Hemlock Semiconductor LLC - 2025 Manufacturing Sustainability
This article will appear in the August 2026 issue of MiMfg Magazine. Read the full issue and find past issues online.
Sustainability efforts at Hemlock Semiconductor (HSC) are both intentional and fundamental.
HSC creates the world’s purest human-made substance, polysilicon, that has been used in high-tech electronics such as cell phones for 65 years, all with a natural focus on sustainability. It also embraced solar energy early on, and the solar arm of the business grew rapidly over the past six years as HSC emphasized its U.S.-based manufacturing and sustainability commitments.
Because it is part of the company’s essence, the business has been focusing on sustainable processes for decades.
“We’ve been a sustainability company all along,” says Steve Holty, HSC’s Sustainability Leader.
Honored with the 2025 Manufacturing Sustainability award, HSC leverages innovation, partnerships and process optimization to make lasting, regenerative impacts in the industry.
Sustainable Values, Innovative Solutions
Based in Hemlock, an area just north of Lansing, the business embeds sustainability into all facets of its operations.
And that includes recycling water. To reduce dependence on the municipal supply, lower wastewater output and decrease waste at landfills, HSC recycles 26 million gallons of water annually and is pursuing projects to further expand recycling capacity.
“We can take processed water and use it multiple times versus directly discharging it,” explains Andy Ault, Vice President of Manufacturing. “We have large cooling towers, and we see a lot of evaporation off those towers. If we can recycle and feed water to the towers, that reduces fresh water usage.”
HSC also has made operational improvements to reduce natural gas usage and added advanced controls on boilers — eliminating 30,000 metric tons of C02. The company is also shifting metallurgical-grade silicon sourcing from coal-based to renewable charcoal-based production, cutting production-related greenhouse gas emissions by up to 50 percent.
“From trailblazing supply chain decarbonization to regenerative water and waste systems, HSC is delivering on the promise of industrial leadership that is profitable, resilient and transformative for people, planet and prosperity,” says Raquel Ledesma Perez, Diversity & Community Liaison for Hemlock Semiconductor.
Influencing the Industry, Impacting the Community
HSC’s commitment to sustainability solutions is not limited to internal initiatives. In partnership with their parent company, Corning Incorporated, they’re helping to develop U.S.-made solar panels through a $1.5 billion solar wafer plant that opened last year. A solar wafer is a thin slice of semiconductor material that serves as the foundation to a solar cell which converts sunlight into energy.
HSC supplies the polysilicon used in the wafer production and, through their efforts, are creating America’s first fully domestic solar supply chain.
Brooke Beebe, Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Engagement, said that HSC tries to help their partners understand how they can achieve their own sustainability goals through these kinds of initiatives.
“Producing polysilicon takes a lot of energy,” she says. “It can be a big driver in an end product in terms of carbon footprint or energy use, so we’ve worked really closely with the customers that we have and their downstream customers to help educate them about the role we can play and how to work with us on achieving their sustainability goals.”
HSC also is a founding member of the Ultra Low-Carbon Solar (ULCS) Alliance and has contributed to the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT), a milestone that now influences federal procurement policy.
Holty adds that they are very proud to be involved in policy and industry coalitions, including the Clean Energy Buyers Alliance (CEBA), as they work with stakeholders to further their mission to decarbonize solar and semiconductor products.
The business, which has more than 1,700 employees, has reduced its carbon footprint by closely collaborating with Consumers Energy, and HSC personnel have played a role in Michigan’s Energy Intensive Industries workgroup of the Council on Climate Solutions, which helped shape the state’s healthy climate plan.
Additionally, through the Community and Regional Empowerment (CARE) Fund and other philanthropic channels, HSC invests $1 million annually to support local first responders, STEM education in schools and other training programs. Employees contribute nearly 9,000 volunteer hours annually.
“Our four core cultural values are Teamwork, Responsibility, Excellence and Customer Focus,” says Beebe. “Our work in sustainability brings together all of those values, particularly when we think about Responsibility and how we care for the resources we have, whether it’s the environment or our people.”
HSC’s sustainability gains directly contribute to local investment, job stability and employee engagement as well.
The cumulative effect of HSC’s sustainability gains meet the company’s commitments while catalyzing systemic change across industries and the community — proving that manufacturing leadership and environmental regeneration can advance together.
The Manufacturing Sustainability Award Impact Award is part of the annual Manufacturing Excellence Awards which celebrates the leaders and products that are pushing the industry forward. Learn more about the awards program and gala.
The 2025 Manufacturing Sustainability Award was sponsored by Consumers Energy. Visit online: consumersenergy.com.