Sumitomo Chemical Corp. (Tokyo; www.sumitomo-chem.co.jp) has begun construction of a new plant in Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province that will produce high-purity chemicals for semiconductor manufacturing. The new facility, located at Sumika Electronic Materials (Changzhou) Co., is Sumitomo’s second high-purity chemicals facility in China, after its first plant in Xi’an. The new plant is scheduled to start commercial production in March 2019.
Sumika Electronic Materials was established in August 2017, with operating capital of around $50 million. The business is mainly focused on the manufacture and sale of hydrogen peroxide, sulfuric acid, isopropyl alcohol and other chemicals.
High-purity chemicals for semiconductors are primarily used for precision cleaning in semiconductor micromachining. Increasing demand for electronic devices has driven semiconductor manufacturers to expand production capacity in China.