Samsung Initiates $75 Million Second-Stage Expansion of Austin Plant

Samsung Begins Construction for Plant Expansion

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. recently broke ground on the second-stage expansion of its Austin memory-chip-fabrication plant. Samsung Pacific Construction Co. is the general contractor for the 34,000-sq.-ft. $75 million project. The Southwest District office of Greeley, Colo.-based Hensel Phelps is the structural subcontractor. The expansion of the company's manufacturing area is part of a succession of investments intended to equip the Austin plant for next-generation advanced-semiconductor-fabrication technology.

In May 2003 Samsung announced a three-year investment plan of $500 million to upgrade, expand and increase capacity to produce nanoscale semiconductor memory technology at the Austin plant. Phase two involves the construction of a linked fabrication line, a means to increase total capacity.

Samsung Austin Semiconductor is the company's only semiconductor fabrication plant outside of Korea. The plant was established in 1996 and has about 970 employees.

McCarthy Completes Rice University Nanofabrication Facility

McCarthy Building Cos. Inc., headquartered in St. Louis, recently completed a design-build renovation and remodeling project for Houston's new Rice University Nanofabrication/Cleanroom Lab Facility, a 3,000-sq.-ft. project within the existing Abercrombie Hall.

The architect and engineering firm for the project was Lockwood Greene of Spartanburg, S.C.

The facility, which contains a Class 100 clean room, Class 1000 clean room, conference area, lab support space and new restrooms, will provide nanotechnology researchers with the clean-air environment needed to study minute mechanisms and configurations. A Class 100 clean room maintains fewer than 100 particles larger than .5 microns in each cu. ft. of airspace. A Class 1000 clean room maintains fewer than 1,000 particles larger than .5 microns in each cu. ft. of airspace.

"Clean-room construction is not your typical construction," said McCarthy project superintendent Alan Jones. "From the beginning of the project to completion, it is a constant battle against dirt and grime."

McCarthy is also building nanofabrication facilities at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., and the University of California, Berkeley.

Home Depot to Expand Operations in Texas

Gov. Rick Perry recently announced that Home Depot will build a new network operations center in Austin, and its subsidiary, Home Depot Supply, will build a new distribution center in New Braunfels. The expansions will invest $800 million in the Texas economy.

Texas contributed an $8.5 million incentive package from the Texas Enterprise Fund for the Home Depot expansion. Last year the Texas Legislature approved the governor's request for the $295 million TEF to help create new jobs in the state and recruit new employers. This is the ninth job creation project funded by TEF. Other TEF projects are:

• $50 million to enhance engineering and computer science programs at the University of Texas at Dallas. The investment played a key role in Texas Instruments' decision to build a new $3 billion research and manufacturing plant in Richardson.
• $1.5 million to Maxim for a new semiconductor facility in San Antonio.
• $35 million grant to Vought Aircraft Industries.
• $3.6 million to the Texas Energy Center, a consortium of private companies and public sector entities working together to further develop Texas's potential as a national and international leader in energy-related innovation and commerce.
• $40 million grant to help launch the Advanced Materials Research Center in conjunction with semiconductor technology leader Sematech. The center is expected to generate more than 4,000 high-tech jobs in Texas over the next 10 years.
• $5 million to CITGO to relocate its corporate headquarters to Houston and to enhance its Corpus Christi refinery.
• $600,000 to Cabelas to build two retail outlets in Fort Worth and Buda.
• $25 million grant to attract a new Center for Advanced Diagnostic Imaging at the University of Texas Research Park.

Florestone Products Expands in Texas

California-based Florestone Products Co. recently announced that it chose a site in Denison for an expansion of its California headquarters and main manufacturing plant. The expansion will add approximately 70 new manufacturing jobs.

The company expects its new 120,000-sq.-ft. facility to be completed by April and fully operational by June.

"Florestone's move to the region is a result of a total team effort with the Greater Dallas Chamber, the City of Denison, TXU and the state," said Raleigh Roussell, president and chief executive officer of Quoin (the North Texas chapter of the Associated General Contractors).