US veterans' chip making ', international chip experts believe talent shortage is the main obstacle to growth

Global chip experts believe that talent shortage is the main obstacle to growth. With the weakening of global economic growth, politicians and universities in various countries are eager to make the most of it, which has a significant impact on the funding sources of research institutions.

The shortage of workers in the global semiconductor industry may be the biggest obstacle to growth, as evidenced by TSMC's announcement this week to postpone wafer fab construction. Executives and analysts interviewed by the Electronic Times stated that government stimulus plans such as the US Chip Act, aimed at establishing secure regional supply chains, have exacerbated this issue. The salary of wafer factory workers has skyrocketed, but this does not help increase the supply of qualified workers. As the older generation of semiconductor engineers prepare to retire, chip manufacturers find it difficult to find younger people to replace them. According to data from global management consulting firm McKinsey, in the United States, the CHIPS Act has stimulated over $200 billion worth of new wafer fab investments in states such as Texas and Arizona, but there are still job vacancies for over 100000 skilled workers. Ondrej Burkaky, co head of McKinsey's semiconductor business, told the Electronic Times, "The talent shortage at many levels is a problem. It starts with construction and continues overall TSMC said it will transfer an unknown number of employees from Taiwan to a new factory near Phoenix, Arizona. Accelerate construction. Earlier this month, TSMC spokesperson Nina Kao told EE Times, "We need skilled expertise to engage in TSMC's specific construction activities in Arizona and bring temporary selection of experienced professionals to Arizona The company stated this week that this construction obstacle has forced it to postpone its expected production date in Arizona by up to one year, to some point in 2025. A report released by McKinsey this year shows that the United States has not had large-scale wafer fab construction for over 20 years, and there are few domestic manufacturers with the experience, capabilities, and expertise needed to deliver such specialized projects. The construction crisis is approaching At the same time, construction is also increasing rapidly. McKinsey stated that companies in industries such as semiconductor, defense, aerospace, batteries, advanced electronics, and automotive are expected to invest approximately $400 billion in construction projects in the United States. The report states that up to 260 billion US dollars will be used for the construction and expansion of chip factories, while the remaining funds will be used for battery factories, data centers, renewable energy factories, and other critical infrastructure. McKinsey stated that the shortage of human resources extends from construction workers to wafer fabs and chip design engineers. In a prepared speech in early July, US chip manufacturer SkyWater stated that by 2030, the rapidly expanding US semiconductor industry will require approximately 250000 new workers, including 50000 engineers and 200000 technicians, to handle the operation and equipment maintenance of wafer fabs. Salary 'blown up' According to Lauren Hart, the US introduced a $52 billion CHIPS stimulus package last year and expects a surge in demand for personnel over the next five years, which has driven a surge in compensation plans. As a headhunter for MRL Consulting, she has been searching for jobs for engineers in Austin, Texas. In the United States, Samsung, Infineon, and NXP all have chip factories. In the past two years, we have seen a significant increase in these compensation plans, "Hart told the Electronic Times. She said that a few years ago, the salary of engineers with an annual salary of $100000 and four years of work experience had skyrocketed. I have talked to people with three years of work experience and they hope to get $150000, "she added, adding that the talent gap may soon widen. You have so many highly skilled engineers, but they will soon retire. A whole generation is preparing to retire, but no one can take over their positions to fill the gaps. You can't find engineers with 7 to 15 years of work experience because they don't have them at all The gap in education supply is insufficient. In the United States, our engineer graduation rates vary, "Mike Burns, Chairman of iDEAL Semiconductor, told EE Times. I see 20000 to 30000 electrical engineers emerging every year. You have to see where they go. Many (recently) graduated electrical engineers have gone to Wall Street or consulting firms. Burns estimates that iDEAL may have up to 15% of job vacancies this year. Sources told the Electronic Times that in addition to investment banks on Wall Street, companies such as Google and Amazon are often more attractive to electronic engineers because they offer higher salaries and higher reputations. Entering the gap Although companies such as TSMC and Samsung rely on electronic engineers with master's and doctoral degrees to manage their wafer fabs in Asia, American chip manufacturers may need to rely on veterans to fill this gap. Hart said that she works with veterans and their skills can be transferred to the semiconductor industry. She said that many veterans are engaged in nuclear technology work. Many people are maintaining certain electrical equipment. As a company, we are working hard to do more to support retired soldiers entering this industry Burns also believes that veterans have not been fully utilized, but have been recognized. He said, "If you look at ordinary soldiers in the navy or air force, many of them have become expert system operators. They understand reliability and can all become excellent wafer fab operators Other regions of the world, such as Germany, are also facing similar shortages of semiconductor workers due to the European Union's CHIPS Act. A report from the German Economic Institute shows that approximately one-third of chip workers in Germany will retire in the next 10 years. The report states that there is a shortage of over 60000 chip workers in China between June 2021 and June 2022 at the locations of the wafer fabs operated by Infineon and GlobalFoundries. Industry insiders say that without sufficient manpower to operate the new wafer fabs being built in the United States, government incentives for the industry will not be effective. What is the investment return of the CHIPS Act? ”Burns asked. If we cannot fill these positions, the unemployment rate may be much lower

Other articles in the series include: Experts: U.S. Military Chip Supply Is Dangerously Low, Reshoring Chip Industry Risks Failure With Just More Fabs, U.S. Crawls Toward Rebuilding Frail PCB Industry, USA Rare Earth Aims to Break China’s Grip, GF, Lockheed Martin Pair Up to Improve National Security, 3 Governments Investing in New Fabs Pledge Cooperation and PCB Association Presses Washington for Lifeline.