This article is from the source 'rtcom' and was first published or seen on . The next check for changes will be

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.rt.com/news/602253-microchip-factory-stoppage-uk/

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Microchip factory stoppage puts UK defense projects at risk – Telegraph Microchip factory closing puts UK defense projects at risk – Telegraph
(about 11 hours later)
A US semiconductor company could be forced to close its UK site after being ditched by Apple as a supplier The military’s main supplier may close after losing its Apple contract
The British military is bracing for supply disruptions, after one of the country’s biggest microchip plants ceased taking new orders, the Telegraph wrote on Tuesday. The British military is bracing for supply disruptions after one of the UK’s last microchip plants lost its Apple contract and ceased taking new orders, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Coherent, a US corporation headquartered in Pennsylvania, maintains a 29,000 square-meter site in Newton Aycliffe, Country Durham, UK. The US-based company Coherent has a production facility in Newton Aycliffe, Country Durham. Its clients include the Italian defense giant Leonardo, which makes radars, electronic warfare systems and helicopters for the UK.
The firm has said it could be forced to sell the facility after tech giant Apple dropped its contract with the business, the newspaper reported. “The factory’s closure threatens to reduce the UK’s domestic capabilities,” and could make Leonardo turn elsewhere for supplies, the Telegraph reported on Tuesday.
Apple announced earlier this year that it would be changing some of its FaceID features in its upcoming iPhone version, meaning that Coherent’s chips are no longer needed. Coherent UK had announced in May that its supply to its “major customer” ceased at the end of the 2023 financial year. The plant has already laid off hundreds of employees, and the decision by Apple is “placing the ongoing viability of the business in doubt.” Coherent “is not thought to have any outstanding orders” with Leonardo, according to the Telegraph, but sources told the newspaper that the plant may be needed in the future for unspecified projects.
The plant’s customers include Italian defense giant Leonardo, which manufactures radar systems, electronic warfare systems and helicopters for the UK, Telegraph said. Coherent’s UK factory previously supplied chips for radar power amplifiers in Eurofighter Typhoon jets, as well as other British defense hardware. According to the Leonardo website, the company produces some 60% of the avionics for the Typhoon.
The Italian corporation currently has no outstanding orders for the factory, the Telegraph quoted a source, adding that given the plant’s specialization, they may be needed in the future. The Newton Aycliffe plant is one of just two in the UK that can commercially produce gallium arsenide semiconductors, the newspaper noted. It has made chips for British military hardware, such as the radar power amplifiers in Eurofighter Typhoon jets. Leonardo produces about 60% of the avionics for the Typhoon, according to its website.
“The factory’s closure threatens to reduce the UK’s domestic capabilities,” and could make Leonardo turn to other countries for supplies, the newspaper wrote. Coherent built up its business making semiconductors for Apple. Earlier this year, however, the US tech giant announced it would make changes to the FaceID feature in the upcoming iPhone model, meaning that Coherent’s chips were no longer needed.
“It would represent a blow to the UK at a time when the Government is seeking to build up the domestic industry for making semiconductors,” the key tech at the foundation of producing everything from smartphones to the UK’s high-precision missiles, Telegraph said. Coherent UK announced in May that it had stopped deliveries to a “major customer” at the end of the 2023 fiscal year. The company has already laid off hundreds of employees at Newton Aycliffe and may end up having to sell the plant.
The UK Defense Ministry stated on Monday that its staff “continually monitor” military supply chains, “including in the semiconductor sector.” “Leonardo is aware of the current situation and is working with all of our stakeholders to deliver a resilient supply chain,” the Italian company’s UK spokesperson told the Telegraph.
The UK Ministry of Defense said on Monday that its staff “continually monitor” military supply chains, “including in the semiconductor sector,” but did not specifically comment on the Coherent situation.
The company still hopes a “white knight” investor could save the Newton Aycliffe plant, one industry source told the Telegraph.