factory automation

The global economy has started down a gradual path to recovery from COVID-19 in recent months as the world continues to combat the virus. Yet one sector – semiconductors – has shown impressive growth powered by a transformation hastened by the pandemic across industries ranging from education and work-from-home to healthcare.Semiconductor sales increased 12% in September to mark a second consecutive month of double-digit growth, and year-to-date semiconductor receipts as of September jumped 5.5% compared to the same period in 2019, according to SIA/WSTS.While this upward trajectory is encouraging, it pales compared to 2020 semiconductor equipment billings growth, with results from SEMI showing worldwide global chip equipment billings in September soaring to a new high of $7.6 billion this year. During the first nine months of 2020, aggregate equipment billings logged a 23.6% rise compared to the same stretch in 2019, surpassing $51 billion. Better still, the total semiconductor equipment market in 2020 is on track to beat the previous high of $64.5 billion set in 2018.Investments in China, Taiwan and Korea are fueling the chipmaking equipment spending surge. With big domestic and international fab projects in the works, China this year is projected to become the world’s largest capital equipment market for the first time, surpassing Taiwan, which will follow at a close second. Korea will rank third in equipment investments. Taiwan and Korea growth will come on the strength of equipment spending for manufacturing leading-edge semiconductors.Equipment billings in North America and Europe declined year-over-year as the automotive and industrial sectors suffered the heaviest blows from COVID-19. Investment momentum in both regions is expected to pick up in 2021 after automotive production recovers to pre-pandemic levels while factory automation will boost industrial demand.For more information about monthly equipment billing trends by region and equipment segment, please see the SEMI Equipment Market Data Subscription.Clark Tseng is director of Industry Research and Statistics at SEMI.

Solving challenges in semiconductor manufacturing requires an ongoing collaborative effort by customers, device makers, equipment and materials suppliers, and academia. ASMC 2021 will continue efforts to help the industry overcome these hurdles. To that end, we are now soliciting abstracts from industry experts across all areas of semiconductor manufacturing for presentations at the event, May 3-6, 2021 at the Saratoga Hilton/Saratoga Springs City Center in Saratoga Springs, New York.The conference provides an unparalleled platform for semiconductor professionals to network and learn the latest information in the practical application of advanced manufacturing strategies and methodologies. ASMC 2021 will be co-chaired by Ishtiaq Ahsan, Ph.D. of IBM Research and Alexa Greer of KLA.We’re looking for presentations in topic areas including the following: Advanced Metrology Advanced Equipment Processes and Materials Contamination Free Manufacturing Big Data Management and Mining Defect Inspection and Reduction Equipment Optimization Factory Automation Industrial Engineering Smart Manufacturing Yield Methodologies Click here to submit an abstract for a technical presentation. Provide an extended abstract of no more than two pages (max. of 1000 words, MS Word or PDF) with supporting data, charts, figures embedded in the last page. See author kit for details. Summarize the topic and theme in as much detail as allowed by the word count limitation. Include title, author(s), company affiliation(s), contact information, topic and five key words describing the work. The final technical manuscript must show a complete set of data to support initial abstract. Here are key deadlines and dates for industry experts to keep in mind: Abstracts Due: October 30, 2020 Author Notification: December 15, 2020 Manuscripts Due: February 9, 2021 Final Manuscripts Due: April 6, 2021 Presentations Due: April 20, 2021 Conference Dates: May 3-6, 2021 ASMC 2021 could be held as a virtual event depending on progress in containing COVID-19. Whether the event is on-site or virtual, all abstracts accepted for presentation will be published by IEEE. Speakers should be prepared to present live or online.Speakers also may be invited to publish their papers in a special section of ASMC 2021, which will be featured in IEEE Transactions on Semiconductor Manufacturing. All technical presentations will be considered for the ASMC Best Paper Award sponsored by Entegris. Students presenting an oral paper or poster will be considered for the ASMC Best Student Paper Award sponsored by GLOBALFOUNDRIES.For a complete overview of topics and other information, please visit the ASMC 2021 Call for Papers web page.Margaret Kindling is senior manager of Programs for SEMI Americas.