MEMS Foundry Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By MEMS Type, Process, Foundry Type, and End User

The MEMS foundry market is projected to reach US$ 1,332.55 million by 2028, with an estimated CAGR of 9.7% from 2022 to 2028.

The micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) technology can be defined as miniaturized mechanical and electro-mechanical elements produced using the techniques of microfabrication. There are various types of MEMS sensors - accelerometers, inertial measurement units, magnetometers, pressure sensors, oscillators, thermopiles, and gyroscopes. These MEMS sensors are used for various applications such as controlling and handling equipment, managing robots, navigation systems, pressure measurement, airbags of cars, and car grippers. The market players either develop the MEMS sensors in-house or outsource them to the foundries for manufacturing. MEMS foundries provide advanced process development, prototyping, and low to high-volume manufacturing services. They offer the flexibility to use substrate materials such as silicon-on-insulator (SOI), gallium arsenide (GaAs), glass, silicon, quartz, and complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)-wafers.

Setting up a foundry can require an investment of more than US$ 15 billion as it is not feasible for most semiconductor companies to produce MEMS sensors in-house. Hence, a rising number of fabless semiconductor companies, such as Qualcomm, NVIDIA, and Broadcom, are outsourcing their entire manufacturing requirements to foundries such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC). To cater to the rising demand for MEMS sensors for consumer electronic devices, MEMS foundries in countries such as Taiwan, the US, Germany, and the UK are developing innovative MEMS solutions. Such factors are expected to boost the MEMS foundry market growth during the forecast period.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on MEMS Foundry Market

The restrictions imposed by governments of various countries to control the spread of SARS-CoV-2 during the initial months of the COVID-19 outbreak in most countries had affected the manufacturing of semiconductors. Stringent restrictions and supply chain disruptions severely impacted a majority of MEMS foundries. The COVID-19 pandemic affected the economy, transportation, infrastructure, and electronics & semiconductor industries. Due to travel restrictions and business shutdowns, the impacts of the pandemic disrupted the operations of electronics & semiconductor firms, clients, and partners for an indefinite period, severely influencing revenue generation and reducing MEMS production. Further, the manufacturers of various electronics and semiconductor products experienced delays in lead time, which restrained the MEMS foundry market growth till mid-2020. Several countries eased travel bans and containment norms post Q2 of 2020, which led to the recommencement of semiconductor manufacturing. Due to the adoption of the work-from-home model, there was a surge in demand for electronic products. Consumers and businesses purchased new laptops for the staff working remotely, and children were also home-schooled. As a result, the demand for semiconductors grew from Q3 of 2020 to 2021. Thus, the adoption of the remote working model and the resumption of operations in the electronics industry fueled the demand for MEMS solutions, which positively impacted the MEMS foundry market.

Taiwan accounts for the largest share of the MEMS foundry market in Asia-Pacific & MEA, followed by Japan and China. Taiwan has top MEMS foundries such as Asia Pacific Microsystems, Inc., Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, and UMC. Due to the rising demand for MEMS solutions for various applications such as consumer electronics, automotive, and others, the foundries are working on expanding their production capacity. For instance, in March 2022, UMC announced a new manufacturing facility in Singapore. The new fab (Fab12i P3) will be the most advanced semiconductor foundry providing UMC’s 22/28nm processes. Thus, the growing initiatives to increase the MEMS manufacturing capacity in the country will further boost the growth of the MEMS foundry market. Moreover, China has seen unprecedented growth in microsystem and semiconductor manufacturing infrastructure due to the growing consumer electronics and automotive sectors. Also, the growing export of tablets, smartphones, drones, and other microsystem and semiconductor-enabled products is raising the demand for MEMS solutions. Consumer electronics and automotive are prominent industries in Japan. The growing demand for smartphones, laptops, tablets, and autonomous vehicles is raising the demand for semiconductor and MEMS solutions. All the above factors are expected to propel the MEMS foundry market growth.

Based on end user, the global MEMS foundry market is segmented into consumer electronics, automotive, industrial, healthcare, and others. The growing deployment of electronic components that includes various types of microelectromechanical systems across different industries is contributing to the MEMS foundry market growth across the world. The consumer electronics segment accounts for the largest share of the MEMS foundry market. This is mainly due to the rising penetration of different types of consumer electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, computers, home appliances, electronic gadgets, smart wearables, etc.

Silex Microsystems AB; Teledyne Dalsa; Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation; Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Limited; X-FAB Silicon Foundries SE; Asia Pacific Microsystems, Inc.; Atomica Corp.; ROHM Co., Ltd.; STMicroelectronics, N.V.; and Koninklijke Philips N.V. are a few of the key MEMS foundry market players operating in the MEMS foundry market.

The overall growth size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources. To begin the research process, exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market. The process also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast of the MEMS foundry market size with respect to all market segments. Also, industry participants and commentators have conducted multiple primary interviews to validate the data and gain more analytical insights. Participants in this process include VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, national sales managers, external consultants, such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders, specializing in the MEMS foundry market.