The Week In Review: Manufacturing

SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) and GlobalFoundries announced the establishment of a new Advanced Patterning and Productivity Center (APPC). The $500 million, 5-year program will accelerate the introduction of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography technologies into manufacturing. The center is located at the Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) in Albany, N.Y.

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The global smartphone applications processor (AP) market declined 4% year-over-year to reach $20.1 billion in 2015, according to a report from Strategy Analytics.

“Qualcomm faced strong competition and lost market share. Qualcomm’s smartphone AP revenue share dropped to 42% from 52% in 2014, but maintained its top spot. Apple and MediaTek ranked number two and three with 21% and 19% revenue shares, respectively,” according to the firm. “Samsung LSI was the star performer in 2015 as the company doubled its smartphone AP shipments with the help of 14nm-based Exynos APs.”

Sravan Kundojjala, an analyst with Strategy Analytics, said: “2015 proved to be a transition year for Qualcomm as the company’s flagship APs faced strong competition from vertical vendors such as Samsung LSI. Qualcomm, however, capitalized on its mid-range 64-bit chips and overtook Apple to take the 64-bit leadership crown in 2015. Strategy Analytics believes that Qualcomm’s strengthened product portfolio will boost its shipments in 2016.”

Stuart Robinson, an analyst with Strategy Analytics, added: “Samsung LSI, Leadcore and Rockchip registered a triple-digit growth in their AP shipments in 2015 while MediaTek, HiSilicon and Intel registered a double-digit growth. HiSilicon and Samsung LSI, in particular, capitalized on their design-wins at their respective in-house customers. Strategy Analytics predicts continued momentum for many of these players in 2016.”

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Synopsys’ IC Validator physical verification tool has been certified by Samsung Foundry for all designs using its 14nm manufacturing processes.

Samsung Electronics America has received two awards for sustainability from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Samsung is the first brand to be honored with the Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) Champion Award, Product Category for the Galaxy S6. The company will also receive The SMM Electronics Challenge Tier Award–Gold Level for Samsung’s leadership in e-waste collection.

SEMI announced the launch of the European Semiconductor integrated Packaging and Test (ESiPAT) Special Interest Group. The Special Interest Group (SIG) represents SEMI members who have semiconductor packaging, assembly, test manufacturing, or design activities in Europe. The purpose of the SIG is to foster collaboration among companies and to collectively raise the profile and reinforce the semiconductor back-end industry in Europe.

Worldwide silicon wafer area shipments increased 3% in 2015 when compared to 2014 area shipments, according to the SEMI Silicon Manufacturers Group (SMG) in its year-end analysis of the silicon wafer industry. However, worldwide silicon revenues decreased by 6% in 2015 compared to 2014.

Worldwide IT spending is forecast to grow from $2.46 trillion in 2015 to more than $2.8 trillion in 2019, according to International Data Corporation (IDC). From an industry perspective, the largest IT expenditures will be found in manufacturing, banking, and telecommunications. The fastest growing vertical industry over the 2015-2019 forecast period will be healthcare, with a five-year CAGR of 5.5%. Banking and insurance are tied with media and the resource industries for the industries with the second fastest-growing IT spending, each with a five-year CAGR of 4.6%.