December 4, 2001 — DANBURY, CT — ATMI, Matheson Tri-Gas, Takachiho Trading Company and Takachiho Chemical Industrial Company have signed an agreement granting Takachiho license to manufacture the SDS Gas Source for the Japanese market.

The SDS Gas Source delivery systems are widely used by semiconductor manufacturers in the ion implant process. ATMI’s patented SDS Gas Source technology was introduced in Japan by Nippon Sanso Corporation and Matheson Tri-Gas.

Japanese semiconductor manufacturers have been eagerly anticipating the establishment of local manufacture of the SDS Gas Source, primarily to assure sufficient Japan-based supply. In October, Nippon Sanso announced an ion implanter “retrofit” campaign to promote the conversion of existing implanters by assisting semiconductor manufacturers with the costs of converting to the SDS Gas Source. Semiconductor manufacturers who have converted to the sub-atmospheric SDS Gas Source technology have seen their return on investment in a year’s time.

In the United States, the National Fire Protection Association, NFPA, passed NFPA 318, Standard for Protection of Cleanrooms, which specifies sub-atmospheric gas delivery systems as preferred for use with toxic or flammable gas sources in semiconductor fabrication. A leading insurance and property loss prevention research organization has published guidelines which suggest that sub-atmospheric dopant gas sources should be used in place of high-pressure cylinder sources wherever process compatibility will allow.

ATMI provides specialty materials and services to the worldwide semiconductor industry. Matheson TriGas is a single source provider of specialty gases, bulk gases, gas handling equipment, purification systems, and support services to semiconductor manufacturers worldwide. Takachiho Trading Company and Takachiho Chemical Industrial Company have been in the business of special gases in Japan since 1949. Nippon Sanso is an industrial and electronic gas supplier in Japan.