Philippine's SEIPI to hold GMM today in Manila

The Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation, Inc. (SEIPI) will hold its Q3 General Membership Meeting (GMM) on September 22, 2022, at 1:00 PM, at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila, Pasay City. This will be its first in-person event in over two years. With the theme “Powering the Electronics Industry through Technology, Reforms, and Sustainability,” this GMM will cover various matters and initiatives that will support the Philippine semiconductor and electronics industry’s recovery and growth such as energy security and sustainability, technology advancements, as well as economic and pandemic-related forecasts. Among the notable industry and government leaders that will present are Department of Energy Hon. Undersecretary Sharon Garin, House of Representatives (HOR) Energy Committee Chairman, Hon. Cong. Lord Allan Jay Velasco, Plug and Play Tech Center Global CoFounder, Mr. Jojo Flores, World Bank Senior Economist, Mr. Ralph Van Doorn, MERALCO Vice President and Corporate Business Group Head, Ms. Ma. Cecilia Domingo, OCTA Research Fellows, Prof. Ranjit Rye and Dr. Guido David, SEIPI Chairman Mr. Glenn Everett, and SEIPI President Mr. Dan Lachica. This GMM will likewise feature one of SEIPI’s Annual Business Partners, MERALCO.

The Philippine semiconductor and electronics industry retained its position as the country’s top commodity exporter based on the latest data from the Philippines Statistics Authority. As of July 2022, the cumulative electronics exports reached US$ 26.51 billion, a 1.9% increase from last year’s figures. This was 59.25% of the US$ 44.74 billion total Philippine commodity exports. 

As the new administration gains momentum, SEIPI continues to strive to be the voice of the industry and improve the investment environment in the country. The organization requested to meet with key Cabinet members to initiate its partnership with the new government and discuss the causes of low electronics industry FDI (Foreign Direct Investment), the high production costs, improvements in the Incentives Rationalization component of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law, supply chain issues.

SEIPI’s electronics industry roadmap called the Product and Technology Holistic Strategy (PATHS) includes plans to set up an IC (Integrated Circuit) Design Laboratory (ICDL) at the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) facility. The ICDL project proposal will be submitted for DOST Grants-in-Aid funding in consolidation with a Lab Scale Wafer Fabrication Facility, to enhance IC Design training and capacitate semiconductor device fabrication in the Philippines. The ICDL will leverage on the experience of SEIPI to expand the Philippine IC design sector. The ICDL will complement DOST’s Center for Integrated Circuits and Devices Research (CIDR) ecosystem, Advanced Science and Technology Institute (ASTI), and the Industrial Technology Development Institute (IDTI) in strengthening the country’s competitiveness in the IC design and semiconductor technology development.

SEIPI’s IC Design Technical Working Group (TWG), will develop courses for manpower upskilling, and choose the appropriate Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tool for the ICDL, taking into consideration the specific applications identified by the collaborating SEIPI member-companies and universities. The TWG is composed of S&E (semiconductor and electronics) companies and universities working together to address the IC design industry issues, including the development of the country’s talent pool and access to IC design tools.

Through the Parts Localization TWG, SEIPI aims to increase local sourcing capacities of critical commodities and minimize dependence on imported materials by building existing linkages with local suppliers. Member-companies have been surveyed for their parts requirements that could be localized. From the survey, imported items that SEIPI members have successfully localized or are in the process of being locally sourced, were identified and grouped into three (3) categories to date. For Category 1, identified consumables and packing materials can reach an estimated PhP 39 million. For Category 2, imported process materials that could be locally sourced amount to around PhP 13 million. Lastly, for Category 3 constructive exports of ICs and passive components could exceed PhP 123 million.

The Wire Harness TWG will tap into SEIPI's Parts Localization initiative and launch projects to develop a sustainable supply of wire harness products from the local manufacturers. Power cords and magnetic wires were recently added to the scope of the Wire Harness TWG to accommodate more local manufacturers of copper-based products.

To gauge the readiness of manufacturing members for IR 4.0 (Industrial Revolution 4.0), SEIPI’s Industry 4.0 TWG initially focused on three (3) manufacturing dimensions namely, Shopfloor Automation, Shopfloor Connectivity, and Shopfloor Intelligence. A proposal to obtain incentives under the Board of Investments (BOI) Strategic Investments Priority Plan (SIPP) for member-companies who will modernize their production in any of the manufacturing dimensions was drafted for consideration by BOI. A roadmap was created to guide the member-companies on Industry 4.0 implementation to be executed in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

SEIPI and ACSIEL Alliance Électronique, the biggest French electronics industry organization, link member respective companies and universities between the Philippines and France. Five (5) MOU’s (memorandum of understanding) were signed on December 2021. The relationship has taken a step forward with the visit of the University of Lille’s delegation from France to the Batangas State University to firm up the provisions of their signed MOU. Under this MOU, the universities will embark on exchange programs for faculty members and degree program offerings. The first exchange activity is anticipated to commence in the first quarter of 2023.

SEIPI will continue organizing activities to equip the industry workforce with the necessary soft and technical skills, and advocate for the needs of the industry. After a 2-year break, the organization will hold its premier industry event, the Philippine Semiconductor & Electronics Convention and Exhibition (PSECE), on November 16-18, 2022, at the SMX Convention Center Manila. The PSECE 2022 will include plenary sessions, international exhibitors, a Technical Symposium, and a Job Fair. To know more about SEIPI’s projects and events, please visit www.seipi.org.ph