In 1978, Micron Technology was founded in the state of Idaho, USA. Currently, Micron is one of the top three manufacturers of Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) and ranks as the 4th largest semiconductor enterprise in the world with two major product lines - DRAM and NAND. Micron Technology has a comprehensive supply chain and has actively introduced its business practices and resources throughout the globe through strategic alliances, mergers, and acquisitions. Micron employs 34,000 staff worldwide and has operations in 18 regions, including the USA, Singapore, Japan, and Taiwan.Link of interview video
As the global leader in the memory sector, Micron has established Centers of Excellence throughout the world, choosing sites on the basis of geographic location and advantageous conditions. Given Taiwan’s well-established industrial development environment and its critical role in the global semiconductor supply chain, Micron has upgraded its operations in Taiwan, and has a Center of Excellence here that houses wafer manufacturing, packaging and testing & inspecting operations, which are fully integrated with a complete R&D team.
“Taiwan’s geographic location enables us to quickly meet needs in Asia-Pacific markets. Taiwan has a comprehensive semiconductor supply chain and manufacturing capabilities, and is in a good position to coordinate with the research and development of front-end DRAM manufacturing processes conducted by Micron Japan. Because of these features, Micron highly values its investment and operation in Taiwan.” Mr. K. C. Hsu, Vice President of Micron Technology, Inc. and Chairman for Operations in Taiwan, clearly pointed out the importance of Taiwan to the group’s global investment strategy.
Micron has been expanding its investments in Taiwan since it set up sales and technology service operations in Taipei in 1997. Since 2008, Micron has officially started manufacturing operations in Taiwan by taking an equity stake in Inotera Memories and forming a joint venture with Nanya Technology, a subsidiary of the Formosa Plastics Group. In 2013, Micron acquired Elpida Memory and Rexchip and then founded its Taiwan subsidiary. In 2016, it bought all the equity of Inotera Memories, which made Micron become the largest foreign employer in Taiwan. In 2017, Micron utilized the assets won from Cando Corporation’s tender bid as its back-end process base, and then established a DRAM Center of Excellence in Taiwan. In 2018, it built a 3D DRAM packaging, testing & inspecting plant at Taichung Science Park. In 2019, it further expanded both its Taichung plant and operations at the DRAM Center of Excellence Taiwan.
After describing Micron’s investment history in Taiwan, Chairman Hsu commented that Micron’s upcoming investments in Taiwan will focus on upgrading manufacturing processes and increasing memory storage, which means that Taiwan’s pivotal role in the global semiconductor supply chain will be strengthened, because Micron will help Taiwan to enhance its advantages in semiconductor manufacturing and its solid industry cluster.
Chairman Hsu said that “Taiwan has the advantages of abundant R&D talent, a well-established supply chain, and a solid IP protection mechanism. Moreover, we expect that emerging smart industries are going to develop quite quickly in Taiwan, and we also looking forward to growing cross-domain applications, so demand for semiconductor technologies should increase, particularly those that can be applied to systems storage, mobility, interpretation, and data processing. That’s why Micron headquarters has positioned Taiwan as an important base for the Group to expand DRAM production capacity and related business.”
Commenting on Micron Taiwan’s future development, Chairman Hsu believes that growth in the memory industry will continue for at least 10 to 20 years thanks to such emerging industries AI, Machine Learning, 5G, and Autonomous Vehicles. Among these, IoT, 5G, and Autonomous Vehicles are the target markets that Micron is aiming for.
Chairman Hsu stressed “Micron believes Taiwan will play a critical role in the coming age of 5G and IoT. Basically, the commercialization of 5G will move IoT forward in parallel. The Group in Taiwan will gradually set up front-end and back-end manufacturing processes to build a complete DRAM ecosystem, which will help Taiwan’s partners to upgrade their technologies, raise name recognition for their products, and then work together to take advantage of business opportunities.”
On the whole, Micron will continue working to get better results from its DRAM Center of Excellence in Taiwan, employing AI and Big Data Analytics to upgrade each plant’s operations in terms of quality, quantity, production cycles, and reduced operation costs. We intend to provide multiple advanced memory solutions for customers. Besides investment in technologies, Micron has also founded the Micron Foundation in Taiwan to engage in local CSR activities. The Foundation takes part in community service activities and helps promote science and technology education, thus demonstrating the company’s commitment to environmental protection and sustainable development.
Commenting on the recent US-China trade conflict’s impact on the industry, Chairman Hsu explains Micron’s core strategy for dealing with the conflict: “Under Micron’s global business strategy, we have well-established manufacturing, technology and business centers globally, which not only allows Micron to benefit from economies of scale, but also to mitigate the trade war’s impact on the Group.”
As for business operations in Asia, Micron has set up an advanced front-end manufacturing R&D and production site in Hiroshima, Japan. The two Centers of Excellence for DRAM and NAND are located in Taiwan and Singapore, respectively. Micron utilizes its global locations to flexibly adjust its capacities and management and to help its customers get through the challenge smoothly.
With regard to how to respond to global investment trends and create a friendlier environment, Chairman Hsu stated: “Outstanding talent, IP protection, and continuous innovation in products and services are critical reasons why global high tech industries would want to keep a close eye on Taiwan and further enlarge their investments here.”
Chairman Hsu further suggested that Taiwan might be well advised to pay more attention to issues regarding the protection of trade secrets and actively collaborate with high tech companies that have already invested in Taiwan. This would demonstrate Taiwan’s commitment to and capability for IP protection, promote more foreign investment in Taiwan, and then create new momentum for Taiwan’s economic growth.
Source： Department of Investment Promotion, MOEA
About Us
InvesTaiwan InvesTaiwan Service Center Department of Investment Promotion, MOEA Department of Investment Review, MOEA Contact TaiwanWhy Taiwan
Reasons to Invest Overview Key Industries for Investment Promotion Incentives Important Policies Success Stories
MOEA
MOEA DOIP
MOEA YouTube
Let's Juiker Together
