Intel to shut down its Hudson, Massachusetts fab

Bit Tech informs us that Intel will be closing its Fab 17 in Hudson, Massachusetts at the end of 2014. This plant was acquired by Intel in 1998 as part of the same deal with Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) that saw Intel briefly enter the ARM processor market itself. About 700 jobs will be lost and Intel claims the reason for shutting down the plant is because the facility and the site "do not meet the requirements we need".

Fab 17 produces lower-end, low-margin parts and is severely outdated, the plant uses the 130nm process node and is Intel's only plant that still uses 200mm wafers. About 100 workers will be fired in the next 3-4 months while the remaining 600 will be jobless by late 2014.

The fab is, admittedly, a little dated: aquired by Intel in 1998 as part of the same deal with the Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) that saw Intel briefly enter the ARM processor market itself, the facility is a claimed four process nodes behind Intel's leading-edge products - and thus suited only for producing lower-end, low-margin parts. It does, however sprawl over 149 acres with 1.3 million square feet of building space, including the Fab 17 facility which cost Intel a claimed $2 billion.

While Intel has been working on a programme of upgrading its fabs over the past few years, the Hudson facility won't be so lucky: the company is winding down its operations, laying off around 100 workers in the next three to four months before letting the remaining 600 go at the end of next year. The company's Hudson research and development facility, which employs 850 workers, is not affected by the move.

Interestingly, Mulloy claims that the fab will be run at near-full capacity right up until the days the final doors close, building up an inventory of end-of-line parts that will - once the Hudson facility finally closes down - no longer be manufactured by the company.