US semiconductor equipment manufacturer Applied Materials Inc yesterday signed a deal to construct its Global Development Capability center in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

 

Applied Materials will invest a total of US$255 million to build the center, which will provide engineering and software support services to its locations around the world, according to official company sources.

 

The Xi'an center is the only such worldwide technology base outside of Applied Materials' headquarters in the United States, said Jing Junhai, director of Xi'an High-tech Industrial Development Zone, Applied Material's local cooperative partner.

 

"Applied Materials' Xi'an GDC center will strengthen our ability to deliver nano-manufacturing technology around the world and is another example of the leadership in China that we have demonstrated for more than 20 years," said Mike Splinter, president and CEO of Applied Materials.

 

"We appreciate the support of the local community as we lay the foundations for a prosperous future here in Xi'an," Splinter said.

 

Applied Materials officials say the new center will speed up the company's product development cycle time by working across time zones and performing global engineering project support.

 

The 106,000-square-foot center, located on 25 acres in the Xi'an High-tech Industrial Development Zone, will provide global support for the development of semiconductor equipment, according to the zone's director Jing Junhai.

 

Xi'an, a city with more than 50 universities and colleges and some 500 research institutes, is the birthplace of China's first piece of integrated circuit board and has strong technological forces, said Chen Baogen, the city's executive deputy mayor.

 

"We are delighted that Applied Materials has chosen Xi'an for its latest location and confident that Applied will find our workforce talented, educated and productive," the deputy mayor said at the ground breaking ceremony.

 

Attracting a company like Applied Materials will help the city to continue its technology infrastructure, and Xi'an is committed to doing all it can to assure mutual growth and prosperity for both parties, Chen said.

 

"It is the most important foreign project with the largest amount of money introduced into Xi'an so far since the reform and opening-up policies were implemented," said Jing. "Local economic development will be greatly promoted by Applied Materials, which will be followed by a number of its necessary suppliers from the United States."

 

Applied Materials, the world's largest supplier of equipment and services to the global semiconductor industry, has maintained a strong presence in China for more than 20 years.

 

The Santa Clara, California-based company was the first chip equipment company in China in 1984, offering system services and support to local semiconductor manufacturers, Applied Materials official sources said.

 

The company now employs about 400 people in seven cities across China.

 

(China Daily April 11, 2006)