Dr. Ulrich Schumacher Receives First Semiconductor Industry Leadership Award

Staff -- Semiconductor International, 6/1/1998

Semiconductor International proudly presented the first Semiconductor Industry Leadership Award to Dr. Ulrich Schumacher, president and CEO of Siemens Semiconductor Group. Schumacher was recognized for his pioneering efforts in 300 mm wafer processing, manufacturing productivity and management strategies. The award was presented at In-Stat's 14th Annual Microelectronics Forum held the first week of May in Scottsdale, Ariz. Both Semiconductor International and In-Stat are part of Cahners Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier, the largest producer of business-to-business publications worldwide.

Schumacher, president and CEO of Siemens Semiconductor Group since October 1996, revitalized the group by concentrating on maximizing manufacturing efficiency in its 11 fabs and reducing production costs to world-class levels. Featured on the cover of a recent issue of Business Week (April 6, 1997, European edition), Schumacher is described as having "roiled the company's cautious management culture." His innovative strategies include a linking of compensation with performance, thereby aligning employee's and shareholder's values, and a restructuring of the semiconductor group's 26,000 employees into dozens of business units, giving top managers strong incentives for success. At age 40, Schumacher is also the youngest member to be assigned to Siemens' board of directors.

The Semiconductor Industry Leadership Award was created to recognize individual impact on the semiconductor manufacturing industry.

Schumacher is largely responsible for obtaining funding from the German government for Siemens' 300 mm joint development project with Motorola in Dresden, Germany -- the Semiconductor300 line. The transition from 200 mm to 300 mm wafers has been described as the most expensive industrial transition in history, yet it will allow a 30% reduction in manufacturing cost per square centimeter of silicon. Semiconductor300, poised to be among the first to achieve volume production of semiconductors on 300 mm wafers by the year 2000, is expected to require nearly $600 million in R&D costs alone.

The Semiconductor Industry Leadership Award was created to recognize individual impact on the semiconductor manufacturing industry. Evaluation was based on business leadership, including the development of new products, markets or technologies, and industry leadership, including management and industry advocacy. The award's selection committee comprised industry experts from all over the world. Members include individuals from Reed Elsevier's Global Electronics group including Semiconductor International (Des Plaines, Ill.), Electronic Business (Boston, Mass.), Electronics Business Asia (Hong Kong), Semiconductor World (Tokyo, Japan), Electronic News (New York, N.Y.) and Electronics Weekly (London, England), as well as global market research firms including In-Stat (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Reed Electronics (London, England) and VLSI Reports (Tokyo, Japan).