Jan. 11, 2008 – As leading-edge semiconductor manufacturers push past the 65nm node and continue to build new 300mm fabs, many are outgrowing or obsoleting their existing 200mm facilities, which will flood the market with tools — ballooning the value of the used equipment from $300M in 2007 to more than $8B in 2009, according to a report from Semiconductor Partners.

The migration to/through 300mm/sub-65nm manufacturing means a lot of memory and logic chipmakers will have to get rid or otherwise utilize their more mature 200mm/130-90nm fabs, and even some of their 300mm/90nm operations. That opens up an opportunity for analog/mixed-signal/RF devicemakers to snap up that equipment (or even wholesale lines or facilities) and upgrade their capabilities on the cheap.

While an influx of these tools isn’t great for suppliers, it’s good news for those who deal in the used/refurbished equipment sector. “This creates an opportunity for companies that finance, resell or refurbish used equipment,” adds Morry Marshall, partner focusing on strategic technologies at Semiconductor Partners, in a statement.