In an effort to advance factory manufacturing and production efficiency while aiding sustainability, tech giants Siemens and Intel have announced an agreement to collaborate. The partnership supports not just the quest for a greener industry but also the health of the global economy. This collaboration between these industry leaders will see them utilising their respective portfolios of cutting-edge Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, combined with Siemens' automation solutions, to enhance semiconductor manufacturing efficiency and sustainability.

The announcement, made overnight, confirmed that both Siemens, a leading technology company, and Intel, one of the world's biggest semiconductor companies, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). The agreement will drive the digitalisation and sustainability of microelectronics manufacturing, focusing on improving future manufacturing methods, evolving factory operations and cybersecurity, as well as backing a resilient international industry ecosystem.

"Semiconductors are the lifeblood of our modern economies. Few things run without chips. We're proud to collaborate with Intel to quickly advance semiconductor production. Siemens will bring its entire cutting-edge portfolio of IoT-enabled hardware and software and electrical equipment to this collaboration", said Cedrik Neike, CEO of Digital Industries and member of the Managing Board of Siemens AG. He has expressed confidence that their joint efforts will contribute significantly to achieving global sustainability goals.

Apart from highlighting key areas of collaboration, the MoU will explore various initiatives, including energy management optimisation and addressing carbon footprints across the value chain. The partnership aims to utilise digital twins of complex, highly capital-intensive manufacturing facilities, implementing standardised solutions where even minimal efficiency gains are notably impactful.

The collaboration will extend to reducing energy use and minimising the environmental footprint across the value chain through advanced modelling of natural resources. Looking to extract additional insights on product-related emissions, Intel intends to explore product and supply chain-related modelling solutions with Siemens to engender data-based insight. Intel's aim is to assist the industry in accelerating its progress towards reducing its collective footprint.

"The world needs a more globally balanced, sustainable and resilient semiconductor supply chain to meet the increasing demand for chips," said Keyvan Esfarjani, executive vice president and chief global operations officer at Intel. "We are excited to build upon Intel's advanced manufacturing capabilities by expanding our collaboration with Siemens to explore new areas where we can utilise Siemens’ portfolio of automation solutions to enhance efficiency and sustainability in semiconductor infrastructure, facilities and factory operations. Our MoU is set to benefit both regional and global industry value chains."

In response to the growing demand for powerful, sustainable chips, sustainable practices across the entire semiconductor life cycle, including design, manufacturing, operation, efficiency and recycling, are critical. Technology is vital in accelerating solutions that reduce climate impacts resulting from computing across the tech industry and the global economy. The collaboration aims to leverage automation and digitalisation to address these challenges, pushing the industry towards achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. Siemens and Intel strongly believe that by combining their strengths and expertise, they can drive significant positive change in this area.