- Email: [email protected]
Research and development
Research and Development (Vol. 20 No. 5) The complexity of modern electronics has brought together chemists, physicists, mathematicians, engineers and others as the fields of development widen, research, development and production are now more closely integrated. It is hoped that the data collected will be found useful, both as a source of reference and as a review of electronic development. The following table shows the investment in Research and Development undertaken by various companies throughout the world. 1988
1987
1986
1985
1984
16
15
14
12
6
Fujitsu (Yen billion)
190
166
157
133
103
Harris (US$ million)
419
404
411
394
323
Hitachi (Yen billion)
324
308
296
268
212
National Semiconductor (US$ million)
280
219
222
205
159
NCR (US$ million)
416
357
321
299
289
NEC (Yen billion)
208
192
165
132
92
Plessey (£ million)
94
95
81
84
66
7
6
5
5
4
Alps Electric (Yen billion)
Siemens (DM billion)
European Commission moves to update REtD for the 90s The European Commission is expected to approve a new approach to research and development in Europe into the 1990s. In June 1989 the Research Commissioner, Filippo Pandolfi, made a series of proposals aimed at widening the research topics and improving organisation. He suggested three main subject areas: so-called "pervasive" technologies such as information technologies and telecoms; environmental and energy research to improve the quality of life, and improving research facilities to create "a Europe for researchers". The EC's aim is to have a new framework in place before the five year term of the existing strategy runs out in 1991. This, said a spokesman, was to produce a "gliding" programme. The EC has set itself the target of 56
the end of the French presidency in six months to get agreement on both the concept and budget from the twelve partners. Money has not yet been discussed said the spokesman. "The Commission wants to assess what the needs are. If the twelve can agree on the strategic concept then we can discuss money," he said.
ESPRIT review finds favour Only 15 per cent of the projects funded under the European Commission's ESPRIT research programme are not expected to lead to commercially exploitable results, according to the official reviewers. The review of the £1bn four-year first phase of ESPRIT started in November 1988 is now before the EC. It found that "the management of ESPRIT has, in general, been satisfactory and smooth". But it also
MICROELECTRONICS JOURNAL Vol. 20 No. 5 © 1989 Elsevier Science Publishers Ltd., England
said that there had been problems in finding partners for participants, some groups had been too big and there had been delays in payments. It recommends that the collaborative approach to research and development is effective and should be continued. A survey of project leaders found that 70 per cent of projects had improved knowledge and half were likely to lead to new or improved product preprototypes. The survey reveals that 18 per cent of projects have already led to exploitable results and around 50 per cent should do so before 1995. But, the review notes that while information has been swapped well within consortia it described the exchange between projects and research areas, and between ESPRIT participants and the wider IT community, as "disappointing". The wider IT community also appeared to be luke-warm about the impact of ESPRIT. US and Japanese observers reported that Europe did not represent a "serious technical or competitive threat to their dominance of world IT markets."
delfingen, Germany. Siemens already has 4Mbit DRAM technology developed under its joint R&D programme with Philips called the Megaproject. The EEC have agreed to back JESSI with one quarter of the programme's funding, and the companies' governments will pay another quarter.
French funding The French Government has approved F2.9 billion in funding for its share of JESSI. Research projects will be state financed and industrial developments will get 50 per cent grants. US groups collective
agree
to
set
up
chip
US semiconductor and computer companies have agreed to co-invest in a large scale memory chip manufacturing collective aimed at reducing US dependency on Japanese chip suppliers. The plan, which has been under discussion for several months, represents a radical departure for the US electronics industry France may open JESSl REtD pro- which may require significant changes in gramme to Americans US antitrust legislation to allow collaboraJESSI, Europe's £2.4bn research and tion in manufacturing. International Business Machines, Digital development programme for microchips, could be open to US companies, said Fran- Equipment and Hewlett-Packard, three of ce's Minister for Research and Technology, the largest US computer manufacturers, together with Intel, National SemiconducHubert Curien. "There is no rule excluding anyone from tor, Advanced Micro Devices and LSI the project," claimed Curien. "There is Logic, leading US chip makers, will jointly nothing that says non-European companies fund the establishment of US Memories Inc. cannot participate." European indus- and have stated their willingness to invest in trialists and EEC officials believe that sub- the collective "if specific conditions are met stantial mutual advantages would accrue in the next several months." These conditions are understood to from reciprocal membership. Until now, European partners involved in include investment commitments from JESSI like Philips of Holland, Siemens of several other computer and chip makers as Germany and SGS-Thomson of Italy and well as antitrust approval. The industry France have insisted that, while they remain group is confident, however, that it will win excluded from the American microchip the financial and legislative support that R&D programme Sematech, American it needs. companies should be excluded from Total funding required to establish the venture is expected to be in the region of JESSI. In a bid to break the impasse IBM has $500m. offered its 4Mbit DRAM technology to US Memories will obtain its memory chip JESSI. IBM makes 4Mbit DRAMs in Sin- design and processing technology from 57
IBM, which has agreed to license its 4Mbit DRAM technology to the new venture. The industry group has hired Mr. Sanford Kane, formerly vice president of IBM's General Technology division, as president of US Memories. Mr. Wilfred Corrigan, chairman and chief executive of LSI Logic, will serve as chairman of the new memory chip manufacturing collective. Currently about 80 per cent of the world's DRAM supplies are produced in Japan. Most US chip makers dropped out of the DRAM market in the mid-1980s in the face of fierce competition from Japan. In 1986 the US International Trade Commission ruled that Japanese DRAM manufacturers had illegally "dumped" DRAMs in the US. Subsequently, the US and Japanese Governments signed a semiconductor trade agreement that incorporated strict controls on Japanese memory chip prices. The US Memories plan is expected to receive a warm welcome in Washington from the semiconductor industry's broad base of Congressional supporters, as well as from the Defence and Commerce Departments which have long urged the industry to consider re-entry into the $5.6bn DRAM market. NEDO in UK initiative A campaign to boost the competitiveness of the UK components industry is being spearheaded by the National Economic Development Office (NEDO). Driving NEDO's initiative is a powerful threat to Britain's competitive position now that over half the components purchased in the UK come from abroad and with the Japanese rapidly expanding their production base within the UK. The campaign has been put together by the electronics components and technology group of NEDO. The group has targeted the customer/ supplier interface as the key area where UK companies can sharpen up their act. Within that area are the disciplines involved for efficiently handling communications, responsiveness to customers, delivery systems, technical support, the design of new pro58
ducts, paperwork and product housekeeping. NEDO's campaign is backed by the Electronics Components Industry Federation (ECIF), the Institute of Purchase and Supply (IPS), and the Printed Circuit Interconnection Federation (PCIF). HP in joint Rr~D on super semis Hewlett-Packard has stepped up its efforts to develop superconducting semiconductors with a joint research project with Du Pont and Los Alamos National Laboratory. About 25 top US semiconductor materials experts and about $10m in special equipment will be used to try and produce the first commercial high temperature superconducting semiconductors. Several types of high temperature superconducting materials have already been produced, but the superconductors are very brittle and difficult to form into thin sheets and wires for use as semiconductors. Los Alamos National Laboratory is one of three superconductivity pilot centres set up by the US Department of Energy to develop US expertise in high temperature superconducting materials. In 1988 Hewlett-Packard bought a 15 per cent stake in Conductus, a company started by top scientists from Berkeley and Stanford Universities "in California. Conductus is developing ways to commercialise high temperature superconducting materials.
Italy gets £ 1 3 0 m ST chip plant French-Italian chip maker, SGS-Thomson (ST), is investing £130m into smart power semiconductor development and production in southern Italy. The four-year programme of investment, which is separate from the European chip initiative, JESSI, will draw in the cooperation of the company's ASICs subsidiary, IST, and local universities. Eventually, some 360 researchers will be employed, including 200 newly created posts. SGS-Thomson is seeking to reinforce its already strong position in intelligent power.
The market for such devices in the automotive, aviation, and automation markets is growing rapidly. The decision to site the operation m southern Italy helps the government to boost a depressed part of the country. The form's Vertical Intelligent Power (VIPower) product combines low voltage signal circuitry and high voltage, high current power semiconductors on the same chip. Such devices can be used for motor control and driving up to 2 kVA of output.
Sony calls for £980m to fund expansion Sony, the Japanese consumer electronics maker, is to raise about Y220bn (£982m) in a share issue designed to fund the expansion of semiconductor production by subsidiaries in Japan and to expand its television interests in the US, including, perhaps, further investment in the development of high-definition television. A company spokesman said that the issue of 30m shares at a small discount to the market price had nothing to do with rumours that Sony was interested in purchasing a US film production house and, instead, would be an important part of a projected capital expenditure budget of Y250bn this year. Funds from the offer, the first since 20m shares were sold in April 1988 to cover the purchase of CBS Records, are to be used to develop the company's growing semiconductor interests.
Production is to be expanded at the company's television plant at San Diego, and there are indications that some of the funds will go to a San Jose HDTV research centre, which plans to double its staffin developing technology approved by the US Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers as the standard system for programme production. At present, sales of televisions comprise about 17 per cent of Sony's revenue, with video cassette recorders comprising 36 per cent and audio equipment 29 per cent. The sales of other assorted items, led by semiconductors, rose last year by 21.6 per cent, and included newly marketed computer disk drives and workstations. The shares will be offered at a 3.5 per cent discount to the closing price on July 10 -yesterday's closing price was Y7,680. A board meeting to be held in early July will finalise other details of the offer, which is to be handled by all of the Big Four securities companies -- Nomura Securities, Daiwa Securities, Yamaichi Securities, and Nikko Securities.
Taipei fab United Microelectronics Corporation of Taiwan has opened its second wafer fab in Hsinchu Science Park near Taipei. The $160m fab's initial capacity is 15,000 6in. wafers a month. It will be capable of 0.65micron line widths and should boost UMC's chip revenues by $160m a year. Phase 2, scheduled for completion by the end of 1990, will cost $100m and will double the fab's output.
59
1987
1986
1985
1984
16
15
14
12
6
Fujitsu (Yen billion)
190
166
157
133
103
Harris (US$ million)
419
404
411
394
323
Hitachi (Yen billion)
324
308
296
268
212
National Semiconductor (US$ million)
280
219
222
205
159
NCR (US$ million)
416
357
321
299
289
NEC (Yen billion)
208
192
165
132
92
Plessey (£ million)
94
95
81
84
66
7
6
5
5
4
Alps Electric (Yen billion)
Siemens (DM billion)
European Commission moves to update REtD for the 90s The European Commission is expected to approve a new approach to research and development in Europe into the 1990s. In June 1989 the Research Commissioner, Filippo Pandolfi, made a series of proposals aimed at widening the research topics and improving organisation. He suggested three main subject areas: so-called "pervasive" technologies such as information technologies and telecoms; environmental and energy research to improve the quality of life, and improving research facilities to create "a Europe for researchers". The EC's aim is to have a new framework in place before the five year term of the existing strategy runs out in 1991. This, said a spokesman, was to produce a "gliding" programme. The EC has set itself the target of 56
the end of the French presidency in six months to get agreement on both the concept and budget from the twelve partners. Money has not yet been discussed said the spokesman. "The Commission wants to assess what the needs are. If the twelve can agree on the strategic concept then we can discuss money," he said.
ESPRIT review finds favour Only 15 per cent of the projects funded under the European Commission's ESPRIT research programme are not expected to lead to commercially exploitable results, according to the official reviewers. The review of the £1bn four-year first phase of ESPRIT started in November 1988 is now before the EC. It found that "the management of ESPRIT has, in general, been satisfactory and smooth". But it also
MICROELECTRONICS JOURNAL Vol. 20 No. 5 © 1989 Elsevier Science Publishers Ltd., England
said that there had been problems in finding partners for participants, some groups had been too big and there had been delays in payments. It recommends that the collaborative approach to research and development is effective and should be continued. A survey of project leaders found that 70 per cent of projects had improved knowledge and half were likely to lead to new or improved product preprototypes. The survey reveals that 18 per cent of projects have already led to exploitable results and around 50 per cent should do so before 1995. But, the review notes that while information has been swapped well within consortia it described the exchange between projects and research areas, and between ESPRIT participants and the wider IT community, as "disappointing". The wider IT community also appeared to be luke-warm about the impact of ESPRIT. US and Japanese observers reported that Europe did not represent a "serious technical or competitive threat to their dominance of world IT markets."
delfingen, Germany. Siemens already has 4Mbit DRAM technology developed under its joint R&D programme with Philips called the Megaproject. The EEC have agreed to back JESSI with one quarter of the programme's funding, and the companies' governments will pay another quarter.
French funding The French Government has approved F2.9 billion in funding for its share of JESSI. Research projects will be state financed and industrial developments will get 50 per cent grants. US groups collective
agree
to
set
up
chip
US semiconductor and computer companies have agreed to co-invest in a large scale memory chip manufacturing collective aimed at reducing US dependency on Japanese chip suppliers. The plan, which has been under discussion for several months, represents a radical departure for the US electronics industry France may open JESSl REtD pro- which may require significant changes in gramme to Americans US antitrust legislation to allow collaboraJESSI, Europe's £2.4bn research and tion in manufacturing. International Business Machines, Digital development programme for microchips, could be open to US companies, said Fran- Equipment and Hewlett-Packard, three of ce's Minister for Research and Technology, the largest US computer manufacturers, together with Intel, National SemiconducHubert Curien. "There is no rule excluding anyone from tor, Advanced Micro Devices and LSI the project," claimed Curien. "There is Logic, leading US chip makers, will jointly nothing that says non-European companies fund the establishment of US Memories Inc. cannot participate." European indus- and have stated their willingness to invest in trialists and EEC officials believe that sub- the collective "if specific conditions are met stantial mutual advantages would accrue in the next several months." These conditions are understood to from reciprocal membership. Until now, European partners involved in include investment commitments from JESSI like Philips of Holland, Siemens of several other computer and chip makers as Germany and SGS-Thomson of Italy and well as antitrust approval. The industry France have insisted that, while they remain group is confident, however, that it will win excluded from the American microchip the financial and legislative support that R&D programme Sematech, American it needs. companies should be excluded from Total funding required to establish the venture is expected to be in the region of JESSI. In a bid to break the impasse IBM has $500m. offered its 4Mbit DRAM technology to US Memories will obtain its memory chip JESSI. IBM makes 4Mbit DRAMs in Sin- design and processing technology from 57
IBM, which has agreed to license its 4Mbit DRAM technology to the new venture. The industry group has hired Mr. Sanford Kane, formerly vice president of IBM's General Technology division, as president of US Memories. Mr. Wilfred Corrigan, chairman and chief executive of LSI Logic, will serve as chairman of the new memory chip manufacturing collective. Currently about 80 per cent of the world's DRAM supplies are produced in Japan. Most US chip makers dropped out of the DRAM market in the mid-1980s in the face of fierce competition from Japan. In 1986 the US International Trade Commission ruled that Japanese DRAM manufacturers had illegally "dumped" DRAMs in the US. Subsequently, the US and Japanese Governments signed a semiconductor trade agreement that incorporated strict controls on Japanese memory chip prices. The US Memories plan is expected to receive a warm welcome in Washington from the semiconductor industry's broad base of Congressional supporters, as well as from the Defence and Commerce Departments which have long urged the industry to consider re-entry into the $5.6bn DRAM market. NEDO in UK initiative A campaign to boost the competitiveness of the UK components industry is being spearheaded by the National Economic Development Office (NEDO). Driving NEDO's initiative is a powerful threat to Britain's competitive position now that over half the components purchased in the UK come from abroad and with the Japanese rapidly expanding their production base within the UK. The campaign has been put together by the electronics components and technology group of NEDO. The group has targeted the customer/ supplier interface as the key area where UK companies can sharpen up their act. Within that area are the disciplines involved for efficiently handling communications, responsiveness to customers, delivery systems, technical support, the design of new pro58
ducts, paperwork and product housekeeping. NEDO's campaign is backed by the Electronics Components Industry Federation (ECIF), the Institute of Purchase and Supply (IPS), and the Printed Circuit Interconnection Federation (PCIF). HP in joint Rr~D on super semis Hewlett-Packard has stepped up its efforts to develop superconducting semiconductors with a joint research project with Du Pont and Los Alamos National Laboratory. About 25 top US semiconductor materials experts and about $10m in special equipment will be used to try and produce the first commercial high temperature superconducting semiconductors. Several types of high temperature superconducting materials have already been produced, but the superconductors are very brittle and difficult to form into thin sheets and wires for use as semiconductors. Los Alamos National Laboratory is one of three superconductivity pilot centres set up by the US Department of Energy to develop US expertise in high temperature superconducting materials. In 1988 Hewlett-Packard bought a 15 per cent stake in Conductus, a company started by top scientists from Berkeley and Stanford Universities "in California. Conductus is developing ways to commercialise high temperature superconducting materials.
Italy gets £ 1 3 0 m ST chip plant French-Italian chip maker, SGS-Thomson (ST), is investing £130m into smart power semiconductor development and production in southern Italy. The four-year programme of investment, which is separate from the European chip initiative, JESSI, will draw in the cooperation of the company's ASICs subsidiary, IST, and local universities. Eventually, some 360 researchers will be employed, including 200 newly created posts. SGS-Thomson is seeking to reinforce its already strong position in intelligent power.
The market for such devices in the automotive, aviation, and automation markets is growing rapidly. The decision to site the operation m southern Italy helps the government to boost a depressed part of the country. The form's Vertical Intelligent Power (VIPower) product combines low voltage signal circuitry and high voltage, high current power semiconductors on the same chip. Such devices can be used for motor control and driving up to 2 kVA of output.
Sony calls for £980m to fund expansion Sony, the Japanese consumer electronics maker, is to raise about Y220bn (£982m) in a share issue designed to fund the expansion of semiconductor production by subsidiaries in Japan and to expand its television interests in the US, including, perhaps, further investment in the development of high-definition television. A company spokesman said that the issue of 30m shares at a small discount to the market price had nothing to do with rumours that Sony was interested in purchasing a US film production house and, instead, would be an important part of a projected capital expenditure budget of Y250bn this year. Funds from the offer, the first since 20m shares were sold in April 1988 to cover the purchase of CBS Records, are to be used to develop the company's growing semiconductor interests.
Production is to be expanded at the company's television plant at San Diego, and there are indications that some of the funds will go to a San Jose HDTV research centre, which plans to double its staffin developing technology approved by the US Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers as the standard system for programme production. At present, sales of televisions comprise about 17 per cent of Sony's revenue, with video cassette recorders comprising 36 per cent and audio equipment 29 per cent. The sales of other assorted items, led by semiconductors, rose last year by 21.6 per cent, and included newly marketed computer disk drives and workstations. The shares will be offered at a 3.5 per cent discount to the closing price on July 10 -yesterday's closing price was Y7,680. A board meeting to be held in early July will finalise other details of the offer, which is to be handled by all of the Big Four securities companies -- Nomura Securities, Daiwa Securities, Yamaichi Securities, and Nikko Securities.
Taipei fab United Microelectronics Corporation of Taiwan has opened its second wafer fab in Hsinchu Science Park near Taipei. The $160m fab's initial capacity is 15,000 6in. wafers a month. It will be capable of 0.65micron line widths and should boost UMC's chip revenues by $160m a year. Phase 2, scheduled for completion by the end of 1990, will cost $100m and will double the fab's output.
59