“At Exyte, we know that sustainability measures need to be considered early during the planning stage before a new fab is built to have a larger impact on carbon footprint reduction during the clients’ operations.” It is more complex and costly to implement such measures at an already fully operating facility. “To sum it up, the earlier we plan for it, the lower the cost and the higher the impact,” Shabbir adds.

Engineers like Shabbir analyze every carbon emission source and its quantity within the fab. They look at the embodied carbon of building materials and at the emissions produced during construction and operation. “We also only use as much concrete as necessary since this is a highly carbon intensive building material,” Shabbir explains. “Wherever feasible we prefer to use steel which has a higher recycled content and is easier to recycle instead of concrete.”

Solutions for water and power consumption

Once a semiconductor factory is built, it needs plenty of electricity and water for production and operation. The wafers, silicon discs on which the semiconductors are created, undergo hundreds of processes and cleaning with various gases, chemicals, and ultra-pure water. The wastewater, in turn, must be treated before it can be looped back into the water cycle.

“Exyte has the expertise to enable the fabs to recycle a high percentage of the wastewater,” Shabbir says. But wastewater recycling requires a lot of energy too and that brings conflicts which the stakeholders must resolve for the fab to be truly sustainable. “Digital modeling and dynamic simulation can help us find the balance between the use of electricity and water,” explains Shabbir.

“Sustainability is the key to growth”

Exyte places particular emphasis on driving decarbonization through technological solutions. That is one of the reasons Shabbir enjoys being part of the Exyte team. "Working for a company which has sustainability as a key focus is important as I want to contribute to making a better world for the next generation. It is a goal that doesn't contradict the economic ambitions which both Exyte and our clients have. Sustainability is the key to growth,” he concludes.

Semiconductors also have an impact on the energy efficiency of other industries, such as data centers. Technological solutions based on high-quality semiconductors can limit the energy requirements and reduce cooling in data centers.