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Technology Stocks : Applied Materials No-Politics Thread (AMAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Proud_Infidel who wrote (7119)	9/9/2003 3:52:16 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25522

Applied 're-evaluating' wafer-cleaning market, says report By Mark LaPedus Silicon Strategies 09/09/2003, 3:00 PM ET SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Applied Materials Inc. is reportedly "re-evaluating" its plans in the wafer cleaning equipment market, following a tough and unsuccessful one-year effort in this business, according to a report issued this week by Berean Capital Inc., an investment banking firm in Chicago. In June of 2002, Applied Materials attempted to turn the wafer cleaning equipment business upside down, by entering this market with a revolutionary, single-wafer system for use in advanced chip production. Applied's tool, called Oasis Clean, is a standalone wafer cleaning system geared for 0.13-micron devices and below in 300-mm fabs ( see June 19, 2002 story ). Applied has not bailed out of the wafer-cleaning market yet, but the company is reportedly re-thinking its efforts in the business, by "shelving" future product developments, according to the report from Berean Capital. Some believe that Applied will eventually exit the market with little or no fanfare after an unsuccessful effort in the arena. Applied "is currently re-evaluating its entry into the wet clean segment as it looks for new growth drivers," said analyst Vijay Rakesh, who watches the chip-equipment market for Berean Capital, in the report. Applied "is increasing re-evaluating this segment, shelving product introductions into the segment," he said in the report, which was sent via e-mail to Silicon Strategies. Asked to comment about the report, a spokeswoman from Applied said; "Applied has not discussed future product plans for this market segment nor have we announced that we are re-evaluating current efforts in wet clean." Sources believe that Applied has experienced a tough time in the wafer cleaning business, generating little or no sales for the Oasis. The company has unexpectedly run into stiff competition in the fragmented wet-clean market by a number of players, such as Dainippon, FSI, SemiTool, SEZ, TEL, and other providers, according to the report from Berean Capital. One of the issues is that Applied took a radical approach with the technology. Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. and Applied Materials co-developed the AM1 chemistry system for use in the Oasis single-wafer cleaning system. The companies claimed the AM1 combination enables improved particle removal performance and simplified chemical management, as compared to traditional SC1 and SC2 wet bench chemistries. But some analysts believe that chip makers are reluctant to shift to new wet-bench chemistries, especially the ancient but proven SC1 and SC2 formulas. On the positive side, Applied is seeing a modest rebound in its business. Its orders are expected to jump 10 percent in the current quarter, according to the report from Berean Capital. "We forecast strong growth into 4Q03," the report said. At the same time, Applied is well-positioned in other markets, such as CVD, etch, ion implantation, PVD and others, according to the report.