NOV. 25–FREMONT, CA–Asyst Technologies, Inc., a provider of semiconductor manufacturing productivity automation, has announced that a leading global silicon wafer manufacturer has placed a large production order for Asyst’s G3 front-opening unified pod (FOUP) wafer carriers.

While the protection of raw silicon wafers is a new market for Asyst, the unnamed silicon wafer manufacturer selected Asyst’s FOUPs to replace open carriers for 300 mm wafer manufacturing at its current and future facilities.

The FOUP shipments will commence this quarter with deliveries slated over the next two years.

The customer’s decision to upgrade to the standard mechanical interface (SMIF) technology utilized in Asyst’s FOUPs represents a significant shift for the silicon wafer-manufacturing sector.

Until the advent of 300 mm, there was no compelling need for these companies to switch to SMIF from open wafer carriers because at smaller diameters, the base wafers were less susceptible to physical damage and contamination. With the shift to 300mm comes changes in semiconductor manufacturing practices, which when combined with the wafers’ physical size and fragility created the need to migrate to FOUPs.

“We are extremely pleased to receive this order for the G3 from one of the world’s leading silicon wafer manufacturers,” says Wayne Nobles, Asyst’s vice president and general manager of Wafer and Reticle Management Solutions. “It is truly exciting to see our products gain acceptance in a new and important market.”

Asyst is focused on assuring worldwide availability of its 300 mm FOUPs via its recently announced manufacturing outsourcing agreement with Solectron, which is the only two-time winner of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.