Spurred on by billions of dollars in federal subsidies and tax credits as a result of the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act, the U.S. semiconductor industry is experiencing a huge renaissance—and this development has important implications for career and technical education (CTE) programs in the nation’s schools and colleges for semiconductor training.
Although America invented the semiconductor, by 2023 about 70 percent of the total manufacturing capacity resided in South Korea, Taiwan, and China, Statista reported—with the Americas ranking fifth in production after Japan.
That led to problems when the world experienced supply chain issues during the pandemic. For instance, auto makers experienced delays in getting the chips that powered automated systems in their vehicles, disrupting their production significantly.
This drove a real push for semiconductor manufacturing to return to the United States, which led to passage of the CHIPS and Science Act. (CHIPS stands for “Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors.”)
The legislation provided $52.7 billion in grants and incentives for semiconductor research, development, and manufacturing, as well as a 25-percent tax credit for capital expenses and other investment in U.S.-based chipmaking facilities.
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) predicts that in the decade following CHIPS enactment, the United States is projected to more than triple its semiconductor manufacturing capacity to 28 percent of global capacity by 2032.
Already, the measure is having a significant impact.
Dozens of companies nationwide have received funding to build chip fabrication plants (or “fabs”) from scratch or upgrade their existing facilities to increase capacity. For example, GlobalFoundries of Burlington, Vermont, received $125 million in CHIPS Act funding to support the revitalization of an existing fab. San Jose, California-based Infinera was awarded $93 million to build a new, modern fab and foundry with more than 40,000 square feet of clean room space. Corning in Canton, New York, got $32 million in funding to scale up its manufacturing processes.
What Do These Developments Mean for Education and CTE?
These new or expanded chip manufacturing facilities throughout the country will require highly trained and skilled workers with a specific knowledge base in semiconductors, creating a massive opportunity for schools and colleges to help fill this need.
Semiconductor manufacturers are clamoring for help in training new workers. Most companies have struggled with shortages of U.S. employees who are qualified to perform this specialized work. Recently, a McKinsey report predicted the potential engineering and technician talent gap could total 146,000 employees by 2029.
About $10 million of the grant to GlobalFoundries will go toward workforce development efforts, including an apprenticeship program for teaching participants how to work in a chip fab.
It’s not only experienced fabrication plant workers who are in high demand; it’s the entire industry supporting these fabs. If you’re an electrician who needs to fix something in a fab, you have to be trained in how to work within a clean room environment. All these support workers need to know how to work in a semiconductor fab.
Schools Must Step Up
At all levels of education, from high schools to community colleges and even four-year programs, schools should be gearing up to deliver graduates not just with manufacturing skills, but with semiconductor-specific skills.
Students who graduate from a CTE program in semiconductor manufacturing would leave school familiar with the terminology, processes, and technologies they would need to know when working in a fab environment. This would be attractive to manufacturers, who could reduce the time they invest in costly training programs by several months.
Intelitek offers semiconductor-specific curriculum and labs designed to give students a hands-on education in semiconductor manufacturing processes, including how to handle chip wafers and work in a clean room environment. This modular solution includes all of the components needed, including an actual clean room setup.
You can learn more about our semiconductor manufacturing training solution here.
