lehman in the kitchen whippin' up sauce!
check this shit out ...
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PRI Automation: Announces Acquisition of PROMIS Systems
Author: Edward C. White, Jr., CFA 1(212)526-4744
Rating: 1
Rank (Old): 1-Buy
Rank (New): 1-Buy
Price : $25 3/4
52wk Range: $38-9.56
Price Target (Old): $40
Price Target (New): $40
Today's Date : 11/27/98
Proj. 5yr EPS Grth: 30.0 %
P/E 1999; 2000 : N/M; 20.6
Current Book Value: $5.57/sh
Disclosure(s): C-Lehman Brothers Inc. makes a market in the securities of this company.
* PRI Automation recently announced the proposed acquisition of PROMIS Systems, a leading developer of Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) for the chip industry.
* The acquisition, to be completed in 1Q calendar 1999, is expected to be accretive. PROMIS had revenues of $24 million in calendar 1997, and is growing in calendar 1998.
* Among PROMIS' competitive strengths are is high market share among foundries, the advanced state of development of its Encore product family, and its growing customer base.
* With the acquisition PRI will become the only company that can offer a complete logistics management solution for chip plants. Logistics management reduces chip production costs.
* Lehman Brothers is an advisor to PRI Automation on the acquisition of PROMIS Systems.
The Basics Of Chip Plant Automation, Using Pizzas and PCs For Analogies
First, we have to recognize three different types of automation in the semiconductor plant, with analogies to a pizza restaurant:
1. Process integration (analogous to a pizza oven, to do the baking). This involves the optimization of front-end wafer processing tools and process recipes, in order to achieve the best results on the semiconductor wafer, and optimum throughput. Applied Materials (AMAT, $40 11/16, Rated 1) leads at this level of automation.
2. Process diagnostics (analogous to looking inside the oven to see if the pizza is done). This involves working with yield management information in the semiconductor plant. Yield management information includes wafer inspection and measurement statistics, and probe test information. KLA-Tencor (KLAC, $37 1/8, Rated 1) is the leader in this area of automation.
3. Logistics automation (analogous to the pan used to put the pizza in the oven and take it back out). This involves the optimal scheduling and automated physical movement of wafers and reticles between process tools and storage locations in a semiconductor plant. PRI Automation is a leader in this area of automation.
In a very general sense, Manufacturing Execution Software (MES) works with data involving all of the production process tools in a chip plant. As a result, it is involved in all three aspects of chip plant automation described above. In the pizza analogy, the MES is the chef.
Next, we take a closer look specifically at logistics automation, using PRI Automation's analogy with a personal computer.
The MES software (the PROMIS acquisition) gathers and maintains information on what needs to be done in a chip plant, and which equipment needs to do it. In PRI's analogy, MES software is like the memory in a PC, holding critical information.
The advanced planning and scheduling software (Interval Logic, acquired in 1997) processes the information that the MES software has, in order to develop an optimal schedule for the movement of wafers and reticles in the plant. PRI's optimization can accommodate scheduling changes in close to real time. In PRI's analogy, the advanced planning and scheduling software is like the microprocessor in a PC, processing the critical information in memory.
The Material Control Software (MCS) (an internal PRI Automation capability) takes the scheduling information and sends signals to the robotic hardware that actually moves the wafers and reticles. In PRI's analogy, MCS is like the data bus in a PC, carrying control signals, based on information processed by the microprocessor.
The robotic hardware (PRI's traditional business), including overhead monorail tracks, robots, stockers, machine interfaces and tool automation systems actually move the wafers and reticles, based on input from the MCS. In PRI's analogy, this is like the printer, disk drive and other peripherals on a PC, doing physical work based on information received from the control bus.
Until now, the MES software was not an area in which PRI was directly
involved. The PROMIS acquisition changes that. |
