Chemical and Material Use

At GlobalFoundries (GF), we follow a proactive approach to use the least hazardous chemical that can fulfill our needs while meeting our technical and economic feasibility requirements.  GF thoroughly reviews all new chemicals before their introduction to our sites and ensures that proper safeguards and material handling procedures are in place. This review is completed by subject matter experts on our Environmental, Health and Safety team.  Additionally, all chemicals introduced must be approved in compliance with the GF Specification for Banned, Restricted and Declarable Materials Management (FE-0033) which includes both regulatory and customer-driven requirements.  All GF products must also meet the banned, restricted, and declarable requirements of the FE-0033 specification.

FE-0033 is also cascaded to GF suppliers, such as:

  1. All controlled materials supplied to GF (for use in research, development, manufacturing); 
  2. All packing materials supplied to GF for use to ship GF products to a customer (or customer designated third party); 
  3. All chemicals used in facilities operations;
  4. All direct materials and packing materials supplied to GF turnkey subcontractors and wafer foundry suppliers for product manufacture for GF.

Applicable regulatory requirements include the EU Directive on Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS Directive), its sister directives in other jurisdictions, such as China RoHS, and other legislation that regulates substances contained in products (also called “articles”), and the EU Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) provisions on the presence of designated Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs).  GF has programs in place to obtain analytical evidence of product compliance (such as RoHS and halogen-free requirements). We make these reports and other product compliance documentation available to our customers on our GlobalFoundryView data portal.

Our Global EHS Policy and Standards are the foundation of environmental, health and safety programs at each manufacturing location. The Global EHS Standards provide a consistent set of procedural and performance requirements that apply globally throughout the company. They cover a wide range of environmental, health and safety topics, including, but not limited to, injury and illness prevention, chemical safety and management, product compliance, resource conservation and pollution prevention, waste management, and industrial hygiene monitoring program requirements.

GF focuses on pollution prevention and resource conservation to reduce chemical use and avoid waste generation. We apply the following pollution prevention hierarchy to promote pollution prevention and resource conservation: 

  • Source Reduction 
  • Reuse / Reclaim 
  • Recycle 
  • Treatment 
  • Land disposal

GF also mitigates the risk of exposure to chemical hazards by implementing the following risk-based hierarchy of controls:

  • Elimination 
  • Substitution 
  • Engineering controls 
  • Administrative procedures 
  • Personal protective equipment 

As a result of our proactive approach, we have eliminated the following chemicals and chemical classes from use in our manufacturing processes, products, and packing materials as applicable.  

SubstanceUse and Exception Details
Asbestos, Asbestos MaterialsProhibited from all uses.
Class I ozone depleting substancesProhibited from all uses.  Exception for sealed Facilities systems that were in use before July 1, 2015.
Class II ozone depleting substancesProhibited from all uses.  Exception for sealed Facilities systems that were in use before July 1, 2015.
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)Prohibited from all uses.
Polychlorinated Naphthalene’s (PCN)Prohibited from all uses.
Cadmium and its compoundsProhibited from product and process materials.
Chromium (VI) and its compoundsProhibited from product and process materials.
Lead and its compoundsProhibited from product and process materials.  Exception for use in applications exempted in EU RoHS Directive.
Mercury and its compoundsProhibited from product and process materials.
Heavy Metals: Cadmium, Lead, Chromium (VI), Mercury and their related compoundsLimited to less than a total of 100 ppm in packing materials.
Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBBs) and their ethers/oxides Prohibited from all uses.
PBDE (Polybrominated diphenyl ethers) Prohibited from all uses.
Specific Phthalates and phthalic esters (DEHP, DBP, BBP, DIBP, DINP, DIDP, DNOP, DNHP, DIHP, DHNUP, DNEP, DIPP, DPP, and others as specified in FE-0033-01) Prohibited from all uses.
Brominated and Chlorinated Flame Retardants Prohibited from use in products.  Exception for use of halogenated materials as flame retardants in certain post wafer fab direct materials (such as substrates / laminates and epoxy mold compounds) in older technologies qualified and in production prior to December 2017.
Certain Ethylene Glycol EthersProhibited from all uses.
Certain chlorinated organic compounds  Prohibited from all uses.
Organic tin compounds (e.g. tributyl tin compounds, tributyl tin oxide (TBTO), triphenyl tin compounds)Prohibited from all uses.
Specific Phosphorus Flame RetardantsProhibited from all uses.
Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCP) with the following characteristics: C10-13, Cl= 48 wt.% or moreProhibited from all uses.
Poly vinyl chloride (PVC) and PVC blendsProhibited from product and packing materials.
Specific Azo compounds (that form any of the amine compounds listed in FE-0033-01)Prohibited from products.
Beryllium and its compoundsProhibited from all uses.
Radioactive Substances Prohibited from all uses. Exception for use in metrology devices, smoke detectors, and airborne molecular contamination monitors based on these material’s specific properties. 
N-p-phenyl-enediamines (N,N’-ditolyl-p-phenylenediamine, 
N-tolyl-N’-xylyl-p-phenylenediamine, and N, N’-dixylyl-p-phenylenediamine)
Prohibited from all uses.
2,4,6-tri-tert-butylphenol  Prohibited from all uses. 
FormaldehydeProhibited from packing materials.
Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), Perfluorocarbon (PFC), 
SF6, NF3
Prohibited from product and packing materials.  
Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS)   Prohibited from all uses.
Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and its individual salts and esters Prohibited from all uses.
Long Chain Perfluoroalkyl Carboxylate (LCPFAC) including “PFOA Related Substances”Prohibited from all uses.
C9-C14 linear and/or branched perfluorocarboxylic acids (C9-C14 PFCAs), their salts and C9-C14 PFCAs-related substances                                              Prohibited from all uses.
Nickel and its compoundsProhibited from product and packing materials that are intended to come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin.  
Specific benzotriazole (2-(3’,5’-Di-tert-butyl-2’-hydroxylphenyl)-benzotriazole)Prohibited from product and packing materials.  
Cobalt Dichloride (CoCl2) Prohibited from product and packing materials.  
Dimethyl fumarate (DMF) Prohibited from product and packing materials.  
Antimony CompoundsProhibited at greater than 500ppm from products. Exception for use in certain post wafer fab direct materials (such as substrates/ laminates, epoxy mold compounds, solders, solder paste).
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH)Prohibited from product and packing materials that are intended to come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin.
Conflict Minerals (Metals such as gold (Au), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), tin (Sn), and cobalt (Co)) IF sourced from the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) and/or adjoining countries, and Conflict-Affected and High Risk Areas (CAHRAs) and providing direct or indirect financial support to armed conflict in the DRC conflict region and/or CAHRAs.Prohibited from product and process materials. (if contributing to armed conflict in the DRC region and CAHRAs). 
Benzenamine, N-phenyl-, reaction products with styrene and 2,4,4-trimethylpentene (BNST)Prohibited from all uses. 
Methylene ChlorideProhibited from facilities use.
Decabromodiphenylether,another name -Bis(pentabromophenyl)etherProhibited from all uses.
Phenol, isopropylated phosphate (3:1). PIP (3:1)Prohibited from all uses. Exception for use as a lubricant or grease if there is no release to water.
Pentachlorothiophenol. PCTPProhibited from all uses.
n-HexaneProhibited from process use.
Decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE)Prohibited from all uses.
N,N-dimethylformamideProhibited from all uses. Exception for process uses outside the European Union.
Phenol, 4-nonyl-, branched and Phenol, 2-nonyl-, branchedProhibited from all uses. Exception for any use as an intermediate or use as an epoxy cure catalyst.

Note: All uses include, but are not limited to, product, process, facilities chemicals and packing materials. Some exceptions may be allowed for laboratory uses.

Definitions:

  • Facilities Use – Materials used outside the manufacturing process to support facilities systems (including chillers, chemical delivery systems, HVAC, ultrapure water systems, wastewater treatment and air abatement systems, waste collection systems, etc.) and infrastructure.  These materials include coolants, lubricants, greases, paints, maintenance chemicals, refrigerants, janitorial chemicals, etc.
  • Packing Material – Material (including any box, container, reel, tray, tube, wrapper, cushioning, tape, inks, colorants, or other material) used to contain, protect, store, and transport GF product to a GF customer or GF customer designated addressee.
  • Process – Refers to any material used in a GF manufacturing process.
  • Product – A product manufactured by GF, its joint ventures and partnerships or on behalf of GF by outside suppliers.