PRESS RELEASE
DRESDEN, Germany, June 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --
- Industry veteran Ajit Manocha appointed interim CEO
- James A. Norling takes Executive Chairman role
As part of a plan to continue significant investments in technology, talent and manufacturing capacity over the next 18 months, the board of directors of GLOBALFOUNDRIES - along with its majority shareholder, the Advanced Technology Investment Company - announced today it has appointed new leadership to run the company.
Semiconductor industry veteran Ajit Manocha has been appointed interim Chief Executive Officer of GLOBALFOUNDRIES. James A. Norling will serve as Executive Chairman and Ibrahim Ajami will serve as Vice Chairman of the GLOBALFOUNDRIES board of directors. All appointments are effective immediately.
"GLOBALFOUNDRIES is just two years old, but in that short time customers have embraced what it represents to the market," said Norling. "At the same time, customers are asking us for more capacity, faster technology delivery and greater agility. The Board intends for this new management team to meet those customer needs while improving operational performance."
"GLOBALFOUNDRIES, with the continuous support of ATIC, is in the middle of an intense, competitive ramp-up of manufacturing capacity and technology development," said Ajami, who will also remain CEO of ATIC. "Under this new leadership team, investment in GLOBALFOUNDRIES will double over the next 18 months."
Through end of May 2011, ATIC had invested over $6 billion, to acquire the former manufacturing assets of Advanced Micro Devices in Dresden, Germany ($2.1 billion in March 2009) and the assets of Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing of Singapore ($3.1 billion in December 2009) as well as an estimated $1 billion to construct a new fabrication facility in upstate New York. Through the end of 2012, ATIC will invest another approximately $6 billion in manufacturing capacity in Dresden, Singapore and New York with initial construction to begin in Abu Dhabi.
Doug Grose, who has served as CEO of GLOBALFOUNDRIES since its inception, will transition to become senior advisor to GLOBALFOUNDRIES and ATIC with a focus on technology leadership and ensuring delivery of next generation technologies for competitive differentiation. Chia Song Hwee, Chief Operating Officer, will remain with the company in that position until August 2011, when he will return to be part of Singapore's business future.
"Doug Grose and Chia Song Hwee formed the foundation of GLOBALFOUNDRIES, bringing together the world's leading-edge manufacturing technology with the heritage of a full-service foundry partner," said Norling. "This new leadership team will build on that foundation, as we increase investment in technology, capacity and talent while optimizing performance."
Norling also said an executive search for a permanent CEO has already begun. Manocha's focus in the short-term is to work closely with top management and talent of the company to optimize performance, continue progress on the customer and technology roadmap, and continue the efficient ramp of capacity in Dresden and New York.
Manocha is a veteran semiconductor industry executive with more than 30 years of global expertise in operations, general management, and manufacturing. Having recently served as an advisor to ATIC, Manocha brings a wealth of talent, experience and leadership ability to GLOBALFOUNDRIES at a critical time in the company's development. Manocha was previously Executive Vice President of Worldwide Operations at Spansion. Prior to Spansion, he was Executive Vice President and Chief Manufacturing Officer at NXP (formerly Philips Semiconductors), where he was responsible for worldwide IC manufacturing, supply chain management and purchasing for the semiconductor division. Manocha held senior executive and management positions at AT&T Microelectronics and AT&T Bell Laboratories, and began his career as a research scientist and was granted over a dozen U.S. and international patents for several novel inventions in the field of technology for microelectronics.
Norling is the former Chairman of Chartered Semiconductor and also served as interim CEO of that company in 2002. He has over three decades of working experience in the electronics industry, with global breadth and deep customer relationships. Norling was with Motorola Inc. from 1965 to 2000 holding various positions, including President of the Semiconductor Products Sector for seven years, from 1986 to 1993. He was also president of the Europe, Middle East and Africa region in 1993, deputy to the chief executive officer in 1998 and president of the Personal Communications Sector from 1999 until 2000, when he retired from Motorola. In 2001, he joined the board of Chartered Semiconductor.
Ajami has been CEO of ATIC since November 2008, leading the investment company through strategic acquisitions of semiconductor manufacturing assets and the creation of GLOBALFOUNDRIES as well as other investments in innovative start-up companies such as Calxeda. Ajami brings strong customer and partner relationships to GLOBALFOUNDRIES with a focus on investment discipline. He joined ATIC from Mubadala Development Company, where he was Associate Director of Acquisitions and led the initial investment in AMD in 2007. Prior to Mubadala, he held several positions in Silicon Valley, including Packard Bell/NEC.
About GLOBALFOUNDRIES
GLOBALFOUNDRIES is the world's first full-service semiconductor foundry with a truly global manufacturing and technology footprint. Launched in March 2009 through a partnership between AMD [NYSE: AMD] and the Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC), GLOBALFOUNDRIES provides a unique combination of advanced technology, manufacturing excellence and global operations. With the integration of Chartered in January 2010, GLOBALFOUNDRIES significantly expanded its capacity and ability to provide best-in-class foundry services from mainstream to the leading edge. GLOBALFOUNDRIES is headquartered in Silicon Valley with manufacturing operations in Singapore, Germany, and a new leading-edge fab under construction in Saratoga County, New York. These sites are supported by a global network of R&D, design enablement, and customer support in Singapore, China, Taiwan, Japan, the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom. For more information on GLOBALFOUNDRIES, visit http://www.globalfoundries.com.
About ATIC
The Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC) was created in 2008. A technology investment company wholly owned by the Mubadala Development Company of Abu Dhabi, ATIC is focused on making significant investments in the advanced technology sector, both locally and internationally. Its mandate is to generate returns that deliver long-term benefits to the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
ATIC seeks to leverage the unique advantages it enjoys as an investor from the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to identify and realize long-term investment opportunities in the highly competitive and capital-intensive advanced technology sector. These advantages include significant and reliable capital, a patient investment philosophy, and a subsequently long-term investment horizon. For more information, visit http://www.atic.ae.
