Saint-Gobain Preps For Production In Devens

In a big industrial building in Devens, where Evergreen Solar once made silicon wafers, Saint-Gobain is readying to manufacture a wafer of its own.

But the French multinational materials company — which has operations throughout Central Massachusetts — will be using sapphire to make its wafers.

Sapphire substrates are a key ingredient in the light-emitting diode bulbs, or LEDs, which are used to backlight smartphones, tablets, and other devices.

It's a growth area that had a nearly $13 billion market in 2011, according to research firm Strategies Unlimited.

Acton-based manufacturing consultant Griff Resor said there has been a push toward larger-diameter wafers because they translate into lower-unit costs for LED chips.

“The chips are so small,” Resor said. “A six-inch wafer can hold 100,000 chips.”

The company is investing $30 million in the facility, which will ultimately have 90 workers. Rockland-based Integrated Builders has been hired to do the work, said Peter Lowitt, the commission's director and land use administrator.

The large wafers will be a new product for Saint-Gobain, said Dina Silver Pokedoff, a Saint Gobain spokeswoman.

The company has been preparing with pilot lines for the production process at its Northborough research and development site, and a plant in Milford, N.H.

“The Devens ramp-up to full production will be efficient and speedy,” Rose Lee, vice president and general manager of the company's high-performance refractories and crystals division, said in an email to Saint-Gobain employees.

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