Jessica Gomez, CEO of Rogue Valley Microdevices, founded the company 21 years ago with her husband using $180,000 from the sale of their home. The microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) maker has faced significant challenges, including the 2008 recession. Still, the company has grown to employ 30 people and recently secured up to $6.7 million in CHIPS Act funding to expand its operations, reports EE times.
Rogue Valley Microdevices and Atomica are two MEMS manufacturers in the U.S. Despite their relatively miniature size compared to other players in the semiconductor industry, they have a significant impact on the military and biomedical supply chains. Rogue Valley Microdevices recently signed a non-binding agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce to receive up to $6.7 million in CHIPS Act funding. The investment will nearly triple the company’s manufacturing capacity by expanding its MEMS and sensor foundry in Palm Bay, Florida. The expansion is also expected to provide much-needed upgrades to the company’s original facility in Medford, Oregon, which is operating at full capacity.
The company also hopes to become the world’s first MEMS foundry to produce 300mm wafers, which should lower costs and enable wafer-level integration with CMOS devices.
But the road to success was long and strenuous for Rogue Valley. In 2003, Jessica Gomez and her husband took the bold step of selling their California home to raise $180,000, which they used as equity to start Rogue Valley Microdevices. That initial funding allowed them to secure additional bank financing and a loan from a local economic development district. They also relied on about $50,000 in credit card debt to get the business off the ground.
Rogue Valley started with a miniature thin-film deposition cleanroom, a humid table, an oven, and a few metrology tools. Gomez and her husband ran the facility themselves for the first few years, reinvesting all of the proceeds back into the company. At the time, MEMS manufacturing investment was uncommon in the U.S., and most manufacturing facilities were being built overseas.
The company struggled with the financial crisis in 2008 and had to lay off most of its employees. However, after restructuring the business, it returned to profitability within six months. Rogue Valley now employs 30 people and generates about $10 million in annual revenue.
The MEMS market, valued at $14.6 billion in 2023, is expected to grow to $20 billion by 2029, driven by demand for fresh applications such as autonomous driving as well as established markets such as communications and the military. Rogue Valley is leading the market as it continues to adopt advanced manufacturing technologies and expand its processing capacity.
