GlobalFoundries names new GM for Saratoga County chip complex

| By Robin K. Cooper - Reporter, Albany Business Review | PUBLISHED JUN 5, 2019, 3:32pm EDT

Peter Benyon will become the fifth general manager of the GlobalFoundries manufacturing complex in Malta, New York. Benyon currently is vice president and general manager of GlobalFoundries' Fab 7 plant in Singapore.

Peter Benyon will become the fifth general manager of the GlobalFoundries manufacturing complex in Saratoga County on July 1.

Benyon currently serves as vice president and general manager of GlobalFoundries' Fab 7 plant in Singapore. He will report to Ron Sampson, who will remain based in Malta, Saratoga County, and will continue to lead the company's U.S. manufacturing operations.

GlobalFoundries announced Benyon's move Wednesday as part of the computer chip maker's push to introduce new technology at the Malta complex while improving productivity.

Expanding its leadership team in Saratoga County is the latest step CEO Tom Caulfield is taking since the company shifted its strategy last August. That is when GlobalFoundries abandoned its multibillion-dollar investment to develop next-generation 7-nanometer chips, opting to focus on innovations of existing technology to appeal to a larger market with more customers.

Over the past month, GlobalFoundries reached two agreements worth nearly $1.2 billion to sell pieces of the former IBM Microelectronics business amid the computer chipmaker's goal of becoming the No. 1 or No. 2 player in every market it serves.

"We have completed the transactional elements of our strategic transformation and are now focused on execution and our long-term growth strategy," Caulfield said in a prepared statement.

Now, Benyon will work with Sampson and his leadership team to continue to make the Malta complex more efficient and productive.

The Malta complex employs 3,000 people and is coming off a strong 2018 when revenue grew by 33 percent. Sampson said in March that he expects revenue will increase by at least 10 percent this year.

Strong demand for chips used in high-powered computing and 5G wireless networks is fueling those projections.

GlobalFoundries is bringing Benyon in part because of his experience operating a plant with a rapidly expanding customer base.

Benyon has spent 35 years in the semiconductor industry, beginning his career with National Semiconductor. He spent 12 years with Chartered Semiconductor before the business was acquired a decade ago by the investment arm of the Abu Dhabi government and became part of GlobalFoundries.