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Technology Stocks : Intel Corporation (INTC) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: pgerassi who wrote (133806)	5/1/2001 1:47:17 AM
From: Saturn V	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 186894

Pete, <Since Intel does not breakout depreciation on a per FAB basis, it is quite difficult to see what their policy is> It is clear that you are overwhelmed by Intel's capital expenditure, and fail to understand Intel can migrate to the next generation technology every two years, and not get killed by depreciation. Intel has migrated to a new technology every two plus years at a reasonable cost by astute management of its overall product line. For example the 0.35 micron technology was used for two years of making leading edge CPU processors. Then the CPU processors were moved to the latest 0.25 micron FABS, while the 0.35 micron FABS started making chip sets, graphic chips and flash. Thus the 0.35 microns FABS got used for 5+ years. With old obsolete processes, sometimes Intel has sometimes even acted as a foundry for other companies . For example linear circuitry used in communication chips, does not need leading edge chip technology at all and such products are prime candidates for old FABS. The 0.25 micron Intel wafer FABS were retooled to 0.18 micron FABS after 2+ years. In the conversion to 0.18 micron , about 75 percent of the equipment was not changed. Thus the overall depreciation was kept low. Intel has a long history been of conservative financial accounting and something like insufficient depreciation would have caused problems a long time ago.