NCET Biz Tips: Ultra-pure chemicals produced here drive technology innovation
by Dave Archer
Jared Kerney and his team think pure thoughts during their workday. Ultra-pure thoughts, in fact.
And their pure thoughts allow their customers — manufacturers in the semiconductor, integrated circuit, memory, flat-panel display and solar photovoltaic industries — to continually improve their processes.
Asia Union Electronic Chemical Corp., where Kerney manages a team of about 40 employees, makes ultra-pure chemicals at a rapidly growing facility at McCarran east of Sparks.
The company is yet another demonstration of the remarkable variety of technological companies — everything from one-person software shops to giant data centers to makers of critical technology components — that have set up shop in Northern Nevada during the past decade.
AUECC launched construction of the Northern Nevada plant in late 2017, began production in 2020, ramped up more production this year and will add another phase of construction and production early next year. When it’s at full production, the facility will employ about 175.
While the company founded in 1998 has existing facilities in Taiwan, China and Thailand to supply the global microelectronics industry, Kerney says the new location near Reno allows AUECC to better serve customers in the technology beltway that extends from Washington State to Texas.
The location in Northern Nevada makes sense, too, because it’s close to several Pacific ports — Portland, Oakland, Los Angeles — as well as U.S. suppliers of raw materials.
“Nevada’s business friendly climate and interest to expand into technology-driven industries matched well with our business objectives,” Kerney says.
The acids, bases and solvents that AUECC makes east of Sparks meet almost unimaginable standards for purity.
Parameters for metals contamination in its products, for instance, typically are measured in parts per trillion. Here’s a way of thinking about that: One part per trillion is about the same as the amount of contamination represented by a single grain of sugar in an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Those parameters are critically important, Kerney says, because AUECC customers tailor their manufacturing of cutting-edge, ever-smaller circuitry precisely to the chemicals that AUECC supplies.
Those aren’t the only standards set for AUECC’s products.
“Our customers accept zero risk to quality but also zero risk from environmental impact or safety and regulatory compliance,” Kerney says.
That demands extensive engineering design, specialized process controls and strong quality systems.
The AUECC facility near Sparks produces a wide range of ultra-pure products in quantities that range from small bottles up to 6,000-gallon ISO tankers.
The Northern Nevada location strengthens the supply chain for the vital technology industries across the United States and North America.
“Our ability to produce the full range of products will ensure stable supplies of ultra-pure products for North America, and also out to the global markets,” Kerney says.
In a world that has seen numerous disruptions of supply chains in the past year, reliable and stable supplies such as those provided by AUECC are important, indeed.
Take a virtual tour of Asian Union Electronic Chemicals during NCET’s Tech Wednesday on May 12 from 4:30 to 5:30 pm with virtual networking from 4:00 to 4:30 pm. For more information, visit www.NCETwed.org
Dave Archer is president/CEO of NCET, which produces educational and networking events to help people explore business and technology. (www.NCET.org)