Semiconductor Belt Effect... SoBuJang Companies Nesting in Yongin

Yongin City Attracts Tokyo Electron and Koh Young Technology
31 out of 37 Plots in Yongin Semiconductor Cluster Signed Occupancy Agreements

Major domestic and international semiconductor material, component, and equipment (SoBuJang) companies are gathering in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, where a large-scale semiconductor belt is being established.

According to Yongin City, global semiconductor equipment company Tokyo Electron (TEL) and domestic semiconductor inspection equipment company Koh Young Technology are planning to relocate their research and development (R&D) centers and headquarters to the Yongin area.

Aerial view of the planned site for the Advanced System Semiconductor National Industrial Complex in Idong and Namsa-eup, Cheoin-gu, Yongin City. Related companies are steadily gathering in the Yongin area, where a large-scale semiconductor belt is being established.
[Photo by Yongin City]

Tokyo Electron Korea, the Korean branch of TEL, applied to the city at the end of last month for a change of business type for an industrial facility site of 27,032㎡ in the Wonsam General Industrial Complex to move in. TEL ranks 4th in global sales in the semiconductor equipment sector and holds the top position in patents. Earlier this year, the company purchased this land to build an R&D center. The company plans to construct a research building and production line (Fab) as soon as the industrial complex plan change is approved.

The Wonsam General Industrial Complex is a 108,919㎡ industrial complex near the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster where SK Hynix is located. Equipment company STI and device company Nanox have already moved in.

Koh Young Technology, a semiconductor advanced packaging inspection equipment company, will consolidate its Seoul headquarters and holding company into the Koh Young Technology R&D center located in Sanghyeon-dong, Suji-gu. This headquarters relocation is part of Koh Young Technology’s plan to integrate its headquarters and R&D center, and Yongin City plans to support the move in the second half of this year through expedited administrative procedures.

In addition, AppleT, a semiconductor and display equipment company, will complete a new factory with a total floor area of 1,710㎡ on a 2,632㎡ site in Mohyeon-eup, Cheoin-gu by August. This company recently installed and began operating track equipment for photoresist coating, a core semiconductor device, at the Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) Nano Convergence Technology Institute.

The city stated that in the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster Cooperation Complex, 29 companies including Wonik IPS have signed occupancy agreements for 31 out of 37 plots available for sale. Furthermore, in Yongin Techno Valley near the Advanced System Semiconductor National Industrial Complex, S&S Tech, which possesses technology in EUV blank masks and pellicle fields?key semiconductor materials?is scheduled to complete a new factory around July, the city added.

Lee Sang-il, mayor of Yongin City, explained, "We will spare no administrative support to successfully complete the semiconductor belt projects, including the System Semiconductor National Industrial Complex," and added, "We will also make efforts to expand road and railway networks for this purpose."