Merck is investing 18 million euros (US$21.2 million) in building an electronics technology center in Shanghai, offering materials and innovations to rapidly growing semiconductor and display industries in China, the company said.

Merck’s new center, in Jinqiao in the Pudong New Area, will host capabilities for analytics, application testing and sampling for electronic materials. The 3,300 square meter facility is scheduled to start operation in the first half of 2022.

Shanghai is the right place for Merck to further invest in China’s next-generation electronics, said Kai Beckmann, CEO performance materials and a member of the executive board of Merck.

The country’s post-COVID growth will increasingly be driven by digital innovation technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, quantum computing and the Internet of Things, Beckmann said.

"More data, more chips and more materials" are needed in the post-COVID era in China.

More than 600 semiconductor firms have set up facilities in Shanghai with a combined investment of 300 billion yuan. The local integrated circuit industry has leading positions nationwide in design, manufacturing, equipment, materials and assembly and testing, according to Shanghai government officials.

Initially, Merck will have over 20 employees in the new center. Semiconductor materials have become one of Merck’s fastest growing businesses in China and more than 150 products are being supplied to around 100 chip makers across the country, covering each step of their wafer processing, according to Allan Gabor, president of Merck China.

China is a portal to the world for Merck, which believes that a golden decade for China’s semiconductor industry has just begun, Gabor said.

With this investment, Merck will also further strengthen its analytical capabilities in the field of OLED (organic light-emitting diodes) materials. OLED enables flexible displays and is used in high-end TVs and iPhone 12 models.

A decade ago, Merck established business connections with BOE, China’s biggest display panel maker. Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta are key areas for OLED innovation and application, said Gabor.