UT wants Pickle campus to support semiconductor industry

The University of Texas has plans to make the J.J. Pickle Research Campus in North Austin a hub for the area’s already thriving semiconductor industry, in addition to existing city plans to steer life sciences businesses to that region. The Austin Business Journal reports that UT President Jay Hartzell wants the university to be more closely involved in talks for major business expansions and relocations often handled by Opportunity Austin and other local leaders. With UT routinely named as one of the major labor force development resources for the area – along with Austin Community College – Hartzell said the university should play a much larger role in discussions on the needs of new and emerging businesses in the area. In addition to the Pickle campus, UT also wants to see the former Sematech campus on Montopolis Drive used to support semiconductor fabrication.