Intel wins a year’s relief for its factory transport robots
Image: Intel Corporation
Intel has received a one-year FCC waiver allowing continued use, maintenance and modification of specified automated guided vehicles in its US semiconductor factories. The exemption covers Sections 2.932 and 2.1043 of the commission’s rules.
The problem concerned equipment already moving materials through the fabs. Intel warned that restrictions could prevent software, firmware and hardware changes to those vehicles, leaving an installed transport system difficult to maintain. It told the regulator that suitable domestic replacements were unavailable and that changing the fleet could take years.
The FCC said its decision would prevent “potential disruptions in the availability of domestic semiconductor manufacturing services for Intel’s customers”. Intel’s account, reported by Reuters, describes automated guided vehicles supporting its semiconductor operations for more than two decades.
A fleet replacement would involve considerably more than finding another machine capable of carrying a load. The vehicles operate within an established production system, with maintenance and approved modifications forming part of their continuing service. The waiver gives Intel a year of relief for the identified equipment; the wider restrictions on covered robotic devices remain in place.
