Microchip invests $20M in new Irish development centre

The new facility is set to open during Q1 CY21 and create 60 new jobs over the next three years and about 200 jobs within the next seven years. The creation of the centre reinforces Microchip’s presence in Ireland. Located close to the city centre, this new facility will incorporate an engineering lab to support innovation and extend Microchip’s regional customer support. The project is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland. Initially, the development centre will focus on mixed-signal integrated circuit design, applications and software development for high-speed networking, timing and synchronization products, high voltage power management devices and solutions, high reliability integrated power systems and Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA), a press release reads. Close partnerships with Irish universities will enable the Microchip development centre to offer internships and collaborate on key next-generation initiatives. The partnership between the development centre and Universities in the country aims to enhance the knowledge base and skill levels of engineers in the semiconductor development space in Ireland. The development centre will build on Microchip’s existing presence in Ireland which is a mix of operations in Dublin, Cork and Ennis. As part of a network of development centres across Europe, the Cork development centre will work seamlessly with many Microchip business units. The creation of jobs will include engineers for integrated circuit design and testing, hardware and software system design, applications development plus field and customer support. "The new Microchip development centre in Cork will establish a significant R&D presence in Ireland and emphasise Microchip’s commitment to Ireland and Europe as a whole," says Ganesh Moorthy, President and CEO-Elect of Microchip, in the press release. "Cork was chosen for the development centre as it is the second-largest city in Ireland, with a growing pool of talented engineers and the Centre will add to Microchip’s ability to deliver superior products and be able to provide timely response to our customers. Availability of analogue and mixed-signal talent is another key factor in selecting Cork."