SEMI Europe is an active participant in EU-funded projects, given its global member base and its position as the voice of the microelectronics industry.
The ongoing projects in which SEMI Europe takes part are:
HiCONNECTS - Heterogeneous Integration for Connectivity and Sustainability
EU Chips Diversity Alliance
European Chip Diversity Academy
IMOCO4.E - Intelligent Motion Control under Industry4.E
ECoVEM – European Centre of Vocational Excellence in Microelectronics
Pack4EU
METIS - Microelectronics Training, Industry and Skills
Pact for Skills
HiCONNECTS - Heterogeneous Integration for Connectivity and Sustainability
HiCONNECTS is a KDT-JU funded project with 64 consortium members, to enable both wired/wireless networks and edge/cloud data centers of the future to operate with high performance and reliability. The HiCONNECTS project develops the next generation of electronic components and systems heterogeneous integration core technology solutions for energy-efficient, high-performance wireless/wired cloud and edge computing and automotive radar in support of the next radio frequency and IT technology evolution.
EU Chips Diversity Alliance
The EU Chips Diversity Alliance (ECDA) is a consortium of 11 partners to form an innovative and robust partnership between academia and industry in the microelectronics sector. The goal of the project is to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion and to lower barriers to participation for under-represented groups to promote growth and competitiveness in the European microelectronics industry.
European Chips Skills Academy
The European Chips Skills Academy is a new initiative to help tackle the skills and talent shortages in Europe’s electronics industry and propel its growth.
The academy will expand on the Microelectronics Pact for Skills and the EU Chips Act to support the microelectronics ecosystem in Europe to attract new talent and foster microelectronics industry collaboration with key education, training and certification providers to boost European competitiveness.
The initiative is backed by 30 partners which include vocational and educational training providers, research organizations, certification agencies and industry participants.
IMOCO4.E - Intelligent Motion Control under Industry4.E
Launched in 2021, and funded by the Electronic Component Systems for European Leadership Joint Undertaking, the mission of the IMOCO4.E project is to improve Industry 4.0 manufacturing productivity. IMOCO4.E aims to deliver a reference platform consisting of AI and digital twin toolchains and a set of mating building blocks for resilient manufacturing applications. The platform’s benefits will be directly verified in applications for semiconductor, packaging, industrial robotics and healthcare. The project will demonstrate the results in other generic “motion-control-centred” domains affecting the entire value chain of the production automation and application markets.
ECoVEM – European Centre of Vocational Excellence in Microelectronics
ECoVEM, launched in 2020, brings together 21 partners from 7 countries, representing Vocational Education and Training (VET) centers, polytechnics, industrial associations, and social partners. The project will establish the European Cooperation Platform of Vocational Excellence in Microelectronics to help cultivate the talent needed to continue to drive digitalization and AI and green technology innovation while achieving gender equality and increasing the number of migrants working in the industry.
Pack4EU
Pack4EU’s objective is to assess the current status of packaging, assembly, and test facilities in Europe. Additionally, it aims to analyze the evolving needs of the semiconductor industry regarding advanced packaging, assembly, and test developments. The focus includes mapping existing facilities, evaluating technological capabilities, and identifying areas for improvement. The project seeks to inform strategic decisions aligning with the industry’s dynamic requirements.
METIS - Microelectronics Training, Industry and Skills
Addressing the skills shortage is a priority for an elevated competitiveness of the European microelectronics sector. An important step in this direction is a stronger industry and education collaboration. Under the coordination of SEMI, the METIS consortium, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme, is uniquely positioned to bridge this gap, as it will implement a new strategic approach to sectoral cooperation on skills for microelectronics by involving the key players across industry, education & training and regulatory/certification bodies.
The Pact for Skills for microelectronics is a new engagement and governance program to support Upskilling and Reskilling, to attract “new talent”, and to unlock EU and national/ regional funding.
The Pact was launched by commissioners Breton and Schmit and represents a strong and timely signal for our microelectronics industry, recognizing the the priority to create a well-skilled European workforce on microelectronics R&D, Design, and manufacturing.
Many partners, Industry, R&D hubs, Education providers and NGOs have already endorsed the Pact.