Toshiba today held a groundbreaking ceremony in readiness for the start of construction of Phase 2 of Fab 5, the company's fabrication facility (fab) at its Yokkaichi Operations memory production facility in Mie Prefecture. Toshiba will expand Fab 5 to secure manufacturing space for NAND flash memories fabricated with next generation process technology and for 3D memories. Construction will be completed in summer next year, and decisions on equipment investments and production levels will reflect market trends.

Three fabs at Yokkaichi Operations currently mass produce NAND flash memories, including Fab 5 phase 1. Fab 5?s construction was planned around two phases, the first of which went into operation in July 2011. After giving careful consideration to the balance of product supply and demand, and noting a recovery driven by growing demand for smartphones, tablets, SSD for enterprise servers, Toshiba now anticipates further medium- to long-term market expansion and recognizes that the time is right to expand Fab 5.