Governor Cuomo Announces Silicon Valley Semiconductor Wafer Company to Develop High-Tech Facility in Albany

The Silicon Valley firm Group4 Labs Inc., which uses synthetic diamonds to create energy-efficient semiconductor wafers, is opening a manufacturing facility at UAlbany's College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering.

ALBANY, N.Y. (March 21, 2011) --

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced today that the Silicon Valley firm Group4 Labs Inc., which uses synthetic diamonds to create energy-efficient semiconductor wafers, is opening a manufacturing facility at UAlbany's College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE).

Group4 Labs New York will begin manufacturing by summer and will initially create 10 jobs with the ultimate goal of 50 high-tech jobs in the Capital Region by 2015. The company previously announced a manufacturing and test plant in Syracuse, which is expected to grow to approximately 94 jobs by 2015.

"As I've said repeatedly, bringing business to our state and creating jobs is essential to getting New York back on the right path," Governor Cuomo said. "As part of our state's recovery, we must maximize New York's reputation in innovative nanotechnology and we look forward to working with Group4 Labs to bring good jobs to the Albany and Syracuse areas."

Fremont, California-based Group4 Labs reached an agreement with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), which will invest $1.5 million. This deal is expected to leverage an additional $4 million in private funding.

Group4 Labs builds semiconductor materials for, among other things, radar systems, smart phones, tablet computers and cellular transmission towers. The semiconductor materials, which will be built at these locations, are in demand because they consume less energy and are more efficient.

The company will take advantage of CNSE's clean room, where it will lease space and install its own equipment. The company is also providing its product to Lockheed Martin in Syracuse, which is using Group4 materials in its radar equipment.

Felix Ejeckam, CEO and co-founder of Group4, said, "We like New York because of the talent that is available, and the incubation resources at CNSE, and because of the fact that it is close to our customers."

NYSERDA's interest in Group4 stems from the company's potential to reduce energy use through more efficient chip designs, which reduces the use of fossil fuel and greenhouse gas emissions.

Francis J. Murray Jr., NYSERDA's President and CEO, said, "Under Governor Cuomo's leadership, NYSERDA remains committed to nurturing innovative clean-energy companies as part of our larger effort to create jobs and build an environmentally friendly economy in the state."

CNSE is the first college in the world dedicated to education, research, development, and deployment in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience, nanoengineering, nanobioscience, and nanoeconomics. CNSE's Albany NanoTech Complex is the most advanced research enterprise of its kind at any university in the world. With over $6.5 billion in high-tech investments, the 800,000-square-foot complex attracts corporate partners from around the world and offers students a one-of-a-kind academic experience.

The UAlbany NanoCollege houses the only fully-integrated, 300mm wafer, computer chip pilot prototyping and demonstration line within 80,000 square feet of Class 1 capable cleanrooms. More than 2,500 scientists, researchers, engineers, students, and faculty work on site, from companies including IBM, AMD, GlobalFoundries, SEMATECH, Toshiba, Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, ASML, Novellus Systems, Vistec Lithography and Atotech. An expansion currently in the planning stages is projected to increase the size of CNSE's Albany NanoTech Complex to over 1,250,000 square feet of next-generation infrastructure housing over 105,000 square feet of Class 1 capable cleanrooms and more than 3,750 scientists, researchers and engineers from CNSE and global corporations.

For more news, subscribe to UAlbany's RSS headline feeds

Educationally and culturally, the University at Albany-SUNY puts "The World Within Reach" for its 18,000 students. An internationally recognized research university with 58 undergraduate majors and 128 graduate degree programs, UAlbany is a leader among all New York State colleges and universities in such diverse fields as public policy, nanotechnology and criminal justice. With a curriculum enhanced by 300 study-abroad opportunities, UAlbany launches great careers. For more information about this globally ranked University, visit https://www.albany.edu/. For UAlbany's extensive roster of faculty experts, visit www.albany.edu/news/experts.shtml.