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Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX) today announced that its board of directors has appointed Victor Peng as president and chief executive officer, effective January 29, 2018.  Peng will become the fourth CEO in Xilinx’s history and takes the helm of the global market leader of programmable semiconductor products at a time of increasing momentum and opportunity.

“Victor is unique in his ability to translate vision and strategy into world-class execution and has an incredible ability to inspire and lead transformation.  He has been the architect of Xilinx’s innovations for the past decade and will move the company forward with the speed required to capitalize on the opportunities in front of us,” said Dennis Segers, chairman of the board of Xilinx. “Victor is a proven leader with exceptional business acumen and a deep, unwavering dedication to customers. The BOD is thrilled to appoint Victor CEO as the company enters its next chapter of expanded innovation and growth.”

“I’m honored to have been chosen to lead Xilinx at such a dynamic time in our industry,” said Peng. “The world of technology is changing rapidly, and I plan to architect Xilinx to take advantage of where I see the greatest opportunities for transformational growth.  Xilinx is in a rare position of strength and is poised to capitalize on the next shift in computing.  By focusing on delivering unique value to new areas as well as our traditional markets, I plan to accelerate the company’s growth and create the next wave of shareholder value.”

Since joining the company in 2008, Peng has spearheaded industry-leading strategy and technical shifts across the company’s portfolio of products and services, resulting in three consecutive generations of core product leadership and significant technology breakthroughs in integration and programming.  Most recently, he served as Chief Operating Officer and was appointed as a member of the board of directors in October 2017.

Before joining Xilinx, Peng served as corporate vice president of the graphics products group (GPG) silicon engineering at AMD, where he also served as a key leader in AMD’s central silicon engineering team supporting graphics, console game products, CPU chipset and consumer business units. Peng earned a bachelor’s in electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and a master’s in electrical engineering from Cornell University.

Peng, 57, succeeds Moshe Gavrielov, 63, who will step down as CEO and from the board of directors on January 28, as part of a previously announced CEO succession plan.

By Junko Collins, Director of Standards, SEMI Japan

SEMI Standards are the very heartbeat of manufacturing efficiency, underpinning the state-of-the-art technologies and products showcased by over 750 exhibitors at SEMICON Japan last December. Through its Standards committees, SEMI is a key enabler of innovation, higher manufacturing efficiency and lower manufacturing costs for the global electronics industry.

At SEMICON Japan, 22 SEMI Standards meetings were held by committees including:

  • Japan Regional Standards Committee (JRSC)
  • Gases Committee
  • Facilities Committee
  • Liquid Chemical Committee
  • Physical Interface & Carriers Committee
  • Silicon Wafers Committee
  • Traceability Committee
  • Information & Control Committee
  • Environmental, Health & Safety Committee

At the SEMI Standards Friendship Party during SEMICON Japan, JRSC recognized the following nine committee members for outstanding contributions to the development of SEMI Standards.

SEMI Japan Standards Award honors enduring commitments and outstanding contributions to standards development.

  • Takayuki Nishimura, SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions Co, Ltd, for his long-term chairmanship of the Japan Information & Control Committee. He led the committee’s collaboration with other regions and spearheaded the development of the Generic Equipment Model (GEM) 300A standard for smarter semiconductor factories by the SEMI equipment suppliers special interest group (ESG).

SEMI Japan International Collaboration Award recognizes members who contributed to Japan’s collaboration with other regions.

The four Japan 3 Dimensional Structured IC (3DS-IC) Committee steering group leaders for their contribution to the integration of 3DS-IC Committee and Packaging Committee into the 3D Integration & Packaging Committee.

  • Masahiro Tsuriya, International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative
  • Eiji Yoshino, Hitachi High-Technologies Co.
  • Haruo Shimamoto, Advanced Industrial Science and Technology
  • Mamoru Takahashi, Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.

SEMI Japan Special Appreciation Award is awarded for special contributions to the SEMI Standards program.

  • Mitsune Sakamoto, Zama Consulting for his dedication to the full revision of the GEM 300 seminar text that explains the 300 mm automated communication standard.

SEMI Japan Honor Award recognizes long-term contributions to SEMI Standards.

  • Yoshitada Nogami, SK-Electronics Co., Ltd. for his contribution to the development of many flat panel display standards as a chairman of the FPD committee. He also contributed to the growth of the FPD industry through SEMI Japan Production Cost Saving activities.
  • Yoshihisa Takasaki, ASM Japan K.K., for his contribution to the Information & Control Committee. In particular, as co-leader of the GEM 300 TF he was instrumental in the development of the GEM300A standard for smarter manufacturing.
  • Toshio Murakami, Murakami Corporation, for his contribution to Metrics Committee as a chairman and for maintaining high committee productivity even in times of constrained resources.

The award ceremony was attended by international SEMI Standards members and SEMI global leadership including: Ajit Manocha, SEMI president and CEO; Michael Ciesinski, SEMI Vice President, Technology Communities; and Osamu Nakamura, president of SEMI Japan.

For more information on SEMI Standards program, visit www.semi.org/standards.

Nordson Corporation (Nasdaq: NDSN) has acquired Sonoscan, Inc., an Elk Grove Village, Illinois-based designer and manufacturer of acoustic microscopes and sophisticated acoustic micro imaging systems used in a variety of microelectronic, automotive, aerospace and industrial electronics assembly applications. The transaction is not material to Nordson results, and terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“The Sonoscan acquisition broadens the offering to our customers within our Test and Inspection range of products and solutions,” said Joseph Stockunas, Vice President for Nordson’s Advanced Technology Systems segment. “Sonoscan’s acoustic imaging solutions are adjacent and highly complementary to Nordson’s existing bond testing, X-ray and automated optical inspection solutions and are sold to the same set of customers.”

Founded in 1974 by Dr. Lawrence Kessler and employing approximately 85 people, Sonoscan will operate within Nordson’s Advanced Technology Systems segment. Since its inception, Sonoscan has been the most trusted authority on the application of Acoustic Microscopy, also known as Acoustic Micro Imaging (AMI) technology, to nondestructively find and characterize physical defects such as cracks, voids, delaminations and porosity that occur during manufacturing, environmental testing or even component operation. This acquisition builds on our strategic objective to grow our Electronics Systems business in the advanced semi-conductor packaging and automotive electronics markets.

Nordson Corporation engineers, manufactures and markets differentiated products and systems used to dispense, apply and control adhesives, coatings, polymers, sealants, biomaterials, and other fluids, to test and inspect for quality, and to treat and cure surfaces.

IC Insights is currently researching and writing its 21st edition of The McClean Report, which will be released later this month.  As part of the report, a listing of the 2017 top 50 fabless IC suppliers will be presented.

Figure 1 shows the top 10 ranking of fabless IC suppliers for 2017.  Two China-based fabless companies made the top 10 ranking last year—HiSilicon, which sells most of its devices as internal transfers to smartphone supplier Huawei, and Unigroup, which includes the IC sales of both Spreadtrum and RDA. Fabless company IC sales are estimated to have exceeded $100 billion in 2017, the first time this milestone has been reached.

Figure 1

Figure 1

Unlike the relatively close annual market growth relationship between fabless IC suppliers and foundries, fabless IC company sales growth versus IDM (integrated device manufacturers) IC supplier growth has typically been very different (Figure 2).  The first time IDM IC sales growth outpaced fabless IC company sales growth was in 2010 when IDM IC sales grew 35% and fabless IC company sales grew 29%.  Since very few fabless semiconductor suppliers participate in the memory market, the fabless suppliers did not receive much of a boost from the surging DRAM and NAND flash memory markets in 2010, which grew 75% and 44%, respectively.  However, the fabless IC suppliers once again began growing faster than the IDMs beginning in 2011 and this trend continued through 2014.

Figure 2

Figure 2

In 2015, for only the second time on record, IDM IC sales “growth” (-1%) outpaced fabless IC company sales “growth” (-3%).  The primary cause of the fabless companies’ 2015 sales decline was Qualcomm’s steep 17% drop in sales. Much of the sharp decline in Qualcomm’s sales that year was driven by Samsung’s increased use of its internally developed Exynos application processors in its smartphones instead of the application processors it had previously sourced from Qualcomm.  Although Qualcomm’s sales continued to decline in 2016, the fabless companies’ sales in total (5%) once again outpaced the growth from IDM’s (3%).

In 2017, the market behaved very similarly to 2010, when strong growth in the memory market propelled the IDM IC sales growth rate higher than the fabless IC supplier growth rate.  With the total memory market, a market in which the fabless IC companies have very little share, surging by 58% last year, IDM IC sales growth easily outpaced fabless company IC sales growth in 2017.

SEMI today announced the appointment of Masahiko (Jim) Hamajima as president of SEMI Japan. Reporting to SEMI president and CEO Ajit Manocha, Hamajima assumes profit and loss (P&L) responsibility for SEMI Japan and leadership of SEMICON Japan along with all regional programs, events, and initiatives including SEMI Standards and industry advocacy. With more than 325 members, SEMI Japan plays a critical role in SEMI’s global industry association, representing more than 2,000 companies worldwide in the electronics manufacturing supply chain.

With all-time records expected in 2017 for global semiconductor revenue at $400 billion (USD), semiconductor equipment revenue at $56 billion (USD), and semiconductor materials revenue at $48 billion (USD), Japan is an essential global player and has seen very strong recent growth.  Japan supplies nearly one-third of the world’s semiconductor equipment and more than half all wafer fab materials. As semiconductor manufacturing continues its strong global growth, SEMI Japan role in connecting SEMI member companies in Japan with opportunities to collaborate and innovate with companies worldwide will take on increasing importance in enabling members’ growth and prosperity.

“With his long leadership experience at TEL, the largest semiconductor equipment company in Japan (and in the top-five globally), Jim understands the challenges and opportunities facing Japan as the global electronics manufacturing supply chain expands and evolves,” said Ajit Manocha, president and CEO of SEMI.  “Jim’s solid track record in heading ambitious business transformations makes him the ideal choice to lead SEMI Japan in SEMI’s 2.0 initiative. Jim will drive critical initiatives such as workforce development, greater environmental health and safety (EH&S) intensity, and new vertical application collaborations – like Smart Data and Smart Transportation that sharpen the industry’s focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning.”

Hamajima brings more than 30 years’ experience in the semiconductor equipment industry in Japan and the U.S. and a comprehensive understanding of the global industry.  Starting at Tokyo Electron Ltd. (TEL) in diffusion, Hamajima later held vice president positions overseeing multiple product lines at Tokyo Electron America and later for Cleaning Systems in Japan. Hamajima’s experience includes leading complex integrations as senior vice president at Timbre Technologies and as vice president and general manager at TEL-FSI. Prior to joining SEMI, Hamajima served as vice president and general manager of Corporate Strategy at TEL. Hamajima holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Metallurgy from the Nagoya Institute of Technology.

“I would also like to thank Osamu Nakamura for his important contributions, first as a SEMI Japan Regional Advisory Board member, later as a SEMI International BOD member and most recently as president of SEMI Japan, culminating in the very successful SEMICON Japan 2017 in mid-December,” commented Manocha. “I appreciate Osamu remaining as an advisor through the next several months to ensure a smooth transition and wish him a very happy retirement.”

 

Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) (“Qualcomm” or the “Company”) today announced that the Qualcomm Board of Directors, following the recommendation of the Board’s Governance Committee, has unanimously determined not to nominate any of the 11 candidates assembled by Broadcom Limited (NASDAQ: AVGO) and Silver Lake Partners to replace Qualcomm’s current directors at Qualcomm’s 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.  Qualcomm today also filed its preliminary proxy statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with Qualcomm’s upcoming 2018 Annual Meeting.

After a thorough review of the Broadcom-Silver Lake nominees, the Governance Committee concluded that these nominees are inherently conflicted and would not bring incremental skills or expertise to the Qualcomm Board. Qualcomm’s Board is nominating its 11 incumbent directors for re-election at the 2018 Annual Meeting: Barbara T. Alexander, Jeffrey W. Henderson, Thomas W. Horton, Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, Ann M. Livermore, Harish Manwani, Mark D. McLaughlin, Steve Mollenkopf, Clark T. Randt, Jr., Dr. Francisco Ros and Anthony J. “Tony” Vinciquerra.

Qualcomm’s existing Board has a deep understanding of the global IP/licensing and semiconductor business and relevant adjacent industries, and has overseen the design and execution of Qualcomm’s strategy, including driving its leadership in mobile, IoT, automotive, edge computing and networking, as well as the coming transition to 5G. Qualcomm’s Board remains focused on driving profitable growth and maximizing value for all stockholders.

Broadcom and Silver Lake are asking Qualcomm stockholders to turn over control of their Company now to the hand-picked Broadcom-Silver Lake nominees based on a proposal that dramatically undervalues Qualcomm and is not actionable due to its significant regulatory uncertainty, which may not be resolved for 18 months, if ever, and lack of committed financing.  Broadcom has made no commitments to resolve the serious regulatory issues inherent in its proposal.

Qualcomm’s Board is committed to maintaining best-in-class corporate governance. Qualcomm directors are elected annually and 9 of the 11 directors are independent, including 4 directors added in the last 3 years.  The incumbent directors have a mix of industry perspectives, operating and financial expertise, corporate restructuring experience and IP/licensing expertise, as well as a long history of collaborative stockholder engagement, all of which collectively drive performance and stockholder value.

Detailed information about Qualcomm’s director nominees is included in the Company’s preliminary proxy statement. Also included is a “Background to the Solicitation” section, which details all interactions between Qualcomm and Broadcom relating to Broadcom’s unsolicited acquisition proposal.

The use of LEDs to illuminate buildings and outdoor spaces reduced the total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of lighting by an estimated 570 million tons in 2017. This reduction is roughly equivalent to shutting down 162 coal-fired power plants, according to IHS Markit (Nasdaq: INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions. LED lighting uses an average of 40 percent less power than fluorescents, and 80 percent less than incandescents, to produce the same amount of light.

“The efficiency of LEDs is essentially what makes them environmentally friendly,” said Jamie Fox, principal analyst, lighting and LEDs group, IHS Markit. “Therefore, LED conversion is unlike other measures, which require people to reduce consumption or make lifestyle changes.”

LED component and lighting companies were responsible for reducing the global carbon (CO2e) footprint by an estimated 1.5 percent in 2017, and that number is likely to continue to grow as more LEDs are installed around the world.

LEDs have other positive environmental benefits, too. For example, LEDs have a longer life span than traditional bulbs and fewer are produced, so the emissions and pollution associated with the production, shipping, sale and disposal of the products is lowered. Secondly, unlike fluorescents, LEDs do not contain mercury. LEDs also decrease air pollution, since most electrical energy is still generated by burning fossil fuels. “While other activities affect climate change more than lighting does, it is still a very strong contribution from a single industry sector,” Fox said.

IHS Markit has tracked the market share for top LED component suppliers for many years. Based on an analysis of this data, Nichia can claim credit for having saved the most carbon overall — accounting for 10 percent of all LED lighting reduction achieved in 2017, which translates into 57 million tons of CO2 — about the same as 16 coal plants. Cree followed Nichia with 8 percent, while Lumileds, Seoul Semiconductor, MLS, Samsung and LG Innotek each have a share in the range of 4 percent to 7 percent.

Savings achieved by each company relate to the energy saved by the use of that company’s components while installed in lighting applications. It does not include a whole lifecycle analysis, which would likely lead to a small additional positive benefit, due to the longer life of LEDs.

“LED component companies and lighting companies have transformed their industry,” Fox said. “They are fighting climate change much more effectively than other industries, and they should be given credit for it. Unlike in other industry sectors, workers at LED companies can honestly say that by selling more of their products, they are helping to reduce global warming.”

IHS Markit figures are only based on the lighting market. They do not include energy saved by LEDs that replaced other technologies in other sectors, such as automotive and consumer technology.

By Natalie Shim, SEMI Korea

As dynamic back-end related technologies such as TSV (Through-Silicon Vias), InFO (Integrated Fan Out), etc., enable electronic devices to downsize with higher performance, the importance of back-end processing is greater than ever. Due to this, more and more customers are requesting “quality control” by tracing raw materials to assembly and packaging companies and the need for a standard is clear.

The Korea Advanced Back-end Factory Integration Task Force, in response to the industry’s demand, has decided to revise SEMI E142-0211 (Reapproved 1016), Specification for Substrate Mapping by adding an assembly and packaging raw materials traceability method.

Standards Chart

The first ballot is open for voting in Cycle 9-2017 (Nov 29 to Dec 29, 2017), and the TF will review the feedback at the next Information and Control Korea Technical Committee Chapter meeting scheduled for February 1, 2018, in conjunction with SEMICON Korea in Seoul, Korea.

Get Involved

SEMI Standards development activities take place throughout the year in all major manufacturing regions. To get involved, join the SEMI International Standards Program at: www.semi.org/standardsmembership.

For more information regarding Korea Advanced Back-end Factory Integration Task Force activities, please contact Natalie Shim at [email protected].

JEDEC Solid State Technology Association, a leader in standards development for the microelectronics industry, announces the successful launch of its newest committee: JC-70 Wide Bandgap Power Electronic Conversion Semiconductors. JC-70 held its first meeting in late October with twenty-three member companies, led by committee and subcommittee chairs from Infineon Technologies, Texas Instruments, Transphorm, and Wolfspeed, a Cree Company. Committee members include industry leaders in power GaN and SiC semiconductors as well as prospective users of WBG power semiconductors and T&M equipment manufacturers. Global multinational corporations and technology startups from the US, Europe, and Asia are working together to bring to the industry a set of standards for reliability, testing, and parametrics of WBG power semiconductors.

JC-70 has two subcommittees, which are focusing on Silicon Carbide (SiC) and Gallium Nitride (GaN) as the most mature wide bandgap (WBG) power semiconductor materials. Both SiC and GaN offer immense potential for enabling higher performance, more compact, and energy efficient power systems. Industry interest in JC-70 has been high with several new members joining the committee after the first meeting, underscoring the importance of creating universal standards to help advance the adoption of WBG power technologies.

“I am delighted by the initial response to the JC-70 committee, and look forward to welcoming additional companies to participate in developing standards for wide bandgap power technology,” said John Kelly, JEDEC President. “Broad industry participation will help ensure the resulting documents meet the needs of product designers as they create systems to enable a more energy efficient future.”

Four committee meetings are planned for 2018, including a webconference on January 25 and a meeting co-located with the APEC Conference on March 5. Interested companies worldwide are welcome to join JEDEC to participate in this important standardization effort.Contact Emily Desjardins ([email protected]) for more information or visit www.jedec.org.

Electronics manufacturing executives will sharpen their competitive edge in Dublin, Ireland, on 4-6 March at Europe’s SEMI Industry Strategy Symposium (ISS Europe). The three-day flagship business event brings together analysts, researchers, economists, technologists and industry leaders for critical insights into the forces shaping the electronics manufacturing supply chain. With Europe a key engine of global innovation and the supply chain, ISS Europe 2018 takes aim at helping European organisations find new ways to maximise competitive advantage.

“Organisations operating in Europe need to find the most effective way to innovate, manufacture and profit by leveraging their strengths in the global supply chain,” said Laith Altimime, president, SEMI Europe. “During ISS Europe 2018, hosted by SEMI Europe, top European companies, research institutes and public institutions will convene to discuss how to compete and win globally in the context of Europe’s strategic, economic and social needs.”

ISS Europe 2018 discussions will focus on successful manufacturing in Europe and mechanisms to support innovation. The speaker lineup includes:

  • David Bloss, VP, Technology Manufacturing Group, Intel
  • Holger Blume, professor, University of Hanover
  • Jean-Frederic Clerc, deputy CEO and CTO, CEA Tech
  • Kevin Cooney, senior VP and managing director, Global CIO, Xilinx EMEA
  • Jean-Christophe Eloy, CEO, Yole Développement
  • Ann-Charlotte Johannesson, CEO, CEI-Europe AB
  • Cheryl Miller, founder/executive director, Digital Leadership Institute
  • Michael Morris, director AMBER Research Centre, professor, Trinity College Dublin
  • Alain Mutricy, senior VP product management, GLOBALFOUNDRIES
  • James O’Riordan, CTO, S3 Group
  • David Sneddon, director of large customer sales for Central Europe, Google
  • Florien van der Windt, Cluster Manager Smart Mobility, Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure & Environment
  • Hanns Windele, vice president, Europe and India, Mentor Graphics, a Siemens Business

The Panel Discussion “Critical Strategies to Grow Europe in the Global Supply Chain” will highlight ISS Europe 2018 as participants take advantage of great networking opportunities such as an opening reception and a gala dinner announcing the 2017 European Award winner.

Join Europe’s strategic thinkers and business drivers at ISS Europe 2018 in Dublin, Ireland from March 4-6, 2018.