ALBANY-The last step in relocating global microchip consortium International Sematech’s operations from Austin, TX has been taken. Gov. David Paterson said at a news conference Tuesday that the International Sematech Manufacturing Initiative would relocate its headquarters and operations to the Albany NanoTech Complex beginning in January 2011. The move essentially repositions Albany as the computer chip industry’s R&D hub, a role played by Austin for many years beginning in the late 1980s.

To accommodate IMSI, approximately 14,000 square feet of existing space will be renovated at the $6.5-billion Albany NanoTech Complex, part of SUNY Albany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering and home to about 2,500 computer industry R&D workers. ISMI and CNSE will partner on developing advanced manufacturing technologies crucial to the fabrication of multi-functional computer nanochips.

The move was spearheaded by $10 million in funding approved by the New York State Assembly, which was matched by a $10-million grant from the Empire State Development Corp. ISMI and its private industry partners will provide an additional $80 million in capital and operational funding, with the relocation expected to be completed by January 2012.

In a statement, Sematech president and CEO Dan Armbrust says, “By locating ISMI at CNSE’s Nanotech complex in Albany, we will enable the integration of advanced manufacturing technologies with the leading-edge research of Sematech and CNSE, allowing us to accelerate the development and introduction of new cost-competitive chip technologies to serve the critical needs of our members and the worldwide nanoelectronics industry.” Sematech began moving its operations here in 2003, establishing its headquarters at Albany NanoTech in 2008 after being enticed by $300 million in state funding.