Microchips receive millions in federal funding, creates hundreds of Colorado Springs jobs
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)-- A major investment is bringing hundreds of new jobs to Colorado Springs.
The U.S. Department of Commerce awarded Colorado Springs business Microchip $162 million to expand its site. The company also announced it's hiring for at least four hundred new jobs in the semiconductor production industry.
Semiconductors, or chips, are tiny electronic devices. Microchips say they are integral to America's economic and national security.
These devices power tools as simple as light switches and as complex as a fighter jet or smartphone.
Local, state, and federal leaders called this Microchip expansion a major milestone for the U.S., and they say it helps the country be less dependent on global competitors in other countries.
"You don’t go through a day in your life without about 200-300 of our products in some way, shape, or form, having touched you in ways you don’t recognize, but they keep you safe, they keep you informed, they keep it convenient, they make life better for people," says Ganesh Moorthy, CEO of Microchip.
Nationwide, Microchip can now triple its semiconductor production with this investment.
The average salary for the hundreds of open jobs is seventy-five thousand dollars annually. That is 118% more than the average annual wage in El Paso County.
