Everyone knows how GlobalFoundries' 32nm yields started out; its no secret that they were quite poor. AMD even went so far as to go onto record regarding the issue, blaming the poor yields for their lackluster financial performance. The occasional rumor was even heard that AMD may part ways with them at 28nm.

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But, the firm is claiming that its 32nm process ramped up quicker than its 45nm process, allowing more than double the amount of wafers to be made during the first five months of production. GlobalFoundries CEO Ajit Manocha acknowledges the initial poor yields, but explains that some operational and organizational changes were made. He hints that these changes will carry over to 28nm.

"In just one quarter, we were able to see more than a doubling of yields on 32nm, allowing us to exit 2011 having exceeded our 32nm product shipment requirement," he says. "We are committed to moving ahead on 28nm with GLOBALFOUNDRIES." AMD appears to be happy with GlobalFoundries and they seem to be planning on using them for their 28nm production. Only time will tell if the changes have really helped with 28nm.