PRI wins multi-million dollar order from Matsushita
Puyallup, WA
PRI Automation (Billerica, MA) has received a multi-million dollar order from Japanese-owned Matsushita Semiconductor Corp. of America (MASCA) for its interfloor wafer transport systems. The systems — wafer stockers, horizontal transfer mechanisms, and a reticle stocker — will be installed by late 1997 in MASCA`s newest 200 mm wafer fab currently under construction in Puyallup, WA. The order is for Phase One of a multi-phase automation project for which MASCA asked bidders to map out an automation system that would accommodate stockers in the middle of each bay to minimize wafer travel distance between tools, a layout becoming more and more common in new facilities, according to PRI president Mitch Tyson. — SES