Nolan Cottingham spent six years watching customers order burgers through a drive-through window five minutes from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s Phoenix construction site. Today, the 23-year-old monitors semiconductor production alongside engineers from Taiwan, participating in cross-cultural exchanges that define TSMC Arizona’s workplace culture.
His transformation reflects broader changes rippling through north Phoenix, where TSMC’s $165 billion investment has created pathways for service workers, displaced laborers, and recent graduates to enter advanced manufacturing. The apprenticeship program that facilitated Cottingham’s transition embodies both the collaborative ethos TSMC has imported from Taiwan and the economic opportunities spreading through Arizona communities.
Collaborative Foundation…