August 9, 2001 — BROOKFIELD, CT — Photronics, Inc. is planning to expand it’s manufacturing facility with a 13,000 square foot addition that includes 6,000 square feet of new ISO Class 3 (Class 1) cleanroom space. Currently, the facility houses about 9,000 square feet of ISO Class 4 (Class 10) to ISO Class 5 (Class 100) cleanroom space.

Photronics, a top photomasks for the semiconductor market, broke ground on the expansion this week. Officials say the 13,000 square foot expansion project will allow the company to better serve its customers.

“Semiconductor companies throughout North America are continuing to design and fabricate increasingly more complex integrated circuits using technologies several steps away from the leading edge,” said Paul Fego, senior vice president of Photronics North America. “Today’s groundbreaking is the first step in enabling us to address the demand for these capabilities by a broadening number of semiconductor companies services by our Connecticut site.”

The expansion is part of Photronics’ plans to consolidate its North American manufacturing network. The Connecticut facility will take over business from facilities in Southern California and Florida, which are being phased out.

Construction is expected to take a year to complete. The company said employment at the site is expected to grow more than 10 percent, or 270 people over the next few years.