Hello Everybody!
I don't usually post recent articles, but here are some excerpts from a Monthly article about companies in the Flat Panel Display Industry. There were several other companies mentioned at length here including, Silicon Video, Planar Systems and Three Five Systems. The writer of this teaches classes at Sematech on how to manufacuture FPD's. I have attached her bio to the bottom. Abbie is one of the Editors at INFRASTRUCTURE. (http://www.infras.com)
Hopefully, you will find this interesting. It is an area that we are involved with and study each month.
From the May Issue of INFRASTRUCTURE:
Optical Imaging Systems, Inc. (OVON) is also shipping new product from their new plant in Michigan. The first U.S. pilot line running large scale glass is now putting out high reliability displays fit for cockpits in the F-16 and the space shuttle. This is no small accomplishment, and has taken perhaps one and a half years longer than originally expected. A new manufacturing management team is running the fab. The latest displays produced are reported to have far fewer defects than those from the original OIS lab facility. This validates the concept of minienvironments, and isolation technology, as well as the reduced defect density achievable with robotic loading. All of these concepts, as well as many new process tools for flat panel display manufacturing have now been proven clean and process capable. U.S. based publicly traded companies, who's equipment has probably had something to do with the good yield, include Applied Materials (AMAT), Plasmatherm (PTIS), MRS Technologies and Photon Dynamics PHTN).
Micron Technology (MU) is doing some quiet staffing up of their FED
operations in Boise - process engineering types. I guess they could call TI (TXN), since they discontinued the efforts of about 50 people working on FED’s under the Pixtech (PIXT) patents last month in Dallas.
Motorola (MOT) continues to progress with their FED work in Tempe. A
prototype line has been started in a temporary location, while the fab is under construction. Material handling and process tool evaluations are underway.
SI Diamond Technology (SIDT) is planning more diamond based FED
production from their (formerly MCC) pilot line in 1996. The company has been working on new diamond film coating applications, a packaging/multichip module lab they purchased, and their capital equipment specialty vacuum systems business for the last year, as well as some exciting new technology deals in the former Soviet Union. Hard to juggle all that and FPD process/product development, too, in a small, geographically spread out company. All kinds of activity, but not enough focus. Maybe this year or next, the winning technologies will emerge as products or licenses that produce significant revenue.
And, as you know:
The Society for Information Display holds its annual convention in San
Diego, May 14 - 16. Hot topics are expected to be head mounted color
displays, large plasma displays, and new reflective display
technologies/companies.
Abbie Gregg (Abbie Gregg Inc.- AGI) is a provider of engineering and consulting services to the semiconductor and flat panel display industries. AGI specializes in cleanroom layout, facility design and factory modeling. Areas of expertise include fit-up of semiconductor and FPD process, test and assembly equipment. AGI also performs process, test and cleanroom training for high tech manufacturers. Process analysis, factory simulation, modeling, and CAD services are some of our Industrial Engineering services.
Hope this helps -- We think the FPD business will grow quite rapidly over the coming years.
Regards,
Carl
INFRASTRUCTURE
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