AMEC Chengdu Project Tops Out, Adding a New “Chip” Engine to Chengdu Hi-tech Zone’s Integrated Circuit Industry

On August 10, a topping-out ceremony was held in Chengdu Hi-tech Zone for the Chengdu R&D and Manufacturing Base and Southwest China Headquarters Project of Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc. China (AMEC), hereinafter referred to as the “AMEC Chengdu Project.” The topping out of the project’s main structure marks a key step in AMEC’s strategic expansion in southwest China and injects strong new momentum into Chengdu Hi-tech Zone’s integrated circuit industrial ecosystem.

Project Construction Picks Up Speed

Focusing on R&D and Intelligent Manufacturing of Key Thin-Film Equipment

The AMEC Chengdu Project has a total investment of approximately RMB 3.05 billion. Phase I covers about 3.3 hectares, with a total floor area of approximately 70,000 square meters. It will include an R&D center, a manufacturing base, office space and supporting facilities, and is planned as an integrated R&D and manufacturing base. The project is expected to officially begin operations in 2027.

Upon completion, the AMEC Chengdu Project will focus on the manufacturing needs of high-end logic and memory chips, specializing in the R&D and intelligent manufacturing of key thin-film equipment such as Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) and Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) systems, targeting critical stages in advanced logic and memory chip manufacturing.

“The AMEC Chengdu Project is a key step in deepening our strategic presence in southwest China,” said a representative of AMEC. “Building on Chengdu Hi-tech Zone’s strong industrial ecosystem and business environment, we will leverage our core technological strengths in thin-film deposition to tackle critical equipment indispensable to advanced semiconductor processes and strive to enter the global top tier of semiconductor equipment companies in both scale and competitiveness as soon as possible.”

New Momentum for the “Develop and Fill Industrial Parks” Initiative

Continuously Strengthening the Integrated Circuit Industrial Ecosystem

The topping out of the AMEC Chengdu Project is a key step in Chengdu Hi-tech Zone’s efforts to strengthen and fill gaps in industrial chains and further improve local supporting capabilities across industrial and supply chains.

Chengdu is currently making an all-out effort to build a national advanced-manufacturing base, with the trillion-yuan electronic information industry identified as a core pillar. As the core area and innovation source for Chengdu’s integrated circuit industry, Chengdu Hi-tech Zone is now home to more than 200 integrated circuit companies. It has initially formed a “3+3” integrated circuit industrial system covering three major links-IC design, wafer manufacturing, and packaging and testing-as well as three supporting areas-semiconductor equipment, materials and components, and industrial software. The zone has also developed distinctive strengths in such segments as radio-frequency and microwave technologies, computing power, power semiconductors, BeiDou navigation and IP.

Photo by Yongqing

“By focusing on the R&D and intelligent manufacturing of key thin-film equipment such as CVD and ALD systems, the AMEC Chengdu Project will effectively drive local demand for supporting integrated circuit materials, components and equipment, further improve the regional industrial ecosystem, and help enhance the resilience and security of industrial and supply chains,” said an official from the Electronic Information Industry Bureau of Chengdu Hi-tech Zone.

The on-schedule topping out of the AMEC Chengdu Project’s main structure in Chengdu Hi-tech West Park vividly reflects Chengdu Hi-tech Zone’s continued efforts to deepen the “Develop and Fill Industrial Parks” initiative, routinely carry out enterprise outreach, problem-solving, service optimization and development promotion, and accelerate the development of the “Chengxin Chengyi” business-environment service brand, characterized by responsive service when needed and no unnecessary interference. It also marks a solid step by domestically developed semiconductor equipment toward advanced process nodes.

Next, Chengdu Hi-tech Zone will continue to leverage anchor projects such as the AMEC Chengdu Project to attract and foster upstream and downstream enterprises and supporting businesses across the industrial and supply chains, help the Sichuan-Chongqing region develop into China’s fourth major hub for the integrated circuit industry, and contribute to the high-quality development of China’s broader semiconductor industry with greater self-reliance and security.