New Malaysian Fab Venture Announced
Staff -- Semiconductor International, 9/1/1998
A
start of a new semiconductor contract manufacturing venture, 1st Silicon
(Kuching, Malaysia) was recently announced by Datuk J. C. Fong, chairman
of the company's board of directors. The new company is funded and
supported by the Malaysian State of Sarawak and individual investors.
The facility will be built on an 80 acre plot in the Sama Jaya Free Trade Zone of Kuching, which is sufficient for two wafer fabs. It is estimated that the company will reach a production capacity of 20,000 wafers per month in the year 2000. Plans are also in place to establish an office in Northern California in late 1998 to handle liaison activities between U.S. customers and headquarters in Kuching. In addition, future design engineering, marketing and sales personnel will be located in the United States.
Claudio G. Loddo, the company's COO said, "We are negotiating agreements with Sharp Corporation of Japan on the transfer of 0.25-micron state-of-the-art process technology, and we expect to commence construction in Q3 of this year, delivering 200 mm wafers to customers by the beginning of the next millennium, 2000."
"On the front end, we'll be able to offer customers a range of system
design services through strategically located design centers," Loddo
said. "We're not stopping at finished wafers, but rather we will also
provide assembly, packaging, test and inventory services." 
