Attempts by Intel and its Japanese partners to adapt the empty premises of Sharp’s former LCD panel production facilities for chip packaging tasks prove that such a transformation is justified both technically and economically. In this context, it is not surprising that TSMC purchased the Innolux enterprise for the production of LCD panels in southern Taiwan, which will also be repurposed.
Image source: Innolux
This was reported by the Liberty Times, indicating that the former Innolux facility in the southern part of the island cost TSMC $530 million. It was reported that Micron Technology also bid for it, but TSMC offered the best price. The total area of production premises of this enterprise exceeds 96,000 square meters. TSMC only notes that it will use these premises for operations and production.
There are known cases of TSMC purchasing idle enterprises of other companies to use them as warehouses. This, for example, happened with the E-Ton Solar Tech enterprise in southern Taiwan, which was repurposed accordingly by TSMC. In this area, the company already has its own enterprise for testing and packaging chips, but it is remote from the one acquired from Innolux, so it will not be possible to optimize logistics on this basis. In some cases, TSMC has to demolish purchased buildings and build new ones in their place if the layout of the premises does not correspond to the tasks the company solves.