The competitiveness of Europe’s semiconductor industry and the efforts to agree on a single European semiconductor strategy will be the paramount topics at the ISS Europe (Industry Strategy Symposium) 2013, hosted by SEMI Europe. The range of subjects reflects the current global trends dominating the worldwide semiconductor industry and the urgency for the European industry to increase its competitiveness and market-share.
SEMI, a global industry association, serves the manufacturing supply chain for the micro and nanoelectronics industry. The industries, companies, and people SEMI represents are the architects of the electronics revolution. SEMI members are responsible for the innovations and technologies that enable smarter, faster, more powerful, and more affordable electronic products and devices that bring the power of the digital age to more people every day. Its European branch, SEMI Europe, bundles the forces of the European industry involved in semiconductor-related research and development as well as manufacturing across the entire value chain.
At the ISS Europe, which will take place from February 24 through February 26 in Stresa near Milano (Italy), top executives from the European semiconductor industry and high- ranking EC officials will, against the background of Europe’s dwindling share in the global semiconductor business, fathom out the options to determine a single European industry strategy. As the global semiconductor industry continues to make progress on the semiconductor roadmap towards smaller geometries and larger wafer sizes, the investments necessary to build and run leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing facilities are exploding. The next technology step will involve the transition from 300mm wafers to 450mm wafers and from UV lithography to EUV lithography. Both transitions require capital investments in the double-digit billion-dollar range – certainly a serious challenge for Europe’s fragmented semiconductor landscape.
During the past years, the ‘More than Moore’ strategy has enabled the European semiconductor industry to meet the demand of important vertical markets better than ever before by providing products custom-made for the needs of these industries. Examples for such markets are the Automotive industry and Industry Automation. In technology segments associated to the More than Moore strategy, in particular MEMS and intelligent sensors, semiconductor manufacturers with domicile in Europe have reached global technology leadership. The ISS offers an excellent platform to further develop this strategy.
In this market and technology environment, discussions run high about the best way to prepare for the future. This situation has led to calls for a different industry policy – for example the Key Enabling Technologies initiative, which suggests to fund not only research and development but also pilot projects in manufacturing.
Discussing ways to bundle forces in a single strategy that has the potential to take on the technological, financial and entrepreneurial challenges ahead will be the topic of a high- ranking panel discussion at the conference. The participants at this panel represent leading- edge technology organizations including nanoelectronics research institutes CEA-LETI (France) and Imec (Belgium), semiconductor manufacturers STMicroelectronics and Soitec, equipment manufacturer ASML and the European Commission.
