Keep Semiconductors Running as ‘Essential’ Business During Pandemic, Urges SIA

Global governments need to define semiconductors as an “essential” industry that must be “allowed to continue operations” during COVID-19 lockdowns, blogged Semiconductor Industry Association President John Neuffer Wednesday. Semiconductors “underpin vital sectors of the economy, including health care and medical devices, telecommunications, energy, finance, transportation, agriculture, and manufacturing,” he said. They run information technology systems “that enable remote work and access to essential services across every domain,” he said. “Ensuring the continuity of semiconductor and related supply chains is necessary to support the even greater range of services that will be digitized in the coming weeks and months.”