As the entire world was forced into their homes in 2020, the number of digital transactions increased to never-before-seen numbers; in Costa Rica alone, mobile money transfer transactions increased 700% (SUTEL, 2020), which represented 55 million transactions.
The recent chain of worldwide events, ultimately fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic, has accelerated the digital journey of companies around the globe. How can we adapt and be better prepared for this uncertain and technologically disrupted future?
As a country which exports 2x the OCDE countries ratio in services and delivers over 100 different business functions in more than 12 different languages around the globe, Costa Rica is a knowledge-intensive economy, ideal for the nearshoring of IT companies worldwide.
Over 23 years ago, MicroTechnologies established in Costa Rica and currently, delivers cutting-edge engineering solutions in the semiconductor, automotive, medical, and industrial markets.
San José, Costa Rica. April 15, 2020. Byte, a multinational company in the life sciences industry and dedicated to producing orthodontic medical devices, announced that it will hire 150 more people in Costa Rica, due to the growth of its local operations.
San José, Costa Rica. February 18, 2021. Biomerics, a leading mid-market medical device contract manufacturer, announced it is doubling its manufacturing footprint in the Zeta Free Trade Zone in Cartago, Costa Rica. Biomerics held a joint groundbreaking ceremony with Zeta and CINDE on Friday, February 12, 2021.
- Article originally published by Investment Monitor Magazine.
- Business and investment leaders discuss how Costa Rica stands to be a primary destination for FDI that places higher value on sustainability and well-being in the wake of Covid-19.
By prompting significant focus on the environment and personal well-being, the Covid-19 pandemic has also brought into sharp relief the role of the investment community in supporting a sustainable recovery.
- $350 million investment will create more than 200 new jobs.
- The assembly facility will be operational in the second half of 2021.
- Move follows the start of some test operations in Costa Rica in April this year.
"Intel continually evaluates its operations around the world to ensure that we have the right capacity to supply global demand. We will start the assembly and test facilities in Costa Rica to expand our global capacity so we can continue fulfilling Intel customer’s needs,” stated Ileana Rojas, General Manager of Intel Costa Rica.
“The existing infrastructure, synergy with the test operations that already exist on-site, the talent, the free trade zone regime, and legal environment gave Intel a favorable option to start its assembly capacity in Costa Rica,” added Rojas.
The assembly and test facilities will be at the company's campus in San Antonio de Belén and are expected to begin operations in the second half of 2021, once the necessary certifications have been approved. Assembly/Test operations are part of Intel’s Manufacturing and Operations organization. Once the wafer manufacturing process is completed at Intel’s fabs, the cut wafers are sent to an assembly and test facility. Each chip is assembled into a package that protects it and enables it to connect to other components. Finally, it is tested for functionality.
President Alvarado emphasized that “it is an incredibly powerful sign that amid a pandemic Costa Rica has gained strength as a reliable investment destination. It also shows that the country is building long-term relations with investors since our association with Intel is a story of working together for more than two decades. An investment of this caliber ingrains the Intel mark and opens considerable employment opportunities for people with different job profiles, who will be able to add to the exports generated by Tico talent for all the world.”
The new employees will be hired in multiple areas of engineering and there will also be opportunities for technicians in disciplines such as electronics, electromechanics, and related. Job opportunities are posted at www.intel.com/jobs
Andrés Valenciano, Minister of Foreign Trade, celebrated the announcement of this new expansion and the job opportunities it will create for many Costa Ricans.
“For Costa Rica, Intel symbolizes a pioneer in the high-tech industry that opened the door for many companies to establish in our country, similarly attracted by the talent of our people, our most valuable asset. With a history of constant transformation that today translates into a diverse range of processes, the local facility is well-positioned to service the global marketplace competitively, with elevated resilience and value-added. Such high-level performance is particularly important in a challenging context driven by Industry 4.0, and further accelerated by the COVID pandemic. We are proud to host leading companies from strategic industries that like Intel, continue to choose us as a home for their operations. We appreciate this new symbol of trust in our capacity, and bid tidings of further innovation, as the company discovers new horizons from where to continue serving its clients worldwide, with increasing sense of purpose and vision of sustainability.”
Intel in Costa Rica: high-value operations
Assembly and Test operations join the high-value operations that are already in Costa Rica. Intel Costa Rica currently employs more than 2,200 people. Its operations are divided into two large centers of excellence:
- The Research and Development (R&D) Center: Currently the largest R&D Center in the country, focused on the design, prototype, testing, and validation of integrated circuit solutions.
- The Global Services Center: This center performs multifunctional business processes supporting Finance, Human Resources, Sales and Marketing, Quality, and Information Technologies across the globe.
CINDE’s Managing Director, Jorge Sequeira Picado, commented that “with this project, Costa Rica is proving itself as a dependable partner for all nearshoring strategies that can help to seek out redundancies in supply chain optimization. Costa Rica has demonstrated that it can provide business continuity and a robust market-access platform for achieving this goal. This new Intel phase is a complement to its different business verticals, which range from smart manufacturing to research and development.”
In addition to the operations, Intel continues to invest in the people and local communities of Costa Rica. Over the last decade, employees have volunteered more than 190.000 hours and, only in 2019, Intel donated over US$268.000.
“During 2020, our focus has been on mitigating COVID-19 impacts, starting with our employees and expanding to the community with donations of over US$100.000 to the National Emergency Commission and the community, more than 23.000 facemasks to the Social Security Organization and over 1.000 hours in skill-based volunteering to develop mathematical models, analysis and monitoring tools which have been critical for public institutions fighting the pandemic”, concluded Ileana Rojas.