As states, communities and companies across the U.S. scramble for a slice of the $52.7 billion federal CHIPS (Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors) and Science Act pie, two things already are certain: America is undergoing a resurgence in semiconductor manufacturing; and there will be winners and losers.
One region in Upstate New York appears to have figured it out. Rick Plympton, CEO of Optimax Systems in Ontario, New York, about 15 miles east of Rochester, says that his own firm has found success in precision optics manufacturing for many of the same reasons that are propelling the semiconductor sector in Upstate New York.