Feud Over for Amkor, STATS as Competitors Ink Agreement Chandler, Ariz.-Amkor Technology Inc., the world's largest provider of contract IC assembly and test services has settled its patent infringement lawsuit with competitor STATS, Singapore. In February, Amkor filed suit against STATS in the Eastern District of Texas, alleging infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,143,398. Terms of the agreement call for Amkor to grant STATS a non-exclusive license to employ the Amkor MicroLeadFrame patents. In turn, STATS will provide Amkor with immunity from a suit based on STATS Quad Leadless Package. Amkor's MLF and STATS' QaLP are near-chip-scale plastic packages boasting copper leadframes. [amkor.com] [stts.com]
Speedline Reorganizes, Cuts Workforce by 20% Franklin, Mass.-Speedline Technologies will cut its U.S. and European workforce by 250 and plans to relocate a production facility from Haverhill, Mass. to corporate headquarters in Franklin. The reduction in force will leave Speedline with about 1,000 workers. The broadline maker of backend electronics production equipment, whose brands include ACCEL, CAMALOT, ELECTROVERT, MPM and SCS, will also close its Dallas sales office and consolidate its Elgin, Ill. parts distribution center into its Elgin service and training center. Speedline said it will balance these changes with "strategic worldwide investments in R&D and a commitment to strengthen product and service offerings. . . ." "Current economic conditions continue to have a major impact on the way business is conducted throughout the electronics industry," said Pierre de Villemejane, Speedline president. "We are answering the resulting challenges to ensure both the short- and long-term success of Speedline Technologies..."[speedlinetechnologies.com]
STATS Appoints June Chia Top Sales & Marketing Executive Singapore-ST Assembly Test Services (STATS) has appointed June Chia executive vice president of worldwide sales and marketing. She reports to Tan Bock Seng, chairman/ CEO. Chia is a STATS co-founder and formerly served in senior positions in planning, purchasing, sales and marketing. She was most recently executive vice president for planning, purchasing and logistics. John McCarvel, senior vice president of worldwide sales and marketing, has resigned to pursue other interests. [stts.com] Intel Researchers Develop New Packaging Technology, Bumpless Build-Up Layer Will Enable Faster Chips Santa Clara, Calif.-Intel researchers have developed a new IC packaging technology known as "Bumpless Build-Up Layer (BBUL)." The microprocessor giant claims that BBUL technology will enable Intel to build transistors that will operate 10x faster than the fastest existing processors.
BBUL "grows" the package around the silicon, which results in thinner, higher-performance processors that consume less power. "The development of BBUL technology will allow us to deliver the performance of billion-transistor processors to computer users. It is something that current packaging just can't handle," says Dr. Gerald Marcyk, director of Intel's Components Research Lab. Intel believes BBUL packaging will be available for commercial products within the next five to six years. The company says that BBUL packaging is thinner and lighter than current IC packaging options, and can support multiple chips in the same package. Dr. Tom Di Stefano, a leading packaging expert, says "Intel again has illuminated the future with its focus on power distribution and thermal spreading as pivotal to the performance of future microprocessors." [intel.com]
Packaging Expert Lee Levine Joins CSR as Opto Columnist San Jose-Lee Levine, a widely known industry expert on IC packaging, training, process development and optimization has joined Chip Scale Review as a contributing editor. His column, which will focus on the packaging of optoelectronics devices, will appear in alternate issues of CSR, beginning in January. He recently formed his own company, Process Solutions Consulting in New Tripoli, Pa. A 16-year veteran of the IC packaging industry, he spent the majority of that time at Kulicke & Soffa Industries, Willow Grove, Pa., and the last year at Agere Systems, a spinoff of Lucent Technologies. [levilr@att.net] Ultratech Stepper Cuts Jobs, Closes Massachusetts Plant San Jose-Ultratech Stepper Inc. reduced its global workforce by 100 jobs, or about 20 percent, and closed its Wilmington, Mass., manufacturing facility in late September. The company said that it will consolidate all manufacturing at its San Jose headquarters facility. Ultratech said it will continue to focus production on its diverse lithography portfolio for the semiconductor, optical networking, MEMS and bumping markets. [ultratech.com] Downturn Brings High GaAs Substrate Inventory Levels London-A report by Strategy Analytics says this year's industry downturn resulted in "excessively high inventory levels" of GaAs substrates, especially for 150 mm material. Last year, the research firm noted, the market for GaAs substrates increased dramatically "as device suppliers and their customers geared up for rapid growth in the wireless and fiber optics markets by building an inventory cushion against a perceived threat of substrate shortages." [strategyanalytics.com]
Asymtek Appoints Nielsen Nordic Countries Manager Maastricht, Netherlands-Asymtek has appointed Lars Nielsen regional sales manager for the Nordic countries, including Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Prior to joining Asymtek, Nielsen was product manager at Cyncrona A/S in Denmark for five years, where he was responsible for the sale of materials and equipment to the microelectronics industry. Nielsen earned degrees from Sonderborg Tekniske Skole and Randers Tekniske Skole in Denmark. [asymtek.com]
Services Held for Gerald 'Jerry' Cheney Austin, Texas-Services were held in September for Gerald "Jerry" Cheney, 68, a veteran of the IC packaging industry, who died on September 4 after a long illness. He retired from Amkor Technology Inc. last year, after spending nearly 40 years in the semiconductor industry, 30 of those years in IC assembly and packaging. Earlier, he was vice president of Interlek, San Mateo, Calif., and CEO of Tool & Die Masters Inc., Santa Clara, Calif. Mr. Cheney, a Marine veteran of the Korean War, is survived by his wife, Barbara, three children and four grandchildren.
Tessera Prevails over Sharp in ITC Ruling; Commission Says Licensee Infringed Patents San Jose-The International Trade Commission has ruled, in an initial determination, that Tessera Technologies licensee Sharp Corp.'s face-up CSPs violate Tessera Technologies' patents. The ruling from ITC Administrative Law Judge Sidney Harris found that Sharp directly infringed the claims of Tessera's 5,679,977 and 5,852,326 patents. The patents were invented by Tessera co-founders Drs. Igor Khandros and Dr. Thomas Di Stefano. Khandros is now president of FormFactor, Livermore, Calif. Di Stefano is principal consultant for Decision Track, San Jose. Commenting on the ruling, Di Stefano observed, "The ruling in favor of Tessera is significant in that it supports claims to compliant packaging in configurations beyond the specific µBGA package." Tessera filed its complaint against Sharp with the ITC in March 2000. Chris Pickett, Tessera's senior vice president and general counsel, said, "We are gratified by the judge's ruling . . . While this is preliminary determination, we feel confident that Judge Harris' findings will be upheld. In addition to the ITC action, Tessera sued both Sharp and Texas Instruments in U.S. District Court, San Jose, on the identical patents. The TI suit is scheduled to go to trial on November 26. [tessera.com] Integrated Optical Circuits Market Will Reach $2.6 Billion by 2005, Research Report Predicts Charlottesville, Va.-The worldwide market for integrated optical components will grow from $13.4 million this year to $2.6 billion by 2005, according to a research report from Communications Industry Researchers Inc (CIR). CIR cites two key reasons it believes the integrated optics market is ready to take off: First, the strongest demand in the optical components industry is increasingly for access and "metro products," which require low cost and small footprints. These characteristics, the research firm says, are what integrated optical components potentially offer. Second, a major barrier to creating integrated optical circuits is disappearing because the optical components industry is abandoning the "pure," but hard-to-achieve vision of monolithic optical ICs on a single chip. Instead, the industry is looking at hybrid optical circuits in which single-function chips will be bonded together within one package. The researchers believe integrated transmitters and transceivers will have a value of $1.6 billion by 2005. [cir-inc.com] Correction: Wrong Location for Assembly Plant National Semiconductor's Caribbean IC assembly plant, managed by Bob Hilton, was in Haiti, not in the Bahamas, as reported in October's "Assembly Lines" column. Thanks to Larry Crosby for setting us straight! |
Copyright © 2001