To Be the Most Trusted Foundry: Samsung Electronics’ Foundry Division

At the core of all Quaternary Industrial Revolution technologies - the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and Big Data - is the semiconductor. With the rise of these technologies, the importance of foundries able to churn out high-performance, low-power semiconductors is increasing. Established in May 2017, Samsung Electronics’ Foundry Division produces semiconductors using state-of-the-art process technologies.
About the foundry business
The term ‘foundry’ might be new to some. To explain, let’s liken the foundry process to ‘baking a loaf of bread.’ The customer places an order, stating what shape, size, smell, and flavor the bread should have. A foundry creates exactly the loaf of bread the customer wants. Replace bread with semiconductors, and you have the foundry industry.

The dictionary definition of a foundry is a facility that manufactures semiconductors on consignment from ‘fabless’ companies which specialize in semiconductor engineering and design. Originally, ‘foundry’ referred to casting plants where products were made by pouring molten metal into molds. Development of the semiconductor industry brought along companies which had semiconductor design expertise but no production infrastructure, and a resultant rise in demand for outsourced semiconductor production. The concept of the foundry was introduced into the semiconductor industry in response. Semiconductor production lines involve massive investment, and with the ultra-fine semiconductor processes of today, establishing in-house production facilities is a huge challenge. As a result, the foundry sector, where customers only create the designs and trust foundries with production, is growing fast.

The foundry, turning the world’s best ideas into semiconductor products, is an icon of the Quaternary Industrial Revolution. Together with memory semiconductors, foundries play an important role in making our daily lives smarter and more efficient. Fabless companies with outstanding business ideas specializing in areas such as AI, Big Data, blockchain, autonomous driving, and the Internet of Things - all set to transform our lives in the near future - are springing up everywhere, and accordingly, the role of the foundry business is increasing in importance.
An orchestra of sublime harmony, from design to manufacture

Samsung Electronics’ Foundry Division provides customers with total solutions centered on processes and manufacturing, in an operation that resembles a grand orchestral performance. In an orchestra, hundreds of instruments playing as a single unit led by the conductor create music that moves and stirs the emotions. The same can be said about the work of the Foundry Division. Working closely with clients on every detail from design to processes, fabrication, packaging, and testing, we create sublime semiconductor harmony. In the Foundry Division, every component - the infrastructure, the quality organization, support organizations, partners - is key. Samsung Foundry’s greatest advantage is how all parts of the machine purr in harmony to translate design advantages into advantages in the final product.

▲ Dr. ES Jung, President and Head of Foundry Business of Samsung Electronics’ Foundry Division giving his keynote address at ‘Samsung Foundry Forum Korea 2018’ under the theme ‘To Be the Most Trusted Foundry’.

The Samsung Electronics Foundry Division is creating a better tomorrow through the vision of ‘becoming a most trusted, first-rate foundry, completing customer innovation through creative value.’ More and more areas of our life will be needing foundries as we move into the future. We look forward to seeing Samsung Foundry at the helm of this transition, bringing change for the better all around the world.