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Technology Stocks : Applied Magnetics Corp -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: EyeDrMike who wrote (10547)	12/3/1997 9:57:00 AM
From: Don Earl	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 12298

Hi EyeDrMike, From the companies web site appmag.com Development and commercialization of MR disk heads continue to be a major investment for Applied Magnetics. In 1996 we entered production on our first volume MR disk head program. We qualified for additional production programs in 1997, and we continue to ship prototype and qualification samples of MR disk head products to selected customers for drive applications that are expected to require areal densities of nearly 1,600 megabits per square inch during 1997 and over 3,000 megabits per square inch in 1998. From 10Q filed 8/8/97 sec.gov The Company is increasing its investment in MR technology disk head products. During April 1997, the Company completed its first clean room expansion of the MR wafer fab in Goleta, California. This expansion is expected to be fully equipped by October 1997, at a total estimated cost of $28.0 million. The Company is currently underway with a second clean room expansion that is planned to be completed by October 1997 and fully equipped by April 1998, at a total additional estimated cost of $48.0 million. When fully equipped, this fab will initially be capable of producing approximately 12 million HGAs per quarter, assuming a pico form factor at comparable yields to inductive thin film. During the second quarter of fiscal 1997, the Company's inductive thin film wafer fab was converted to enable manufacturing of MR write heads. The combined fabs will be capable of total output in excess of 40 million MR HGAs per quarter, assuming a pico form factor, by the end of fiscal 1999. ______________________________________________________________________ I'm reading this as when the last fab is compleated which will be capable of producing 12 million MR HGAs per quarter it will bring the total up to 40 million. 28 million now and another 12 comming up? Regards, Don

To: EyeDrMike who wrote (10547)	12/4/1997 5:07:00 PM
From: Rational	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 12298

Mike: You asked, "where did you get this information, please post facts, not opinion. the ability to produce MR in volume is key to APM's survival, so if you know something that has not been previously reported, please post your source and information." This is from APM's report: biz.yahoo.com Net sales and gross margins in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1997 were negatively impacted by lower yields on newly qualified magnetoresistive (MR) programs and 1.7-gigabyte-per-3.5''-disk inductive thin film products, which were in their first full quarter of volume production. I am not sure if the volume production refers to MR since the language appears ambiguous; the "which" may refer only to disk inductive thin film products. Sankar