Perhaps, just perhaps UTEK is about to roar!
biz.yahoo.com
Tuesday November 30, 6:00 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SEMICON Japan Marks Year of Growth in Asia and New Market Opportunity for Ultratech
Company caps two decades of dedication to global lithography industry with prestigious customer service accolade and multiple product awards
SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 30, 1999-- Ultratech Stepper, Inc. (Nasdaq:UTEK - news), a leading supplier of photolithography systems used to manufacture semiconductors, micromachined devices and thin film heads (TFH) for disk drives, today outlined the company's 1999 growth in Asia and its penetration of a new market segment since last year's SEMICON Japan show held in December 1998.
Exhibiting at this week's SEMICON Japan show in Tokyo, the company marks two decades of dedication to the global lithography industry with a prestigious customer service accolade, a series of product awards and plans for sustained growth in the region.
Posting a 72 percent year-to-date increase in sales to Asia over last year, Ultratech is poised to take advantage of improved conditions in the semiconductor and other related markets.
According to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Arthur W. Zafiropoulo, ``With the industry exhibiting signs of an upturn and continued progress in the development of our advanced technologies, Ultratech Stepper remains in a solid position to pursue our revenue diversification strategy and produce long-term growth in our target markets.
``We are particularly pleased to report increased sales orders from our Japanese customers for the year, which solidifies our position as the only U.S. lithography company with steppers in a manufacturing environment throughout this region.'
Such sales growth reflects an increased demand for Ultratech's semiconductor-related products, including its newest bump (flip-chip) packaging technology. The Saturn Spectrum 3 wafer stepper, introduced by the company in July 1999, was developed in collaboration with Casio Computer Corp., and is the first lithography tool designed specifically for the bump market.
Marking Ultratech's debut in the semiconductor packaging assembly arena, the Saturn Spectrum 3 was recently recognized by Semiconductor International through its Editor's Choice Best Product Award as one of the top 20 products of the year for its significant contribution to the advancement of the semiconductor industry. The first order for this tool was placed by Casio and has already been delivered to the company.
The award for the Saturn Spectrum 3 follows on the heels of VLSI Research Inc's first place ranking of Ultratech in its 1999 10 BEST Survey for small suppliers of wafer processing equipment. With the highest overall rating for lithography companies in both large and small supplier categories, the award reflects the company's 20-year commitment to product quality and reiterates its reputation for stellar customer service.
At SEMICON Japan, in addition to exhibiting the Saturn Spectrum 3, the company will also be profiling its Model 1500MVS wafer stepper. With a large installed base in Japan, this successful tool is noted for its performance in the manufacture of power integrated circuits (ICs), linear devices and other application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) devices in existing fabs. The tool is equipped with Ultratech's production-proven Machine Vision System pattern recognition system that provides a robust method for aligning to difficult product layers.
Visit Ultratech's Booth 3-A801 to learn more about the company's exciting products and technologies. |
