BILTHOVEN, The Netherlands, Aug. 16, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- ASM International N.V. (Nasdaq: ASMI) (Euronext Amsterdam:ASM) today announced that its 54% owned subsidiary, ASM Pacific Technology Ltd. (Stock Exchange in Hong Kong: 0522) received multiple orders for a total of 50 sets of the Eagle gold wire ball bonders from Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) Malaysia, a subsidiary of Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE), the world's second largest assembler of integrated circuit packages. Installation of the equipment at ASE's Penang, Malaysia facility has been completed.
Mr. HH Lau, ASE Malaysia Director of Engineering, said, "We selected the ASM Eagle bonder primarily for its fine pitch and advanced looping capabilities. Additionally, the Eagle bonder offers great values in terms of high productivity". Lau added that the bonders will be used for "very fine pitch leadframebase packages," an area that has experienced an upsurge in demand in recent months.
Patrick Lam, Managing Director of ASM Pacific Technology Ltd (ASMPT), noted that ASMPT is pleased to support ASE Malaysia's fine pitch roadmap with leading edge technology such as the Eagle gold wire ball bonder that is designed for higher speed production of more difficult packages.
Introduced in 2000, the Eagle gold wire ball bonder has 35 micron pad pitch capability and offers customers a favorable price/performance ratio over existing industry models. ASMPT's Eagle gold wire bonder was awarded a Semiconductor International magazine Editors' Choice Best Product Award in 2001. In 1998, the Company's predecessor AB339 gold wire bonder received this prestigious award, given to companies whose products make a difference in semiconductor manufacturing. ASMPT recently introduced a new generation gold wire ball bonder, the Eagle 60 that delivers 2025% higher productivity and enhanced ultra fine pitch, 35 mm bonding capabilities.
About ASM and ASMPT
ASM International N.V. has headquarters in Bilthoven, the Netherlands. ASM International is a global company, servicing one of the most important and demanding industries in the world. The Company possesses a strong technological base, stateoftheart manufacturing facilities, a competent and qualified workforce and a highly trained, strategically distributed support network. ASM International's subsidiaries design and manufacture equipment and materials used to produce semiconductor devices. ASM International and its subsidiaries provide production solutions for wafer processing, assembly and packaging through their facilities in the United States, Europe, Japan and Asia. ASM International's common shares trade on Nasdaq (symbol ASMI) and the Euronext Stock Exchange in Amsterdam (symbol ASM). For more information, visit ASM's Web site at http://www.asm.com
ASM Pacific Technology, Ltd., with headquarters in Hong Kong, has operations in Shenzhen China, Singapore and Malaysia. It is a dominant global supplier of a full line of assembly and packaging equipment for the semiconductor industry. It also supplies the Photonics and Optoelectronics markets. With its strong financial strength and R&D resources, ASMPT offers its customers total solutions in process innovation, package development and factory automation. ASMPT is 54% owned by ASM International N.V. ASM Pacific Technology, Ltd. common shares trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the symbol: 0522. For more information, visit ASMPT's Web site at http://www.asmpacific.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: All matters discussed in this statement, except for any historical data, are forwardlooking statements. Forwardlooking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forwardlooking statements. These include, but are not limited to economic conditions and trends in the semiconductor industry, currency fluctuations, the timing of significant orders, market acceptance of new products, competitive factors, risk factors related to litigation, commercial and economic disruption due to terrorist activity, armed conflict or political instability and other risks indicated in filings from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Forms 20F and Form 6K as filed.
To see the full press release in pdf, click the following link:http://reports.huginonline.com/870161/106907.pdf
Contact:
Jerry Dellheim VP Strategic Marketing ASM Pacific Technology, Ltd. 1 408 451 0804
Robert de Bakker Chief Financial Officer ASM International N.V 31 30 2298540
Mary Jo Dieckhaus US Investor Relations ASM International N.V. 1 212 986 2900