UK Semiconductor Industry Leaders Welcome the UK Semiconductor Strategy
But Urge Government to Do More To Support The Whole Ecosystem
The Semiconductor Leadership Group consists of executives from across
the UK semiconductor industry and is supported by the Techworks Deep
Tech Trade Association. It was created to identify and promote the
strengths and opportunities which face the UK semiconductor sector and
to support the Government by providing expert advice and recommendations
to inform policy which can deliver the most positive impact.
The group is chaired by Techworks CEO Charles Sturman and includes
executives from leading Tech firms including Bourns, McClaren, Paragraf,
Plessey, Pragmatic and XMOS.
The group published a paper this week which welcomes the UK Government
Semiconductor Strategy as an important initiative to boost this
strategically important sector but urges the Government to work more
closely with industry in defining a set of policies which will help to
build a long-term sustainable and successful ecosystem across each
element of the value chain from research, innovation and design to
product engineering, manufacturing and end-market consumption. The paper
outlines a number of support measures and highlights key issues which
need to be addressed to achieve the UK’s true potential.
Today, all major technology trends are underpinned by semiconductor
devices: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Future telecommunications,
Quantum technologies, Space, Net Zero, Extended Reality and The
Metaverse. Globally, the semiconductor device market will be worth more
than $1 Trillion by 2030. In the UK, there are hundreds of companies
engaged in the sector, but many need help to compete on the global
stage.
Charles Sturman, Chair of the Techworks Semiconductor Leadership Group,
commented, _“We built this group at the request of industry to enable
cross-sector debate and discussion and to present a unified voice. As a
group, we welcome the government’s attention to the semiconductor
industry and the recently published strategy._
_However, the focus on early-stage innovation, design and IP creation
only addresses a subset of the industry and more support is still
required to grow a vibrant ecosystem with a critical mass of UK
know-how, talent and cross-industry collaboration._
_Around the world, no country has built a semiconductor sector of any
strength without Government support. We believe that there is a unique
opportunity for the UK to build a semiconductor industry which competes
on a global scale and delivers real value to the UK economy. However,
this requires ongoing discussion between industry and government and a
long-term view of how to achieve our goals.”_
