After a worldwide search for a premier location, Entegris
(NASDAQ: ENTG), a Billerica-based supplier to the semiconductor and
microelectronics industries, announced today its plans to create the
Entegris i2M Center for Advanced Materials Science ("i2M Center") in
Bedford, Massachusetts.
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Entegris executives (left to right: Bertrand Loy, Entegris COO; Greg Graves, Entegris CFO; Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick; and Gideon Argov, president and CEO) discuss the company's plans to invest $50 million in the Entegris i2M Center for Advanced Materials Science, one of New England's most advanced nanotech R&D and manufacturing centers. (Photo: Business Wire)
The i2M Center will be one of New England’s leading R&D and
manufacturing centers for filtration
media, electrostatic
clamps (E-Chucks) and proprietary advanced,
low-temperature coatings. These technologies are needed to develop
critical components used in the world’s most demanding and stringent
semiconductor manufacturing environments. Entegris’ products, which
control nano-level contamination so small it is measured in widths of
atoms, enable the production of advanced semiconductor devices and other
electronics used in computers, smartphones, TVs and cars.
“As next-generation devices -- which are at the heart of tomorrow’s
computers, tablets, and mobile phones -- become smaller, more powerful,
and consume less energy, the technologies used to make these devices are
pushing the boundaries of physics,” said Gideon
Argov, president and chief executive officer of Entegris. “To
support the manufacturing of these devices, the Entegris i2M Center will
focus on solving the most difficult purification, process control, and
material protection challenges, something only a handful of companies in
the world can do.”
Entegris recently purchased land and an existing 80,000 square foot
building at 9 Crosby Drive in Bedford, Massachusetts to house the i2M
Center. It expects to invest approximately $45 to $50 million in
building infrastructure upgrades and equipment over the next two years.