Energy

The manufacture of semiconductors is not possible without the input of resources and energy. The energy input is particularly high in the frontend production during wafer structuring. The reduction of energy consumption is therefore one of our prime environmental goals, which we pursue with sustainable, innovative concepts. In this way we have been able to achieve substantial savings in energy consumption at our European frontend sites, despite increasing process complexity.

 
  
 
In addition to our companywide resource and energy management concepts, our individual sites also implement individual economy measures. As an example: semiconductors are manufactured in cleanrooms with complex air conditioning systems. Various heat and cold recovery systems are deployed to reduce the heating and cooling input. These systems use heat from a recirculating cooling system, for instance, to preheat the cold outdoor air in the winter. All the buildings for the frontend production in Regensburg/Germany have been equipped with these systems since 2002. In 2005, the energy recovered from the air conditioning system was approximately 9,000 megawatt-hours, equivalent to around 902,000 cubic meters of natural gas or the heating energy needed for 300 average 4-person households. This allowed carbon dioxide emissions to be reduced by 1,782 tons per annum.