Ultratech Receives Multiple-System Orders From Southeast Asian
Customers for Nanotech 190 Lithography Tools
Multiple-System Orders Underscore Ultratech's Leading Technology Position for
Thin-Film Head Market
SAN JOSE, Calif., June 13 /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 it has received multiple-system orders from several southeast Asian
customers for its NanoTech 190 lithography systems. The NanoTech 190 tools,
specifically designed for thin-film head (TFH) applications, will be utilized
for back-end rowbar processing -- the processing step required to add the
aerodynamic surface to rows of TFH devices before wafer singulation. The
lithography systems will be delivered to the customers' facilities located in
Malaysia, Thailand and China. These multiple orders demonstrate Ultratech's
ability to provide leading application-specific products with low cost-of-
ownership advantages, and reinforce its technology leadership position at the
forefront of the thin-film head market.
The increasing number of consumer electronics products requiring small drives,
such as portable digital music players, has contributed to a resurgence in the
TFH market. According to Dennis Waid, president of Peripheral Research
Corporation and member of Ultratech's technical advisory board, "Storage memory
capacity for handheld devices can be increased significantly with a
small-format hard drive, which has the same form factor as flash-random-access
memory (RAM). Today, most cell phones, PDAs, and digital cameras use flash-RAM
for memory rather than hard drives. To address this transition and growing
demand, disk-drive manufacturers are making thin- film heads for the digital
consumer market, as well as for high-end enterprise storage -- increasing the
need for application-specific lithography equipment." Waid added that
Peripheral Research Corp., which specializes in market research, client
studies, consulting, and conferences for the data storage industry, anticipates
the disk-drive market will grow at a 14-percent compound annual growth rate
(CAGR) through 2008.
Doug Anberg, Ultratech's vice president of advanced stepper technology, noted,
"The increase in our customers' order activity is driven by the volume increase
in mini-drives. The high consumer demand for digital music players and other
small devices with hard drives is escalating the need for steppers that can
process the thin-film heads that read and write on small-format hard drives.
The NanoTech 190 lithography system was specifically developed for the
thin-film head industry and is essential to the development of our customers'
smaller-dimension, thin-film head devices. Ultratech's advanced technology
provides specialized handling capabilities that are critical for back-end
rowbar processing. As the market continues to grow, we look forward to
providing our global customers with leading technology specifically designed to
address the requirements for thin-film head applications-now, and in the
future." Certain of the statements contained herein, which are not a historical fact 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 Ultratech's dependence on new product introductions and market acceptance of
new products and enhanced versions of its 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 Ultratech's licensing revenues; changes to
financial accounting standards; changes in pricing by Ultratech, its
competitors or suppliers; customer concentration; international sales; timing
of new product announcements and releases by Ultratech or its 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 Ultratech's targets for a particular period;
dilutive effect of employee stock option grants on net income per share, which
is largely dependent upon Ultratech achieving and maintaining profitability and
the market price of Ultratech's 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; 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 Ultratech's 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, 2004 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended
April 2, 2005.
About Ultratech: Ultratech, Inc. 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/. DATASOURCE: Ultratech, Inc.
CONTACT: Bruce R. Wright, Senior Vice President & CFO, or Laura Rebouche, Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications, , both of Ultratech, Inc., +1-408-321-8835, or fax, +1-408-577-3379; or Angie Kellen, Senior Account Manager of MCA, +1-650-968-8900, or , for Ultratech, Inc.
Web site: http://www.ultratech.com/
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