Global co. in semiconductor industry aims to grow US presence from Austin-area HQ

A global company that provides tool support for semiconductor fabrication facilities plans to grow its presence in the United States, starting with its domestic headquarters in Buda.

PTW America LLC, a subsidiary of Singapore-based PTW Group, is honing in on the chipmaking boom in the Austin area. PTW — a one-stop shop that helps chipmakers with legacy tools, whether it's service, procurement or manufacturing of replacement pieces — aims to add to a roster of clients that includes Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., NXP Semiconductors NV and Infineon Technologies AG locally, as well as Texas Instruments Inc. in Dallas and Tower Semiconductor Ltd. in San Antonio, according to general manager Stuart Sack.

Sack, who recently took over as general manager, said the company has aggressive growth plans and may need more space in Buda, where it has been for about two years. That could include adding engineers and sales people, along with clean room space and more refurbishment and assembly line space. PTW's initial plans are to reach about 25 employees in Texas, he said, although it could have 75 to 100 throughout the country in the next five years based on industry growth in other states.

"The U.S. has the ability to become PTW's biggest location," Sack said. "Being on the front end, we could be about to hit the accelerated growth stage of the business here very quickly."

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Stuart Sack

PTW was founded in 2007 and has locations in 10 countries around the globe, Sack said. The company currently has 10 employees in the United States, including eight in Buda at 980 S. Loop 4, where it has a 2,000-square-foot office and 10,000 square feet of warehouse space filled with legacy tools to sell to clients.

Jennifer Storm, CEO of the Buda Economic Development Corp., said PTW's facility in Buda is a boon to the city, which is just south of Austin and has a population of about 16,000 people.

Storm added that Buda has nearly 3 million square feet of speculative industrial space, along with access to I-35, that makes it "perfectly positioned to serve the semiconductor industry today and into the future."

This map shows where PTW America's Buda office is located.

PTW's Buda operations mark the continued migration of companies within the semiconductor industry to the region, spurred by the construction of Samsung's massive factory in Taylor. It was recently announced that the South Korea-based electronics giant will receive $6.4 billion through the federal CHIPS and Science Act, which supports the company's plan to to widen its investment in Central Texas to $45 billion.

Companies known to be expanding in the area include Fine Semitech Corp. in Hutto, Wonik Materials North America LLC in Manor; Soulbrain Holdings Co. Ltd., HTNS America Inc. and ENC Inc. in Taylor; MSS International and KoMiCo Technology Inc. in Round Rock; iMarket Korea Inc. in both Taylor and Round Rock; EcoMicron Inc. and Hanyang Eng USA Inc. in Cedar Park; LS Electric Co. Ltd. in Bastrop; and MGC Pure Chemicals America Inc. in Killeen.

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Stuart Sack

Sack said PTW Group differentiates itself from competitors by being global, meaning it has an extensive supply chains and a large database of employees trained to work on specialized parts. The company has systems in place to bring in parts and service workers from across the globe, he said.

Chip fabrication facilities are filled with high-end customizable tools that may no longer be produced or that require specialized service, Sack said.

"There's all kinds of a really high-end customized tools along these assembly lines, and some of those tools are no longer supported by the original manufactures that made them 10 years ago," Sack said.

In terms of location, Sack said the company targeted Buda because of its proximity to the heart of the semiconductor industry, as well as the easy access it provides to Houston, San Antonio and Dallas. In addition, he noted that real estate prices in Buda are lower than in other areas of the Austin metro.

"Austin obviously has its finger on the pulse of a lot of what's going on in the semiconductor industry," Sack said. "There are a lot of big fabs here and a lot of investment. We feel it's pretty much a good launching point to where we can service all of Texas, and be quick with our deployment of engineers and shipping parts and tools and things like that."