JOB GROWTH
MANUFACTURING GAINS
Bexar, Travis and Williamson counties have seen the number of jobs in the semiconductor manufacturing eld grow in recent years. The region’s share of these jobs will increase as expansions will draw more workers.
“There’s a powerful case to be made that the region that includes the Aus- tin region, the San Antonio region—on an economic basis—share a lot in com- mon. Most prominently, perhaps, is a talent shed,” Hu man said. “When a company is looking at either locating or expanding anywhere in that super region, they’re thinking about the talent that’s available in that super region area.” Overall job growth in the sector appears to continue as well. Over the summer, Applied Materials, AMD and Samsung all ranked in the chamber’s top 15 area employers for available job postings, with more than 2,100 combined. Part of the region’s overall strength and capacity in the sector is the con- centration of higher education and workforce training opportunities. Local economic and industry observ- ers say the region’s colleges and uni- versities can collaborate with local chipmakers and other companies to educate and train employees. Local programs help attract skilled talent, which Latson said is a top concern in the semiconductor space today. The prevalence of training and education can also help area residents see higher wages and more opportu- nities of their own. “Even if you’re not in the semicon- ductor industry or another advanced technology, the fact that your region is pursuing things that are future-lean- ing will be good for other businesses, for other activity, for the nonpro t community to be well-invested in,” Packer said. Laura Marmolejo, Austin Com- munity College’s assistant dean of advanced manufacturing, said the college has always maintained a close relationship with chipmakers with both non- and for-credit o erings across engineering and manufactur- ing elds. Those relationships and local o erings have helped to develop future talent as need grows across the supply chain, she said. “Everyone is a customer to some- one. Applied Materials makes equip- ment, which Samsung uses. Samsung uses equipment to build chips for other companies, [such as] Apple and Tesla and other people,” Mar- molejo said. “You’ve got this hub of supplier-vendor relationships, not to mention you have extreme resources when it comes to skilled labor.” Room for growth The region is also set for gains within the industry in part thanks to
From Georgetown to Buda, relocations and expansions brought an estimated 3,500 semiconductor jobs to the area since 2015.
Bexar County
Estimated*
Travis County
Williamson County
Workforce fact: Central Texas was home to around 40% of chip manufacturing jobs in Texas as of 2020.
SEMICONDUCTOR JOBS CREATED
2016*
2016
2017*
Buda 15 Austin 600
2018
2017
2019
Austin 138 Round Rock 12
2020
No recorded numbers
2018
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
2020 June Mar. 2019 Nov. Oct. Jan. 2021 Nov. Feb. Jan.
Chip manufacturing jobs
Austin 80 Austin 80
*NOTE: EXACT NUMBERS FOR COUNTY JOBS IN CERTAIN YEARS ARE NOT AVAILABLE. SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING JOBS BASED IN COMAL AND HAYS COUNTIES WERE NOT RECORDED. SOURCE: U.S. CENSUS BUREAU COMMUNITY IMPACT
Austin 10 Austin 70 Austin 50
of capabilities, is playing in a lot of areas, and is really driving some of the advancement and technology that’s
dollars of investments into the area. “There is some real synergy in Wil- liamson County because of the Sam- sung project,” Gravell told Community Impact. While chipmaking is complex, analysts said regional e ects tied to development, jobs and resources are not closed o to the high-tech industry. One example is in New Braunfels, where Continental AG opened a $110 million automotive manufacturing facility in the fall. Jonathan Packer, president and CEO of the Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce, said while Continental is not a chipmaker itself, the plant’s arrival is “absolutely critical” for its local economic e ects. “New Braunfels operates in a region,” Packer said. “What has been primarily kind of a metro economy in semiconductor with the Samsungs and the other folks, [Advanced Micro Devices], etc. that have been in Austin for many years, it’s now becoming a regional economy with built-out sup- pliers and more geographic diversity.” A growing workforce The Austin metro continues to out- pace the rest of the country in job growth since the start of the COVID- 19 pandemic, with more than 118,000 jobs—over 10% of the region’s total— added since February 2020, according to data from the Greater Austin Cham- ber of Commerce. In manufacturing, more than 5,200 jobs were added in the last year—a 7.9% increase. Austin Chamber President and CEO Laura Hu man said the area’s strong jobs footing is also a key to increasing the chip industry in Central Texas.
de ning the space.” Regional response
Elgin 10 Austin 10
The past year has brought several major announcements in the semi- conductor eld led by one of Austin’s longest-tenured chip producers. In November 2021, Samsung announced it will bring a $17 bil- lion manufacturing facility and an estimated 1,800 jobs to Taylor. This summer, the electronics company’s plans to potentially drop an addi- tional $167 billion and 8,200 jobs in Taylor as well as $24 billion and 1,800 jobs in the Manor area were also made public. Analysts said the $200 billion-plus in con rmed and pending expansions are expected to bring wide-reaching economic e ects ranging from new business and infrastructure to hous- ing and population growth. “The kind of jobs that are cre- ated, the kind of money that’s being invested, the supporting network and transportation, communications, and housing that have to go around these are really going to accelerate the pace of development,” Latson said. In addition to Samsung, semicon- ductor equipment manufacturer Applied Materials is also eyeing a $2 billion expansion down the road in Hutto, and other related companies are or were considering the Greater Austin area for their operations. Williamson County Judge Bill Grav- ell, who helped broker the deal that brought Samsung to Taylor, said that project will help propel millions of
Taylor 2,000
Georgetown 300 Oct. Austin 40 Sept. Round Rock 75 May Austin 40 Jan. 2022
SOURCES: GREATER AUSTIN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, TEXAS COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS, U.S. CENSUS BUREAU COMMUNITY IMPACT
CONTINUED FROM 1
Within that broader view, the Aus- tin metro and areas along the I-35 corridor are poised to bene t from chipmakers’ activities. A handful of corporate expansions are expected to bring hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of jobs in the years ahead. This could boost the regional workforce and economy as more chipmakers, other manufacturers and support companies arrive. “I would say that we have one of the most dynamic semiconductor ecosystems in the United States,” said Ed Latson, executive director of the Austin Regional Manufacturers Association. “All that together really makes for a community that has a lot
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