Three engineers stand in front of the construction
A major industrial accident occurred on October 20 at TSMC's Kaohsiung F22 Fab construction site, resulting in the deaths of four construction workers. TSMC has announced a voluntary halt to steel structure work at all new Fab construction sites across Taiwan. The cause of the accident is still under investigation by the relevant authorities and prosecutors. The image shown is a schematic representation of TSMC's Kaohsiung Fab and is not the actual accident site.

A serious workplace accident occurred at the construction site of a TSMC fab in Kaohsiung, where four construction workers fell from a height during steel structure lifting operations. All four were rushed to hospital but were pronounced dead. TSMC said it had voluntarily suspended steel structure work at the Kaohsiung site and at all of its other fab construction sites in Taiwan, and would cooperate with the authorities' investigation into the cause of the accident.

According to an Oct. 21 report by the Central News Agency, the accident occurred during construction of TSMC's F22 fab in Kaohsiung's Nanzih District. A preliminary investigation found that the four contract workers were installing a steel structure when bolts on a connection plate on the outer side of the third floor allegedly broke, causing the structure and its components to fall from a height. The exact cause remains under investigation by prosecutors and the relevant authorities.

TSMC said emergency personnel immediately provided first aid after the accident and took the injured workers to hospital, while the company notified the authorities and contacted their families. It has suspended steel structure work at the Kaohsiung site and all other new fab construction sites in Taiwan. The company's safety team is cooperating with the investigation and urging and assisting contractors in handling follow-up matters.

On the legal investigation, the Central News Agency reported separately on Oct. 21 that prosecutors, after questioning the two people responsible for the site, determined there was substantial suspicion that they had committed negligent homicide and other offenses. Each was released on NT$1 million bail and placed under restrictions on residence. Prosecutors will continue gathering evidence to determine the cause of the accident and whether the individuals involved should bear criminal responsibility. Release on bail does not mean the case has resulted in a conviction.

The accident has also prompted labor groups to focus attention on safety management in large-scale semiconductor fab construction projects. They are calling for stronger cross-site workplace safety inspections and a more independent third-party oversight mechanism. The demands and responsibility for the accident must still be determined based on the authorities' investigation and judicial proceedings.

TSMC is continuing to expand advanced process capacity to meet demand from smartphones, high-performance computing and artificial intelligence (AI). Beyond contractor management and construction safety, the fatal accident highlights the challenge facing the semiconductor industry as it rapidly expands: how to balance construction schedules with worker safety.