Order Reinforces Growing Foundry Adoption for Ultratech's AP Lithography Systems Built on Its Unity Platform
SAN JOSE, Calif., March 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ultratech, Inc. (NASDAQ:UTEK), a leading supplier of lithography and laser-processing systems used to manufacture semiconductors and nanotechnology devices, today announced that Siliconware Precision Industries Co. Ltd. (SPIL), one of the world's leading semiconductor foundries, has ordered several Ultratech Unity AP200 advanced-packaging (AP) lithography systems. Slated for 200-mm devices, the tools will be delivered to SPIL's Taiwan headquarters over the next few quarters. The AP200 is built on Ultratech's customizable Unity Platform(TM), which provides the cost of ownership (CoO), operational flexibility, technical abilities and technology extendibility that are essential for foundries to stay on their aggressive technology roadmaps.
According to Jan Vardaman, president and founder of TechSearch International, Inc., the solder bump market is positioned for strong growth over the next several years, with an expected compound annual growth rate of approximately 30 percent. This growth is mainly driven by high-end logic and communications devices.
Johnson Tai, SPIL vice president, Manufacturing 3rd Division, noted, "To meet the rise in demand for communications chips, SPIL is on an aggressive bump-capacity expansion plan. We chose Ultratech's Unity-based AP200 because it provides the technology, flexibility, reliability and extendibility needed to meet both our current and future productivity and technology requirements." "Ultratech's AP systems are becoming the advanced-packaging lithography industry standard," said Manish Ranjan, director, product marketing at Ultratech. "The surge in solder-bump applications is a significant catalyst behind the growing demand for our AP tools. This order signals the success of the Unity Platform's adoption with device manufacturers, as well as in the growing foundry market, where requirements are primarily driven by economic factors. We greatly value our strong relationship with SPIL and will continue to develop technology to support their next-generation AP requirements." Certain of the statements contained herein, which are not historical facts and which can generally be identified by words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "will," "could," "believes," "estimates," "continue," and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements under Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that involve risks and uncertainties, such as risks related to our dependence on new product introductions and market acceptance of new products and enhanced versions of our existing products; lengthy sales cycles, including the timing of system installations and acceptances; lengthy and costly development cycles for laser-processing and lithography technologies and applications; integration, development and associated expenses of the laser processing operation; delays, deferrals and cancellations of orders by customers; cyclicality in the semiconductor and nanotechnology industries; pricing pressures and product discounts; high degree of industry competition; intellectual property matters; expiration of licensing arrangements, and the resulting adverse impact on our licensing revenues; changes to financial accounting standards; changes in pricing by us, our competitors or suppliers; customer concentration; international sales; timing of new product announcements and releases by us or our competitors; ability to volume produce systems and meet customer requirements; sole or limited sources of supply; ability and resulting costs to attract or retain sufficient personnel to achieve our targets for a particular period; dilutive effect of employee stock option grants on net income per share, which is largely dependent upon us achieving and maintaining profitability and the market price of our stock; mix of products sold; rapid technological change and the importance of timely product introductions; outcome of litigation; manufacturing variances and production levels; timing and degree of success of technologies licensed to outside parties; product concentration and lack of product revenue diversification; inventory obsolescence; asset impairment; effects of certain anti-takeover provisions; future acquisitions; volatility of stock price; foreign government regulations and restrictions, the political restrictions in Taiwan regarding offshore investments and the exporting of sensitive technologies and jobs to certain countries; business interruptions due to natural disasters or utility failures; environmental regulations; and any adverse effects of terrorist attacks in the United States or elsewhere, or government responses thereto, or military actions in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, on the economy, in general, or on our business in particular. Such risks and uncertainties are described in Ultratech's SEC reports including its Annual Report on Form 10-K filed for the year ended December 31, 2005. Due to these and additional factors, the statements, historical results and percentage relationships set forth herein are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations for any future period. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current beliefs and expectations, some or all of which may prove to be inaccurate, and which may change. We undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect any event or circumstance that may arise after the date of this release.
About SPIL: Siliconware Precision Industries Ltd. ("SPIL") (NASDAQ:SPILNASDAQ:TSE:NASDAQ:2325) is a leading provider of comprehensive semiconductor assembly and test services. SPIL is dedicated to meeting all of its customers' integrated circuit packaging and testing requirements, with turnkey solutions that range from design consultations, modeling and simulations, wafer bumping, wafer probe and sort, package assembly, final test, burn-in, to drop ship. Products include advanced leadframe and substrate packages, which are widely used in personal computers, communications, Internet appliances, cellular phones, digital cameras, cable modems, personal digital assistants and LCD monitors. SPIL supplies services and support to fabless design houses, integrated device manufacturers and wafer foundries globally. For further information, visit SPIL's web site at http://www.spil.com.tw/.
About Ultratech: Ultratech, Inc. (NASDAQ:UTEK) designs, manufactures and markets photolithography equipment used worldwide in the fabrication of semiconductor and nanotechnology devices, and has expanded its technology scope in pioneering laser processing technology for IC manufacturing. Founded in 1979, Ultratech is a market leader in gold and solder bump lithography. Its products are designed to substantially reduce the cost of ownership for manufacturers in the electronics industry. The company's home page on the World Wide Web is located at http://www.ultratech.com/.
NOTE: Unity Platform is a trademark of Ultratech, Inc. DATASOURCE: Ultratech, Inc.
CONTACT: Bruce R. Wright, Senior Vice President & CFO, or Laura Rebouche, Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications, +1-408-321-8835, or fax, +1-408-577-3379, or , both of Ultratech, Inc.; or Angie Kellen, Account Director of MCA, +1-650-968-8900, or fax, +1-650-968-8990, or , for Ultratech, Inc.
Web site: http://www.spil.com.tw/ Web site: http://www.ultratech.com/
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