Conversion of Office Space to Class 1 Cleanroom and Support Space for Magic Technologies Signals Latest Trend in Semiconductor Industry

In the lightening fast-paced environment of the semiconductor industry, a company’s ability to get a new product to market quickly—and ahead of the competition—is paramount when it comes to capturing market share and fueling growth and long-term survival. For Milpitas-based Magic Technologies, a new start-up arm of TDK subsidiary Headway Technologies, both speed and quality were critical to the super fast-track completion of a Class 1 cleanroom and office building project this fall, enabling the company to be first in the market to deliver a device offering a brand new magnetic RAM chip technology.

DPR likely set a record on the $27.3 million job by completing the 108,000-sq.-ft. project, which normally would have taken approximately 10 months, in just four-and-a-half months—and coming in two weeks early to boot. The project, which entailed the complete renovation of former office space into a 22,000-sq.-ft. Class 1 cleanroom along with associated support facilities, offices and infrastructure, broke ground on June 8 and was completed in late October.

“This was the fastest cleanroom project we’ve ever done,” commented DPR’s Scott Greubel. DPR accomplished it by partnering with the owner, as well as key subcontractors, closely sequencing subtrade work and scheduling crews around the clock when necessary to meet the tight project delivery schedule, and working closely with equipment manufacturers to ensure the timely delivery of key process equipment. While speed of construction was critical, quality also was essential. “We partnered closely with the owner’s rep to give them a product that could function in the long term, not just something that was thrown together,” Greubel commented.

DPR’s Matt Crandall noted that DPR’s ability to self perform much of the work, including concrete and drywall portions, offered a major advantage. “It set the momentum of the job and served as a good example for other subcontractors of what our expectations were on the project,” he said.

Converting what had previously been simple office space into a high tech manufacturing facility offered a unique challenge. The project required designing and building in structural upgrades, including:

• a steel mezzanine level to support all the mechanical equipment for the cleanroom, as well as on the roof
• incorporating special scrubber exhaust systems
• adding 47 recirculating air handler units for the cleanroom, which were installed into the ceiling space directly above
• and building a new equipment yard for the chillers, towers and boilers, along with a 20-ft. deep acid waste neutralization pit.

A 26-ft.-tall wall surrounding the yard was designed to blend into the existing structure while concealing the extensive support equipment behind it.

Close coordination with the equipment manufacturers on the delivery of owner-supplied process equipment, including the air handlers, was essential to ensure a smooth flow on the project. Daily communication and precisely controlled sequencing of the equipment deliveries contributed to the project’s success, according to Crandall. That high level of collaboration extended to the entire project team and helped the team achieve an even earlier project delivery schedule than had been anticipated at the start.

The renovation/reuse project for Magic Technologies signals a trend in the semiconductor industry in the U.S. of increasing development of smaller production facilities involving renovations of existing space in lieu of building brand new, larger scale facilities. In many cases, the development of large scale semiconductor manufacturing facilities and facilities for the semiconductor foundry market, made up of specialized contract manufacturers that perform wafer fabrication services for semiconductor companies that don’t have their own fabrication facilities, continues to be shifted overseas to Asia. Overall, the advanced technology sector has seen an uptick lately, and some analysts are predicting a continued expansion at least through 2006. For DPR, one of the nation’s leading semiconductor industry builders, this market sector is presenting significant opportunity and looks promising for the year ahead.