D expertise and a 200mm microelectronics fabrication facility geared toward system miniaturization, device integration, hardware security, and product manufacturing key to aerospace, defense, automotive, telecommunications, medical, and the IoT/AI revolution. Supported by Osceola County, Florida High Tech Corridor Council, imec, Orlando Economic Partnership, TEL, SUSS, Siemens, and SkyWater Technology (Center for NeoVation operator), BRIDG provides the physical infrastructure and collaborative process to connect challenges and opportunities with solutions; “Bridging the Innovation Development Gap” making commercialization possible. Located at NeoCity—a 500-acre master-planned community of innovation in Florida—BRIDG is centrally located 20 minutes from Orlando International Airport and within a mile of Florida’s Turnpike. For more information, visit www.GoBRIDG.com.
About NeoCity
Following the impacts of the Great Recession, Osceola County decided to make a long-term investment to create a 500-acre technology district, known as NeoCity to diversify its economy. Since then, Osceola County, and their regional partners, have invested over $273 million to make NeoCity the hub to Central Florida’s burgeoning semiconductor industry. NeoCity’s anchor building, the Center for Neovation, (total of 109,000 sq. ft) consisting of a 36,000 square ft. cleanroom, is one of the most technologically advanced manufacturing research centers in the western hemisphere, home to SkyWater Technology, imec USA, BRIDG, TEL, and SUSS MicroTec. The Osceola County School District’s NeoCity Academy, located next to the Center for Neovation, works with SkyWater, BRIDG, and imec USA to provide internships for the high school students to work in the lab. For more information, visit www.NeoCityFL.com.
About SkyWater Technology
SkyWater (NASDAQ: SKYT) is a U.S.-based semiconductor manufacturer and a DMEA-accredited Category 1A Trusted Foundry. SkyWater’s Technology as a Service model streamlines the path to production for customers with development services, volume production and heterogeneous integration solutions in its world-class U.S. facilities. This pioneering model enables innovators to co-create the next wave of technology with diverse categories including mixed-signal CMOS, ROICs, rad-hard ICs, power management, MEMS, superconducting ICs, photonics, carbon nanotubes and interposers. SkyWater serves growing markets including aerospace & defense, automotive, biomedical, cloud & computing, consumer, industrial and IoT. For more information, visit www.skywatertechnology.com/.
SkyWater Technology Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements that are based on the Company’s current expectations or forecasts of future events, rather than past events and outcomes, and such statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, which may cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Key factors that could cause the Company’s actual results to be different than expected or anticipated include, but are not limited to, factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of its annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and in other documents that the Company files with the SEC, which are available at http://www.sec.gov. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.
SKYT-CORP
Contacts
BRIDG Media Contact: Gloria LeQuang | glequang@gobridg.com
SkyWater Company Contact: Tara Luther | 952.851.5023 | tara.luther@skywatertechnology.com
SkyWater Media Contact: Lauri Julian | 949.280.5602 | lauri.julian@skywatertechnology.com
Nordson TEST & INSPECTION Contact: Carla Furanna | 952.820.5837
