ELKHART, IN -- The top financial officer of CTS Corp. yesterday suggested the economy is straining smaller EMS firms, thus opening the door for larger players.

On a conference call with analysts, president and chief financial officer Vinod M. Khilnani said, "Financial constraints on smaller tier three and tier four competitors are presenting new business opportunities for our EMS business."

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ANGLETON, TX -- Benchmark Electronics today announced that cofounders Steven A. Barton and Donald E. Nigbor will retire effective Dec. 1. Both have served as directors for more than 20 years.

Barton and Nigbor will remain directors until the 2009 annual meeting of shareholders. The board intends to nominate chief executive Cary T. Fu to succeed Nigbor as chairman, effective in May 2009.

Fu will become the last of the founders to remain with the company.

Benchmark was founded in 1986.

STAMFORD, CT -- The economic crisis is having a significant impact on the semiconductor industry, as worldwide semiconductor revenue growth in 2009 is expected to be 1%, down by approximately seven points from previous estimates, according to preliminary estimates from Gartner Inc.

In the third quarter, worldwide semiconductor revenue for 2009 was forecast to be $307.7 billion, a 7.8% increase from 2008. Gartner now expects worldwide semiconductor revenue in 2009 to total approximately $282 billion, a 1% increase.

Although semiconductor companies mostly met expectations for the third quarter (the semiconductor industry grew by approximately 5% quarter over quarter) guidance for the fourth quarter continues to drop. Gartner estimates worldwide semiconductor revenue in 2008 to total $279.4 billion, a 2% increase from 2007.

"Semiconductor growth was surprisingly strong until recently, given the very weak economic environment, but this will start to change in the fourth quarter of 2008," said Bryan Lewis, research vice president at Gartner. "Mounting evidence suggests that the semiconductor industry will see negative growth starting in the fourth quarter of 2008, and that this will continue throughout most of 2009."

Gartner assesses the potential impact on semiconductor growth by checking the sensitivity of changing demand in key application markets. Gartner applied assumptions to reductions in system units and reductions in semiconductor content in systems. PCs and cellphones account for approximately a third of the total semiconductor market, so they are the biggest applications for adjusting growth. For example, if the system unit percentage change of PCs is lowered by 8%, this would impact semiconductor growth by 1.61%.

"In a recession, it's important to remember that there will not only be a potential reduction in the number of systems sold, but also a move to lower-cost systems with less semiconductor content," Lewis said.

HARTLEPOOL, UK -- Stadium Group has purchased neighboring electronics manufacturer Zirkon Ltd. in a deal worth $4 million.

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LIMERICK, IRELAND -- Flextronics plans to lay off at least 100 workers at the Raheen Industrial Estate here, according to published reports.

Flextronics employs 290 people at its warehousing operations in Limerick, where it supplies Dell and other local companies, the Limerick Leader newspaper said.

SINGAPORE – Surface Mount Technology reported September quarter revenue of $146.8 million, and a loss of $1.3 million. In the June quarter, the EMS company reported a loss of $900,000.
 
For the six-month period ended Sept. 30, the group’s revenue was $314.5 million, up about 3.1% year-over-year. The firm reported a loss of $2.2 million for the period, compared to a profit of $5.6 million last year. The year-over-year revenue growth resulted mainly from higher demand for turnkey projects in consumer products, the company said.
 
“The world is experiencing an unprecedented financial and economic crisis. Market demand for export is softening. The global outlook is very uncertain. We are taking proactive measures to push for more China domestic sales and intensify our cost reduction efforts,” said Chan Kei Biu, chairman and senior managing director.
 

MACAO -- Nam Tai Electronics chief executive Masaaki Yasukawa tendered his resignation, effective immediate, citing family reasons. The company has named Wong Kuen Ling (Karene Wong) president and acting chief executive.

Wong has been with the company since June 1989, and since 2007 has been chairman of NTEEP.

Nam Tai is the world's 20th largest EMS provider, but its revenues have plunged more than 20% this year through September.

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BANNOCKBURN, IL – IPC will host a meeting with European automotive industry leaders, including Porsche, Volvo and Volkswagen, to investigate adding automotive-specific requirements for electronics used in cars, trucks and military vehicles to IPC-A-610D, Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies.
 
A kickoff meeting will be held Nov. 12 in Munich to select a committee. Technical professionals involved with quality, reliability, production and purchasing of electronic parts and assemblies for the automotive industry are invited.
 
“Ideally, we would like to publish an automotive addendum to IPC-A-610D within nine to 12 months,” said Lars Wallin, IPC European representative.
 
Jack Crawford, IPC director of certification and assembly technology, will moderate the meeting.

For more information and to register, contact Lars Wallin, LarsWallin@ipc.org.  

SAN JOSE -- Worldwide sales of semiconductors rose 1.6% year-over-year to $23 billion in September, and 1.1% from August, the Semiconductor Industry Association said last night.

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HERNDON, VA – Dr. Robert C. Pfahl Jr., vice president of global operations for iNEMI, received an Electronics Goes Green 2008+ award in Berlin last month. 

Pfahl received the award “for his commitment to environmental protection and inspiring ideas concerning sustainable development in technology and business solutions.”

Prior to joining iNEMI in 2002, Pfahl was director of international and environmental research and development for Motorola Labs. 

 

SECAUCUS, NJ --Starting Nov. 1,  Panasonic Corp. of North America will launch a nationwide program designed to provide consumers convenient recycling of Panasonic brand TVs and other consumer electronics.

Under the program, consumers can drop off Panasonic products free of charge. Panasonic also will work jointly with public and private recyclers, communities, governments, charities and other organizations.

The venture will cover more than 160 recycling drop-off locations in 10 states, and is slated to expand to all 50 states, with hundreds more sites, over the next three years.

In a press statement, Recycling Group manager Richard Vernam, said, "The program will help to move end-of-life consumer electronics out of the common waste stream and into a separate and environmentally responsible recycling stream."

"The focus of Panasonic's new program will be on consumer convenience and environmentally sound recycling," said Yoshi Yamada, Chairman and CEO of Panasonic Corporation of North America. "The new national program both gives life to our customers' recycling expectations and embodies our company's commitment to responsible product lifecycle management."

The move might also signal a larger emphasis on designing products that are easy to break down and reuse.