Machine Maker’s Post

#GaN #Semiconductor #galliumnitride BelGaN, the GaN spinout from onsemi in Belgium, recently filed for bankruptcy, marking a significant shift in the company’s trajectory. Founded in Oudenaarde in 2022, BelGaN emerged as a GaN foundry after onsemi failed to find a buyer for its CMOS power fab. The company made headlines by launching the innovative 650V enhanced eGaN technology in June 2023, establishing itself as a prominent player in the automotive power chip foundry industry. Additionally, BelGaN had ambitious plans to manufacture depletion mode GaN devices, underlining its dedication to advanced technology. BelGaN faced substantial financial challenges, as highlighted in a company statement: "To fund the significant investments required for the transition process, the company actively sought additional investments beyond the initial support from its shareholders." These financial difficulties ultimately led to the bankruptcy filing. The Belgian wafer fab, once automotive qualified and employing 440 staff members, now faces an uncertain future. Management has expressed a willingness to collaborate with potential investors to explore opportunities for revitalizing the site and possibly resuming operations. BelGaN was established on September 30, 2021, as a joint venture between Rockley Management (HK) Ltd. and Wuxi Group Ltd., both based in Hong Kong. Rockley Group, a venture capital and advisory firm with roots in Oxford, England, and Shanghai, China, played a crucial role in founding BelGaN. The acquisition of the fab and its intellectual property cost $13.6 million, with Belgian chip companies Melexis and X-Fab initially considered as potential buyers of the facility.

Inventec announced their plan to invest $12.74 million USD in refurbishing a sterile environment within a freshly leased facility in the Czech Republic, which is expected to become a production base for servers and automotive electronics. Inventec had previously disclosed their investment of $38.03 million USD to lease a new factory adjacent to their existing Czech plant through a local investment company, Inventec (Czech), s.r.o., to support the substantial demand for business expansion in various sectors. https://lnkd.in/e5VsPD7r #InventecExpansion #ManufacturingGrowth #CzechProductionHub #TechInvestment #BusinessExpansion #AutomotiveElectronics #ServerManufacturing #InfrastructureDevelopment

Focuslight Technologies, a #Chinese maker of laser equipment, will pay EUR50 million (USD53.7 million) in cash to #acquire the micro-nano optical component assets of #Austrian #electronics firm ams OSRAM. Focuslight plans to buy some of Ams-Osram’s research and development as well as production assets in #Singapore and #Switzerland through two local units, the Xi'an-based company said on May 07th. The assets make products with huge market growth potential in emerging applications such as augmented reality, it added. The acquisition will help expand Focuslight's consumer electronics market space, according to the company. It will also significantly enhance the firm’s ability to make #micronano #optics used for auto projection lighting and cut manufacturing costs, it added. The deal with Premstätten-based Ams-Osram will also improve the research, development, and industrial production of wafer-level optical devices, Focuslight pointed out. It gives the Chinese company related packaging technology and mass-production capabilities, it noted. As the core micro-nano optics business is Focuslight's strategic development direction, the firm has previously set up micro-nano optical technology R&D centers in Dortmund and Neuchâtel through mergers, acquisitions, and investment, it noted. The new assets will benefit the firm by enhancing its R&D and innovation capabilities in micro-nano optics, it added.

https://lnkd.in/gWkrB5Xv Reflecting on the closure of a semiconductor fabrication plant, originally a copy of Baron Roger van Overstraeten’s 200mm plant at imec—a testament to his and Gaston Geens’ visionary leadership. Despite enduring multiple acquisitions, this resilient team@ now faces the end of an era. It’s incomprehensible, particularly in the context of the burgeoning demand for semiconductor experts driven by AI development and the energy transition. This closure is taking place in Flanders, a region known for its leadership in semiconductor innovations through its partnership with imec. This situation starkly highlights the challenging investment climate in Flanders for advanced manufacturing. Looking ahead, I remain hopeful that the incoming government will recognize the critical need to support and rejuvenate this sector. I am committed to offering my support where necessary to facilitate these efforts. Bart De Wever Luc Van den hove Rudi Cartuyvels Rudi De Winter Andre Oosterlinck Anneleen Van Bossuyt Jan Jambon

#acquire: Do you know the brand name "Renesas" in Renesas Electronics is a contraction of "Renaissance Semiconductor for Advanced Solutions"? Yes! It is. Looking back at it's history, Renesas Electronics was established in April 2010 through the integration of two major entities: 📍 NEC Electronics: Originally founded in November 2002 as a spin-off of NEC’s semiconductor operations (excluding the DRAM business). 📍 Renesas Technology: Formed on April 1, 2003, as a non-DRAM chip joint venture between Hitachi and Mitsubishi Corporation, with ownership percentages of 55% and 45%, respectively. In December 2012, INCJ, a Japanese public-private fund invested in the company where funds are used to develop the microcontroller and analog and power chips for the Automotive sector. In February 2017, Renesas completed the acquisition of Intersil (acquired by Renesas) for $3.2B. The acquisition of IDT - Integrated Device Technology, Inc.(acquired by Renesas) Device Technology for $6.7 billion was completed in March 2019. The acquisition of Dialog Semiconductor for $5.9B was completed in September 2021. In December 2021, Renesas also completed the acquisition of Celeno (Acquired by Renesas Electronics) Communications. In 2022, Renesas completed the acquisition of Reality Analytics, Inc. along with Steradian Semiconductors (Acquired by Renesas Electronics) Semiconductors Private Limited, a fabless Indian semiconductor company. In June 2023, Renesas completed the acquisition of Panthronics AG (Acquired by Renesas Electronics) AG, an Austrian fabless semiconductor company specializing in high-performance wireless products. In January 2024, Renesas agreed to acquire gallium nitride chip maker Transphorm Inc. for $339 million. The next month, Renesas announced that it had reached an agreement to buy printed circuit board design software company Altium® for $5.9 billion. Renesas Electronics' history shows us a bold history of mergers and acquisitions which only accelerated since it named Hidetoshi Shibata as its CEO. Cheers! #nec #hitachi #mitsubishi #intersil #idt #dialog #celeno #RealtyAnalytics #steradian #phantronics #Transphrom #altium Image Source: https://lnkd.in/gjriX3aa

HARTING Establishes Global HQ in Switzerland: ESPELKAMP, GERMANY — The HARTING Technology Group, a leading global provider of industrial connectivity, announced today that it is bundling supra-regional top management positions in Switzerland, which will further advance global steering and management. With this step, the HARTING Technology Group is evolving into a future-proof global player for connectivity solutions. Philip Harting, CEO of the HARTING Technology Group is delighted with this development and commented as follows: "The establishment of global headquarters in Switzerland marks a further step for HARTING in our strategic development and internationalisation, with the aim of being positioned as globally competitive and regionally powerful. In this way, we are also meeting the global framework conditions and the requirements of our customers." HARTING has been operating in Switzerland for over 40 years. The company maintains a production site there and is already managing its global Innovation Hubs from Switzerland, among other things. "Together with Studer Cables AG (Däniken/Switzerland), which the Harting family acquired two years ago, we want to drive the development of connector and cable solutions forward and create added value for our customers," as Philip Harting, CEO of the HARTING Technology Group and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Studer Cables AG, underlined. Planning for global headquarters in Switzerland is still at an early stage. Philip Harting is convinced that the establishment of headquarters in Switzerland will have a positive impact on the company with its approximately 6,000 employees worldwide, and that the Technology Group will continue to chart a successful course. The move is intended to secure jobs and investments in Germany, Switzerland and worldwide over the long term. At the same time, Germany, Espelkamp and the surrounding area remain a central anchor point for the Harting family. The headquarters of HARTING Stiftung & Co. KG will remain in Espelkamp. The numerous ongoing projects and initiatives in the region will be continued.  As Philip Harting emphasises: "I am convinced that with the establishment of headquarters in Switzerland and the concurrent investments in the global establishment and expansion of our company's production, sales and development sites in the regions worldwide, we are positioning the HARTING Technology Group in a future-proof manner as a global player for connectivity solutions." www.HARTING.com

𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐚’𝐬 𝐖𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐚𝐛𝐬 𝐇𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝟒𝟒 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝟑𝟐, 𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐓𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 Source: By TrendForce Corporation (https://lnkd.in/gpcf-tWd) On August 7th, #HuaHongGroup officially went public on the Sci-Tech Innovation Board Market, Shanghai Stock Exchange (STAR Market, SSE). Combined with the return of #SMIC to A-shares (China’s domestic shares) in the past two years and #Nexchip’s listing in May, it brings together the three major players in #China’s foundry sector on the #STAR Market. Additionally, #SMEC, closely linked to SMIC, also went public on the #STAR Market without turning a profit. Overall, #China’s foundry industry is steadily gaining strength. As per #TrendForce’s latest #research, challenges in the #economic outlook and ongoing #inventory issues this year have led to a slowdown in demand. This is particularly noticeable in the automotive and industrial control, where inventory has been piling up after short-term fulfillment. #Fabless and other #IDM #inventory digestion have faced severe restrictions. #IDM #foundries, launching new #capacities, are consolidating outsourced orders and once again reducing orders to #foundries. In #2024, given the expected unfavorable #economic environment, the overall recovery of #capacity #utilization poses challenges.

2023 has been an extraordinary year for OQmented and we would like to take the time for a short review by highlighting the key achievements. ☑ First light engine manufactured in professional assembly house: Assembled by an integrator that is ready to produce in the millions, this laser beam scanning light engine marks an immensely important milestone on OQmented’s path to mass production. ☑ Successful Series A: We secured funding of $ 20 million and gained Sharp, one of the world's leading electronic device and display manufacturers, as strategic investor. This cooperation leverages the synergies between Sharp’s manufacturing expertise and OQmented’s unique IP and know-how in LBS-based micro-displays. It means significant support for our roadmap towards offering complete light engines as Plug and Play solutions, ready for integration. ☑ 20+ patents filed: We continue to innovate and focus on protecting OQmented’s intellectual property with patent filings. ☑ 19 new employees: We are proud and very happy that 19 amazing people chose us as their employer in 2023 and we greatly value their contributions. ☑ Three new office and lab spaces: We moved in three locations, Itzehoe, Kiel and Jena. And we are incredibly excited about our new headquarters in Itzehoe. ☑ Breakthrough validation results of our own actuation ASIC: We achieved a power consumption of 6.66 mW at an operating supply voltage of 3 V (in combination with our display MEMS mirror with a mirror diameter of 1.5 mm). This enables operating the chip directly from a lithium-ion battery cell. The ASIC-MEMS system provides a 33° diagonal FOV with a frequency ratio of approximately 2:1. With a die size of only 1.3 mm x 2.6 mm the ASIC is suitable for the smallest applications. ☑ Selected one of Germany’s most innovative companies: OQmented encourages innovation and it has become official. We received the TOP 100 award and now rank among the 100 most innovative companies in Germany. We are grateful for the continued interest and support from our community. Special thanks to our wonderful team, customers, partners and investors: Vsquared Ventures, SALVIA GmbH, Sharp, Baltic Business Angels Schleswig-Holstein e.V., MBG Schleswig-Holstein mbH, IT-Farm Corporation, Leblon Capital, Deep Tech-A and Lennertz & Co.. The pictures were taken on our latest internal “Demo Day”, always a very exciting event! If you want to see our light engine for yourself, hear more about the status of our ASIC development or how our products can realize various applications: stop by our booth # 6300 at the SPIE AR | VR | MR (San Francisco, CA, January 30-31, 2024) or reach out to sales@oqmented.com for a private meeting in Vegas during CES. #laserscanning #augmentedreality #startupfunding #asic #mems #spiexr #ces2024

The head office and agents in the Middle East require intensive courses in human resources and customer service