What SEMICON Europa 2008 lacked in size, it made up for in content. Exhibitor numbers were down, due in part to the absence of the PV portion, which will be merged with next June’s Intersolar show in Munich. On the program side, registration was up from 700 to 882 attendees, with a growing number of registrants for the Advanced Packaging Conference. Heinz Kundert, president of SEMI Europe, was confident that next year’s event, which will take place in Dresden, will bring in more attendees from the fabs located there.
IMAPS International 2008, which took place this year in Providence, RI, drew exhibitors primarily from military, aerospace, biomedical, harsh environment, and high frequency electronics market segments. A highlight of the event was the Alternative Energy Panel Discussion and Global Business Council marketing forum, which were both focused on alternative energy technologies, the role microelectronics plays, and where it needs to expand.
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Stan Myers, CEO, SEMI (center) presided over the SEMI press conference, along with an executive panel that included (L-R) Gael Schmidt, SET; Franz Richter, Thin Materials/SUSS; André-Jacques Auberton-Hervé, Soitec; and Dirk Hilbert, Deputy Mayor, Dresden.
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The SUSS MicroTec product marketing team ( L-R: Brigitte Wehrman, Margarete Zoberbier, Sabine Radeboldt, and Ralph Zoberbier) showcased the companies advancements in 300mm tools targeting the MEMS and 3D packaging space. The latest news – an exclusive agreement with Philips to enable the integration of wave imprinting in the company’s new mask aligner.
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Herman Watl and Markus Wimplinger, of EV Group talked about the company’s recent install at several European university research facilities, the largest one being at Southampton University, UK. Wimplinger called it one of the nicest facilities in Europe, offering pilot line production for start-up companies.
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Viscom’s Axel Eschenburg, executive manager, IP business unit; and Taufiq Habib, senior engineer, IP business unit; explained the technology behind the company’s new wafer inspection tool to Fran