Chinese researchers successfully developed the “Platform of Manufacturing and Processing Technologies of Key IC Components” under the Major National S&T Project on Super Large-Scale IC Manufacturing Equipment and Sets of Techniques. The up-and –running platform marks an important step towards the localization of key IC components.
China’s demand for IC components accounts for more than half of the global market thanks to the rapid expansion of its IC industry. However, domestic supply only satisfied 10% of such demand. With constraints on international purchases, the lack of matched supply capacity domestically has brought formidable challenges to Chinese IC equipment makers. It was difficult to cut purchase costs and meet huge demands. Thus there was a pressing need to localize the integrated manufacturing of IC components.
The platform has been striving to make technological breakthroughs in eight aspects such as high precision machining, surface treatment and vacuum electron beam welding. It has overcome a series of technological barriers in precision cutting and welding, special surface treatment, etc. It is a comprehensive service platform featuring a test line for metal surface treatment and cleansing up to international standards. It has received advanced international certifications on surface treatment and passed overall assessments by leading IC makers such as Applied Materials, Inc. and Tokyo Electron Limited. Moreover, the two giants have picked it as a strategic supplier and exclusive Asian supplier of hard anodizing and nickel plating products.
In the meantime, by sharing and opening up resources available, the platform provides a wide range of services from product R&D, technological innovation, precision part processing and manufacturing, and special surface treatment. Clients include a dozen domestic IC equipment makers like Beijing NMC, Shanghai Micro Electronics Equipment, Shenyang Piotech, Shenyang Kingsemi Microelectronics Equipment as well as Siasun Robot & Automation. The platform supplies some 1,000 cost-effective IC parts and components as alternatives to exports, thus sustains the rapid development of the industry chain. By December 2015, the platform had grossed sales revenue of 57.2722 million yuan and built up capacity of cleansing 60,000 pieces of black-metal parts.
