The Rochester region is expected to reap the rewards of an anticipated boon in the semiconductor industry, largely due to federal investments supporting the sector.
Local leaders at The John W. Danforth Co. say the company is well positioned to meet that expected demand, due, in part, to its high purity fabrication facility in Victor, Ontario County.
The $4.5 million facility is one of the few fabrication shops of its kind in the northeast and gives the firm the ability to fabricate systems in a controlled environment to the quality and purity levels necessitated by several industries, including the advanced technology manufacturing industry, leaders there said.
“The opportunities are real, and we are well positioned to offer solutions,” said T.R. Casamento, Danforth’s vice president of sales for Central New York. “The future is bright.”
Driving the expected growth for the region is the recent passage of the federal CHIPS and Science Act, which spurred Micron’s $100 billion commitment to Central New York. It is expected to create nearly 50,000 jobs and many opportunities throughout the region.
In addition, the news that the NY SMART I-Corridor Tech Hub, which encompasses the Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse region, was selected as one of 12 Tech Hub award winners in the nation, bringing $40 million in federal funding, will bring even more opportunities, proponents have said.
Casamento said Danforth saw a need in the market to support advanced manufacturing before these investments were announced, noting the business had already done extensive work in the sector, including the sheet metal fabrication and installation for the expansion of GlobalFoundries’ semiconductor manufacturing facility located in Malta, Saratoga County.
The recent announcements from the federal government will lead to more opportunities, Casamento noted, from working with advanced manufacturers to regional universities.
John Willison Danforth established the John W. Danforth Company in 1884 in Buffalo.
The employee-owned firm is ranked among the largest mechanical contractors in the Northeast, with facilities in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Albany, and Columbus, OH.
Danforth employs up to some 1,000 employees companywide and up to 135 locally, depending on the workload.
In the summer of 2016, Danforth opened the dedicated stainless steel and cleanroom fabrication facility inside a new Advanced Technology building at its local site.
The 17,600 square feet facility is made up of 11,000 square feet for stainless steel piping fabrication, 4,000 square feet of an ISO class 6 clean room and 2,600 square feet of office space to support these operations.
The spaces allow Danforth to maintain stringent quality control while fabricating general purity and high purity systems, Casamento noted.
The hardwall, dedicated high purity cleanroom space is a differentiator, added Michael Bement, Danforth’s senior vice president of pre-construction services.
Its location also allows the company to fabricate and easily transport fabrication throughout the state, making the business more accessible to a range of clients, he said, noting the Rochester area fabrication site is utilized for several different segments of the business.
As the company continues to grow, the added fabrication space has been necessary to increase its productivity while shortening lead times to job sites state-wide, Bement said.
“It’s all about speed to market,” he said.
The cleanroom fabrication space has also enabled the company to further its service offerings to include ultra-high purity welding and IR fusion welding, said Chris Burr Jr., Danforth’s general foreman for Rochester area.
Such ultra-high purity welding is required when working with sensitive materials found in the semiconductor, solar, food processing and healthcare markets, Burr explained.
He noted that the finished products are bagged and protected, ensuring that the highest degree of purity is maintained during transportation and final install.
“There’s attention to detail from start to finish,” he said.
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