ASML, a leading supplier to the semiconductor industry, held an inauguration ceremony today for its U.S. Technical Training Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Customers, government officials including Governor Katie Hobbs, and other dignitaries joined ASML executives to celebrate the facility, which began training engineers in 2024. Now fully operational, ASML anticipates the 56,000-square-foot facility will train more than 1,000 engineers annually.
“ASML’s Training Center in Arizona represents a major milestone for our state’s semiconductor workforce leadership,” said Governor Katie Hobbs. “As our semiconductor industry continues to grow, this facility will play a vital role in training future semiconductor industry professionals right here in Arizona.”
“ASML’s strong relationships with our customers are our top priority,” said ASML President and Chief Executive Officer Christophe Fouquet. “The U.S. Technical Training Academy reflects our ongoing commitment to chipmakers in the U.S. as well as our confidence in the semiconductor industry’s continued growth, fueled by sustained investments. We are grateful for the support of policymakers at all levels.”
A multi-million-dollar investment, the company’s new training center represents its latest investment in the United States, where the company has had a presence since its founding in 1984. Today ASML employs more than 8,500 people – or nearly 20 percent of its 44,000+ global workforce – across the U.S. at major R&D and manufacturing sites on both coasts, as well as at more than a dozen customer sites.
ASML’s U.S. Customer Support (CS) team forms a crucial and growing part of the semiconductor industry, an ecosystem that relies on collaboration, transparency and trust to function optimally. These engineers are tasked with keeping systems at customer fabs running smoothly – a responsibility which can include troubleshooting some of the world’s most advanced machines. Fulfilling the company’s commitments to service and maintaining its systems at the heart of our customers’ facilities requires extensive and ongoing training.
“Our lithography engineers work around the clock to support our customers, providing the technical expertise necessary to ensure our hardware and software are being used as effectively as possible,” said Clayton Patch, Head of U.S. CS. “ASML’s investment in the U.S. Technical Training Academy enhances our ability to provide them with the training required to solve complex engineering challenges in service of powering the industry forward.”
In Arizona, ASML employs about 700 people statewide, including hundreds of highly skilled engineers who are stationed to operate and service lithography tools inside the region’s semiconductor fabs. The new center in Phoenix is the only ASML facility in the U.S. with the capability to train engineers across all product lines: EUV, DUV and Applications (metrology and inspection systems that quickly and accurately measure pattern quality).
“ASML’s new training facility demonstrates Arizona’s commitment to semiconductor workforce development,” said Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “We are proud to see industry leader ASML expand its presence in Arizona with a facility that will serve as a national hub to strengthen the semiconductor workforce.”
“This investment by ASML elevates Phoenix as the center of America’s semiconductor comeback, and the place where global talent will learn and thrive,” said Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. “The real power behind our semiconductor success is in our people. This training center is part of the future for talent. We are building a city where innovation and opportunity rise hand in hand — and where every person knows that the future of Phoenix includes them.”
The site is equipped with 14 modern classrooms dedicated to instructor-led training as well as a cleanroom. In these specialized spaces, instructors provide technical training for new engineers, upskilling for existing employees, and lessons tailored for customers on ASML machinery. Tooling available at the center for hands-on learning includes multiple advanced machine modules.
ASML’s Phoenix site is the latest addition to its global network of training centers. Since 2016, foreseeing the growth of the installed base of EUV systems, ASML laid out a strategic roadmap for expanding its training capacity. This facility is the last on that roadmap to open, following the debut of similar sites in Taiwan, South Korea, and the Netherlands. With its opening, ASML now operates nine training centers across the globe.
