Semiconductor giant Intel has appointed Daniel Benatar, who is Vice President, Manufacturing and Operations Plant Manager, Fab 28 (Intel's fab in Kiryat Gat), to be assistant general manager of the company's future chip production worldwide. Intel described the post as the most senior ever given to an Israeli in its global production division. Benatar holds an MSc degree in physics and mathematics and a further degree in business management from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Benatar began his career at Intel in 1993 as a student and then as an engineer at Fab 8 in Jerusalem, Intel's first fab in Israel. Since then he has filled many engineering and management in the company's production group in Israel and abroad, including in development of production technology and upgrading of fabs.
In 2011, Benatar was appointed general manager of Fab 28 in Kiryat Gat, where Intel says he led the fab's successful upgrade to 22 nanometer technology. He served in this position until 2015, when he was appointed general manager of production in Intel Israel, and led the upgrade of the fab to 14 and 10 nanometer technology.
Intel said that among processes that Benatar led in the company were development of innovation strategies that included shortening of start-up times at fabs, methods for meeting the highest standards of quality control, problem solution and decision making methods, and a revolutionary new methodology for commissioning a production line.
Intel is the largest employer in Israel's technology sector, and one of Israel's biggest exporters. The company has been active in Israel since 1974, and employs about 13,700 people in three development centers, in Haifa, Jerusalem, and Petah Tikva, at its fab in Kiryat Gat, which employs 4,700 people, at Mobileye, and other centers. The company's workforce accounts for about 5% of the number of people employed in Israel's technology sector, and it is responsible for about 1.5% of Israel's GDP. In 2019, Intel's exports from Israel rose by 70% to $6 billion.
Intel is currently constructing a new fab in Israel at an investment of NIS 40 billion, for which it received a government grant of NIS 4 billion. The new fab is due to employ about 1,000 people, and it is believed that it will enable production using seven nanometer technology.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on September 7, 2020
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