TOPPAN Opens Singapore Plant for FC-BGA Substrates

05 October 2026: TOPPAN marked the opening of its first overseas plant for FC-BGA substrates in Singapore on 29 September 2026. The Advanced Substrate Technologies (AST) facility will supply large-size, high-layer-count substrates for AI and networking chips, with production scheduled for December 2026.

TOPPAN Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of TOPPAN Holdings Inc., announced the development on 30 September 2026. Broadcom’s opening announcement identifies AST as a joint venture between TOPPAN and Broadcom. Singapore’s Economic Development Board supports the project.

Why are FC-BGA substrates important for AI chips?

FC-BGA stands for flip chip ball grid array. These high-density semiconductor package substrates provide the wiring needed for complex chips with large numbers of connections. AST’s product and manufacturing overview describes microfabrication and build-up wiring technologies for applications including AI processors, servers and network devices.

AST describes drilling and copper-plating the core, forming circuit patterns, and repeatedly adding wiring layers. Later steps add solder resist and solder bumps before cutting and inspecting individual substrates. These operations produce components for semiconductor packaging; the Singapore announcement does not describe a wafer-fabrication plant.

TOPPAN says growing AI and data-centre requirements have increased demand for larger substrates with more layers. AST will focus on those products for generative AI, machine learning and large-scale network switches. Screen Print India’s earlier coverage of TOPPAN’s FC-BGA technology explains the company’s work on high-speed transmission and next-generation packaging.

Singapore facility: floor area and workforce

The plant stands at 9 Pesawat Drive, near Jurong Lake District. TOPPAN’s facility overview lists approximately 95,000 square metres of total floor area, including approximately 70,000 square metres for Phase 1 operations. The smaller figure therefore describes the first operational phase, not the entire facility.

TOPPAN reports 315 employees at the end of September 2026. Its release also identifies more than 200 engineers and technicians within the workforce; those figures describe different groups. AST has established R&D functions and partnerships with local educational institutions.

About 200 people attended the opening ceremony, according to TOPPAN. They included Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong, EDB chairman Png Cheong Boon, partner companies and customers.

A second production base beyond Japan

TOPPAN previously concentrated FC-BGA expansion at its Niigata Plant in Japan. It says the Singapore site will help meet the greater manufacturing workload associated with larger, multilayer substrates while spreading exposure to natural disasters and geopolitical risks.

In a separate December 2025 announcement, TOPPAN outlined research into glass and organic interposers. Its Ishikawa packaging pilot line addresses future packaging technologies, distinct from AST’s FC-BGA manufacturing project.

Production timetable and capacity target

TOPPAN schedules AST’s operational start for December 2026. Across its FC-BGA business, the company aims to raise production capacity to at least 2.5 times its fiscal 2022 level by the end of fiscal 2027. 

FAQs

Has commercial production started at AST?

The opening ceremony took place on 29 September 2026, but TOPPAN’s published schedule places the operational start in December 2026.

Is this TOPPAN’s first semiconductor factory overseas?

The announcement makes a narrower claim: AST is TOPPAN’s first production facility outside Japan specifically for FC-BGA substrates.