Quote:
Originally Posted by speeder
I'm really surprised that it costs that much to build a chip factory.
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The equipment used to manufacture microchips is very specialized and very expensive. High-vacuum environments, precision gas-control & filtering technology, hazardous material handling, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jay Auskin
No one would build a new "chip factory" just to supply older types of chips for cars.
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Fabrication plants are able to turn out chips for many different applications using the same manufacturing equipment and processes. Sometimes, it only requires adjustments to the chemistry, the circuit design, and maybe the packaging to produce a chip with a completely different end use.