*AV* ---UTEK--Critical moment of truth for the company.
The following news release from yesterday morning is reprinted for your viewing pleasure. It is not meant as a recommendation to purchase this stock but rather to share an observation. PLAB will be taking delivery of an Ultrabeam system. PLAB is one of the top reticle/mask suppliers in the industry.
IF (IF IF IF IF) this system is installed and operates in a production worthy fashion,consistent with its specifications and expectations, this will be a monumental turning point for UTEK. First, they will be the first real competitor to ETEC for the mask making business. Second, they could conceivably replace ETEC as the equipment provider of choice for all mask/reticle suppliers. Third, if it is implemented successfully for the 0.25u technology at these mask shops, you will see improved margins from the likes of PLAB, DPMI and MASK. This will bode well for the industry as a whole with the mask makers seeing a rapid improvement in yields, productivity, costs and all that really neat financial stuff.
Should this take place, we are one step away from developing systems that will directing write the patterns on the wafers at high throughput for certain critical levels. This translates to a huge IC manufacturing market down the road.
Couple this with the P-GILD process and product offering from UTEK (we still need to see it proven and implemented) and you have a very solid company for the future. This will leap frog UTEK ahead of its competitors like ASMLF, SVGI, Nikon and Canon possibly. More importantly, these two technology offerings make UTEK a prime takeover candidate down the road. This takeover comments is solely based on the comments I am seeing that indicate yet another round of equipment supplier consolidation may eventually take place as we move to 300mm wafer technology.
BTW-As long as I have mentioned PLAB, I think it is grossly undervalued. Didn't they just take over MOT's mask making facility put yet another captive mask shop under their banner??
The article is printed below
Andrew
<bTuesday January 13, 8:33 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
UltraBeam Ships Flagship V2000 System to Photronics, Inc.
Vector E-Beam Tool to be Used in Advanced Reticle Production for 0.25 Micron and Below Devices
SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 13, 1998--Ultratech Stepper, Inc. (NASDAQ/NMS:UTEK -
news), a leading supplier of photolithography systems used for the manufacture of
semiconductors, thin film heads (TFHs) for disk drives and micromachining
devices, today announced the shipment of its new UltraBeam business unit's flagship V2000
electron beam lithography system to Photronics, Inc. (Jupiter, Fla.), a leading independent
global photomask supplier.
Shipped in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1997, the system will be used in the production
of advanced reticles for integrated circuits (ICs) with 0.25 micron and below design rules.
Commenting on the order, Ultratech's President and Chief Executive Officer Arthur W.
Zafiropoulo stated that the V2000 underwent an exhaustive factory acceptance and customer
demonstration process prior to shipment. ''The UltraBeam V2000's specifications exceed
those published for currently available e-beam systems focused on 0.25 micron reticle
production. Furthermore, the V2000's competitive pricing and high throughput provide
it with cost-of-ownership advantages unmatched in the industry.''
Photronics' Senior Vice President of North American Operations James Northup stated,
''The V2000 has successfully met our factory acceptance requirements, and we believe it will
add an important new dimension to our suite of high-end lithography systems. The system
will be installed in our Allen, Texas facility, where we plan to fully exercise its
capabilities.''
Representing the first in a new series of mask writing systems targeted for 0.25
micron and below reticle production, the UltraBeam V2000 is capable of writing masks
in a fraction of the time of other commercially viable 0.25 micron tools. Designed for
the reticle production of leading-edge logic devices, 256Mb dynamic random access memories
(DRAMs) and 1Gb DRAM prototyping, the system provides industry -leading critical
dimension (CD) uniformity and placement accuracy.
Commenting on the system's technical features, Ultratech Group Vice President Richard
Williams noted, ''The V2000's vector writing strategy is clearly more efficient than raster
scanning -- the alternative writing approach -- which requires the beam to scan
continuously back and forth over the entire mask surface.
''By using the vector approach, the V2000 moves directly to those areas that need
to be exposed, bypassing unnecessary areas and saving valuable time,'' said Williams.
''Test results have validated the V2000 writing strategy-namely, its high throughput
and ability to maintain industry-leading pattern quality and accuracy.''
The V2000's unique vector architecture, high brightness source and 500 Mhz chip set
allow it to write on fine address structures while maintaining significantly higher
throughput than competing tools. The system also features a proprietary electron
source with a five-year warranty. As a result, the V2000 can meet the most exacting mask
writing requirements, including the challenges posed by optical proximity correction
(OPC) and phase shift technology.
In addition to addressing the industry's technical and productivity requirements, Ultratech
has structured its UltraBeam business unit to meet worldwide chipmakers' escalating
service, technical support and capacity needs. As part of this effort, UltraBeam
is utilizing Ultratech's well-established sales and service support network to address
the needs of both merchant and captive mask makers around the world. Ultratech's
volume manufacturing expertise is also being leveraged to ensure timely availability
of the V2000 tools.
''Safe Harbor'' Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:
Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this news release that may
be considered forward-looking statements may be subject to certain risks and
uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from
those projected, including uncertainties in the market, the timely development and
acceptance of new products and upgrades, pricing competition, procurement and
manufacturing efficiencies, and other risks detailed from time to time in the
company's SEC reports. The company assumes no obligation to update the information
in this release.
About Photronics:
Photronics is a leading worldwide manufacturer of photomasks. Photomasks are high
precision quartz plates that contain microscopic images of electronic circuits. A key
element in the manufacture of semiconductors, photomasks are used to transfer circuit
patterns onto semiconductor wafers during the fabrication of integrated circuits.
They are produced in accordance with circuit designs provided by customers at
twelve strategically located manufacturing facilities in Arizona, California,
Colorado, Connecticut, Texas, Germany, Korea, Singapore, Switzerland and the United
Kingdom. Additional information on the Company can be accessed at www.photronics.com .
About Ultratech:
Founded in 1979, Ultratech Stepper, Inc. designs, manufactures and markets
photolithography steppers used worldwide in the fabrication of semiconductors,
micromachining devices and thin film heads for disk drives. The company produces
products that substantially reduce the cost of ownership for manufacturers in
the high-technology industry.
Ultratech acquired the assets of Lepton Inc. in February 1997 to create its
UltraBeam Lithography business unit. The company's common stock is traded on the
Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol UTEK. Ultratech's home page on the World Wide
Web is located at www.ultratech.com . |
