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JANUARY 2023 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 9 backed semiconductor companies in Taiwan, this is a risk to their very existence. It seems like a solid survival tactic to start "mining" semiconductors in more stable environments. Korea is speaking up on the topic. In an online piece published by Fortune (again), a senior Samsung official, Yang Hyang-ja, said: "We're in a chip war. Technology supremacy is a way that our country can take the lead in any security-related agenda, such as diplomatic and defense issues, without being swayed by other nations." 3 Even inside Asia, efforts are being made to maintain strategic advantage in semiconductor manufacturing. But to successfully diversify production of semiconductors, printed circuit manufactur- ing must tuck in right behind. Semiconduc- tors, packaging, board fabrication and assem- bly services are all equally important to the delivery of a diversified supply chain—inde- pendent of any political situations. at is the reasoning behind this issue devoted to the topic of advanced packaging and substrates. As we publish this issue, IPC APEX EXPO 2023 is just around the corner. We hope to see you there! PCB007 References 1. "TSMC CEO warns of weakening trust among countries after U.S. blacklists Chinese companies in computer chips tussle," by Debby Wu and Bloom- berg, Fortune.com, Dec. 17, 2022. 2. "TSMC founder Morris Chang says globaliza- tion 'almost dead,'" by Cheng Ting-Fang, Nikkei Asia, Dec. 7, 2022. 3. "'We're in a chip war' Korea's lead on semi- conductors is worried about the country losing chip manufacturing to the U.S.," by Sohee Kim and Bloomberg, Fortune.com, Jan. 3, 2023. of several commercial centers, which eases the sale and delivery of the finished product. e production experts move closer to the cus- tomer, not to the raw material. At the moment, it's true that semiconduc- tor companies are going where the custom- ers are. Fortune reports, "TSMC is construct- ing new fabs to satisfy its customers' demand rather than fulfill requests from foreign gov- ernments." Behind the thinly veiled defiant attitude is a concession that getting close to the customer is a very high priority. Nikkei Asia reports that, in the preceding three decades, "TSMC focused on building up cutting-edge chip production capacity in its home market, a strategy that helped the com- pany keep costs down while continually hon- ing its technological know-how." 2 at cen- tralized model worked through economies of scale to deliver goods. But unpackaged semi- conductor die are like diamonds in the rough. ey're not yet in the form needed to deliver their greatest value. I found one of the most impactful comments in the Fortune article was this: "It's not easy to replicate Taiwan's chip industry in another country as TSMC's success was built over more than 30 years with help from its suppliers." is perspective aligns with the U.S. CHIPS Act and HR 7677 proponents: rebuilding that expertise in this region will be the tricky part. TSMC offers a case study in how difficult it can be to launch production without sufficient expertise. Nikkei Asia, referring to TSMC's first plant in Camas, Washington, reports, "'It was, I thought, a dream fulfilled,' Chang said. 'But it [the first plant] ran into cost problems. We ran into people problems, we ran into cul- tural problems. e dream fulfilled became a nightmare fulfilled. It took us several years to untangle ourselves from my nightmare, and I decided that I needed to postpone the dream.'" However, geopolitical factors are at play here as well. China is in the middle of what appears to be a pressure campaign to reclaim Taiwan as Chinese territory. For the U.S- and European- Nolan Johnson is managing editor of PCB007 Magazine. Nolan brings 30 years of career experience focused almost entire- ly on electronics design and manu- facturing. To read other columns or to contact Johnson, click here.