How Is Site Selection Different for Semiconductor Companies Compared to Traditional Office Tenants?

The global demand for semiconductors has reshaped industrial development across the United States and around the world. As governments and private investors prioritize onshoring advanced manufacturing, semiconductor companies face complex site selection challenges unlike those of typical office or service-sector tenants.

With its deep expertise in semiconductor real estate, Keyser—a global, AI-enabled, and conflict-free occupier advisory firm—helps clients navigate the unique operational, logistical, and incentive-driven factors that define this high-tech industry.

The Unique Demands of Semiconductor Real Estate

Unlike traditional office tenants, semiconductor companies require sites with highly specific physical, infrastructure, and environmental conditions. These include:

• Power and water reliability:Semiconductor fabrication (“fab”) facilities consume large amounts of electricity and ultra-pure water, requiring access to stable utilities and redundant systems.
• Specialized zoning and permitting: Facilities must comply with advanced manufacturing and environmental regulations.
• Proximity to workforce and supply chain: Skilled labor, technical universities, and suppliers must be within reach.
• Environmental stability: Minimal vibration, risk of flooding, and seismic activity are critical to precision manufacturing.

The capital intensity and technical complexity of these projects mean that every location decision carries billion-dollar implications.

How Semiconductor Site Selection Differs from Office or Retail Users

For office, medical, or retail users, key drivers often include workforce access, commute times, and visibility. In contrast, semiconductor real estate focuses on long-term infrastructure resilience, logistics, and government alignment.

Semiconductor occupiers must evaluate:

• Utility cost stability over decades, not years.
• Supply chain efficiency for both raw materials and distribution.
• Land availability for expansion phases.
• Proximity to major research universities or tech clusters.

Even warehouse and manufacturing tenants—while sharing some operational priorities—operate at a fraction of the precision and regulatory rigor required for semiconductor fabrication sites.

Incentives and Public-Private Partnerships

One defining feature of semiconductor real estate strategy is the role of incentives. Major projects—such as fabs in Arizona, Texas, and Ohio—often depend on state and federal programs like the CHIPS Act, which provides tax credits and infrastructure support.

Keyser’s advisors help companies evaluate and negotiate these packages, quantifying the total economic benefit across multiple jurisdictions. This includes direct financial incentives, utility infrastructure commitments, and workforce development support—all factors that dramatically influence a project’s feasibility.

AI-Enabled Market Analytics and Predictive Modeling

As an AI-enabled firm, Keyser integrates artificial intelligence and advanced market analytics into the site selection process. For semiconductor clients, this means:

• Modeling power and water capacity constraints across markets.
• Predicting long-term infrastructure investment patterns.
• Comparing incentive timelines, cost per megawatt, and permitting durations.
• Assessing geopolitical risk and supply-chain reliability.

These AI-driven insights enable companies to select sites that balance cost, performance, and resilience—factors far more complex than those facing a traditional office or retail user.

Global Reach and Conflict-Free Advocacy

With over 600 professionals and international partners worldwide, Keyser provides global reach and local precision across every major market. The firm represents only tenants and owner-occupiers—never landlords or investors—ensuring that advice is 100% objective and client-focused.

Keyser’s experts manage site selection and incentives strategy for advanced manufacturing, logistics, and technology clients worldwide—delivering the same conflict-free, data-driven process that supports every office, warehouse, medical, and retail engagement.

Precision Decisions for the World’s Most Advanced Industry

Choosing the right location for a semiconductor facility is not just a real estate decision—it’s a national and strategic one. With AI-powered intelligence, global reach, and conflict-free advocacy, Keyser helps semiconductor companies secure sites that meet today’s operational demands while anticipating tomorrow’s challenges.

That’s how Keyser transforms semiconductor real estate decisions into long-term competitive advantage.

Frequently Asked Questions: 

Q: How does site selection for a semiconductor firm differ from a standard office tenant search?

A: For semiconductor companies, site selection often involves manufacturing or R&D facilities in addition to office space. That means criteria like access to large-scale utilities (power, water, gas, waste), cleanroom infrastructure, purpose-built design, and supply-chain/logistics proximity become far more important than in a typical office lease.

Q: What unique infrastructure or utility requirements do semiconductor businesses consider that office tenants usually don’t?

A: Semiconductor firms require ultra-reliable power, high-capacity water, advanced filtration, clean environments, and in many cases proximity to raw materials and supply-chain nodes. These requirements add layers of complexity beyond traditional office site evaluation (which focuses more on location, access, amenities, workplace design).

Q: Can a semiconductor-oriented site selection strategy still incorporate office space needs, and how should business leaders approach that differentiation?

A: Yes — many semiconductor businesses incorporate office, R&D, and operational manufacturing or testing facilities in their footprint. Business leaders should approach site strategy by developing a layered real estate plan: one for traditional office functions (amenities, talent recruitment, branding) and a parallel plan for manufacturing/R&D site demands (location for logistics, approved land, incentives, technical infrastructure). That dual-track strategy is markedly different from a conventional office search.