Water is essential to making semiconductors, the chips used everyday in computers, cell phones, medical equipment, automobiles and other electronics. Every step of the manufacturing process requires water, which adds up to millions of gallons globally each day. Water is not only integral to the company but also to neighboring communities, which is why TI is committed to protecting this precious natural resource. TI focuses on reducing water use through innovative conservation, reuse and recycling practices. These initiatives have made TI one of the more efficient water users among industry peers.
TI's recycling and reuse practices in 2009 saved enough water to fill 1,802 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Of the company's total water use, 1.2 billion gallons were recycled or about 14 percent globally (an average of nearly 3.3 million gallons of water every day).
Water use (per unit shipped) at TI's assembly and test sites increased by 1.5 percent, while water use at its fabrication facilities decreased by about 32 percent (per unit).
"We have a goal of 'zero wasted resources,' which drives how we plan for and monitor water use, and how efficiently we actually use it," said Tami Galloway, TI's Environmental Specialist. "This year, we are working to identify the most innovative water reduction and reuse projects across the company and begin applying these practices worldwide wherever possible."
Some of the recent innovative water projects include:
Read more about TI's environmental stewardship.
- Using water to "scrub" manufacturing exhaust allowed TI to reuse about 228 million gallons of water in its North Texas abatement systems alone. The cost savings for the scrubber water reuse amounted to approximately $937,000, which is about 13 percent savings in TI's overall water cost.
- A project at a TI manufacturing facility in Dallas offset city water use in such areas as abatement devices, cooling towers and scrubbers. Instead of using city water in each of the systems, TI switched to reused water, which helps save more than 12 million gallons of water annually.
- A central utility plant's cooling tower in Dallas is used to cool manufacturing equipment and supply heating and air conditioning systems for buildings in the area. By supplying more than 70 percent of the water required for these activities with reused water, TI saves 145 million gallons per year. The company saves another 50 million gallons of water each year by simply reducing the cooling water tower pH, which helps keep the system operating efficiently.
- A deionized water recycling/reuse system at TI's Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, manufacturing site saves approximately 6.5 million gallons of water per month.
- An indoor climate-control system at TI's Freising, Germany site pumps cold water from an underground aquifer and cycles it through a heating/cooling system, beneficially using the water as a closed-loop heat exchanger. Because the water is isolated from all other plant water and processes, the clean water can be returned to the aquifer. The system nets TI nearly $1 million in energy savings and reduces annual water use by about 33 million gallons.