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Technology Stocks : Cymer (CYMI) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ScotMcI who wrote (23164)	9/30/1999 10:43:00 PM
From: Ian@SI	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 25960

Scott, I may be mistaken. But when I read the original post, it sounded as if the much cheaper laser was for a much different purpose than lithography. Remember that Komatsu only has 2 or 3 lithography lasers in production; and I don't know that LP has any. I'll have to go check your conference call notes. ;-) Best wishes, Ian.

To: ScotMcI who wrote (23164)	10/1/1999 10:14:00 AM
From: BillyG	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25960

Don't worry about drought of new fabs -- yet By J. Robert Lineback Semiconductor Business News (10/01/99, 09:19:28 AM EDT) MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- It's been a year now since a major new wafer fab has been announced in the chip industry, and capacity utilization of leading-edge processes is pushing dangerously close to 100%, according to some analysts. Will chip makers wait much longer before launching new billion-dollar fabs? Perhaps. But if they do, the electronics industry will most likely face severe shortages of memories, microprocessors, and system-on-chip ICs in the middle of the next semiconductor boom: 2001-2002. "If we don't start seeing some new projects announced in the next two or three quarters, we are probably going to fill up all of the capacity out there, and there will be a little bit of a pause before we get to the point where new buildings and cleanrooms are capable of being ramped [in production]," said analyst Jay Deahna, who tracks the semiconductor equipment business at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. During a conference call with the press Thursday afternoon, Deahna and officials with the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI) trade group assessed the strength of the 1999 recovery in capital spending by chip makers. The consensus was that chip makers were re-accelerating their investments in new production capacity after a brief summer pause (see Sept. 30 story). But most of the new investments in wafer fabs are going into existing facilities to upgrade wafer-processing lines with 0.18-micron technologies or to increase yields with new levels of automation and process-control systems, according to Deanha. While no new "greenfield" fabs areb on the verge of being announced just yet, Deanha does believe there are plenty of empty shells waiting to be equipped in the next three to six months. "There are at least a dozen and a half empty shells out there that can be populated before we have to start worrying about building new ones," said the Silicon Valley-based capital equipment analyst. Deanha cited Micron Technology's facility in Lehi, Utah, and Hyundai Electronics' empty plant in Dunfermline, Scotland, as well as the fab building set up by LG Semicon in Wales before its chip unit was merged with Hyundai. "I think we have enough headroom of empty shells, but I would want to see the greenfield announcements pick up in the next two or three quarters," Deanha cautioned. The last major new fab project to be announced was a $1.2 billion joint-venture between Philips Semiconductors and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) in Singapore. The two companies plan to open the 8-inch fab next year and bring it into full production by 2003 (see Sept. 29, 1998, story). Semiconductor investments in new production capacity are expected to surge in 2000 after nearly $20 billion of capital spending was postponed or eliminated by chip makers last year. SEMI's new forecast, released this week, shows semiconductor equipment revenues growing 21.7% to $28 billion next year from $23 billion this year. Spending on semiconductor materials will increase 13.6% to $25 billion in 2000 vs. $20 billion this year, according to the Mountain View-based trade group. "This summer saw a bit of a slowdown in the impressive growth in the beginning of the year; however, the broader industry indicators all seem to be pointing towards a return to steady, slightly more robust growth in the fourth quarter and into the year 2000," said SEMI president Stanley Myers during the group's first quarterly update conference call with the press on Thursday.

To: ScotMcI who wrote (23164)	10/5/1999 2:21:00 PM
From: ScotMcI	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 25960

Cymer Receives Outstanding Equipment Supplier Award from NEC Roseville SAN DIEGO, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Cymer, Inc. (Nasdaq: CYMI - news) the world's leading supplier of illumination sources essential for deep ultraviolet (DUV) photolithography, today announced that it has received a 1999 Outstanding Equipment Supplier Award from NEC Electronics Inc. The award acknowledges Cymer's excellence in product quality, continuous improvement and comprehensive support over the past year for its 5000 Series KrF excimer lasers installed at NEC's advanced semiconductor fabrication facility in Roseville, Calif. Gary George, director of equipment engineering for NEC's Roseville fab, noted, ``At NEC, we strive for excellence in manufacturing and partner with the best suppliers to ensure our operations are world-class. Cymer has demonstrated tremendous dedication and commitment to quality in supplying products and services to NEC. In fact, Cymer's DUV excimer light source solutions provide the high reliability and productivity that NEC demands to help enable the Roseville fab to run at benchmark levels. Therefore, we commend Cymer's efforts and recognize them with this well-deserved award.' NEC presents this award to encourage and strengthen its supplier relationships and improve overall communication between both parties. As part of this, suppliers must go through a rigorous selection process that is based on criteria in the combined areas of equipment performance, process (quality, stability and throughput), service, spares and communication. ``We are extremely pleased to be honored by NEC, a long-standing customer and a global semiconductor technology leader,' said Robert Akins, Cymer's president and chief executive officer. ``Meeting the stringent criteria of this award program validates our ongoing efforts to provide maximum value to our customers. Our value proposition entails offering advanced DUV illumination technology at a low cost of ownership, while maintaining high quality and reliability standards that are backed by a comprehensive service and support program. NEC's award acknowledges our ability to continuously deliver the performance and commitment our customers have come to expect from Cymer.' NEC's Roseville plant is one of the largest and most advanced fabrication facilities in the world. Employing over 1500 people at the site, NEC is able to locally develop and produce advanced ASIC, memory and microprocessor products for its customers. The Roseville facility sets industry standards for high-caliber, high-capacity production. The 709,000-square-foot-facility features state-of the-art process technologies and class one cleanrooms coupled with stringent safety and environmental controls. Cymer, Inc. is the leading provider of excimer laser illumination sources, the essential light source for deep ultraviolet (DUV) photolithography systems. DUV lithography is a key enabling technology, which has allowed the semiconductor industry to meet the exact specifications and manufacturing requirements for volume production of today's advanced semiconductor chips. Further information on Cymer may be obtained from the company's SEC filings, on the Internet at cymer.com or by contacting the company directly. SOURCE: Cymer, Inc.