Critical Subsystems – From Just in Time to Just in Case
COVID-19 has forced all the players in the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain to reassess how much inventory they need to hold.
Abatement Systems Saw Strong Demand Through 2019 Market Downturn
Sales of abatement systems for semiconductor applications grew 15.6% in 2019, significantly outperforming other critical subsystems segments in a year where total critical subsystems revenues declined by 10.6%.
Top 10 Critical Subsystems Suppliers of 2019: EUV Shines Light on Optical Subsystems Suppliers
VLSI research recently released the list of top suppliers of critical subsystems to the semiconductor and related manufacturing industries in 2019. The data shows EUV adoption greatly benefited optical subsystems suppliers in 2019 as other...
Are You Part of a Healthy, Competitive Supply Chain?
Critical subsystems technologies for semiconductor applications are highly engineered and specialised pieces of equipment. By their nature, only a select group of companies are able to produce these products to the high specifications demanded by...
Critical Subsystems Suppliers’ R&D Spend Holding Up
Despite a tough year for critical subsystem suppliers, their overall expenditure on research and development has remained at near record levels – evidence that critical subsystems are indeed critical to the semiconductor manufacturing equipment...
Chillers… A Surprisingly Hot Market
The market for chillers and heat exchangers used in semiconductor manufacturing equipment has more than doubled since 2014 and is expected to reach a total value of $383 million in 2019. The 18 percent compound annual growth rate of this segment...
Size Matters … at Least in the Critical Subsystems Supply Chain
Clouds continue to persist over the semiconductor supply chain with little sign of lifting. In March, the decline in week-over-year chip sales appeared to be slowing, providing a glimmer of hope for the beginning of a new cycle. However, the...
Critical Subsystems in the Sub Fab
The value of critical subsystems sold for use in the sub fab is outgrowing the overall market for critical subsystems. Driven by the increased complexity of leading edge fabs and the growing vacuum intensity of semiconductor manufacturing, both...
Record Revenues for Critical Subsystems Suppliers in 2018 Despite Collapse in Orders
Critical subsystems for the IC equipment market continued to grow to a new record of $11 billion in 2018. While 2019 is expected to be a downturn year, the long-term outlook remains unchanged with an average growth rate of 3 percent.
Critical Subsystems Orders Fall Off a Cliff
Orders for critical subsystems evaporated in the second half of 2018 after a very strong start to the year. Subsystems suppliers have been left with depleted order books after OEMs accumulated large inventories as the market for wafer fab...