News
EL SEGUNDO, CA - The top 10 EMS firms grew a combined 22% last year, to nearly $80 billion in sales, according to a report just released by iSuppli Corp.
Flextronics, the largest EMS firm, grew 20.1% to $16.1 billion. Hon Hai, again in second place, grew 30.6% to $14.7 billion.
Sanmina-SCI ($12.5 billion) jumped 20.5% to overtake Solectron ($11.6 billion, on 5.6% growth) for the number three spot. Celestica, up 31.3% to $8.8 billion, rounded out the top five.
Jabil, which did not provide new guidance, predicts sales to grow 20 to 25% range per year through fiscal 2007. The company forecasts a 25% return on invested capital during that time.
TEMPE, AZ - Three-Five Systems has signed a definitive agreement to sell the assets of its small form factor-display business to International Display Works. The deal is expected to close within two to four weeks and is valued at $11 million to $21 million.
The deal covers all outstanding shares of TFS's China-based display subsidiary, and display-related equipment in its Manila, Philippines factory.
IDW will
also assume the obligations of TFS Beijing, including a $2.4 million line of
credit established with a bank located in China.
The sale does not include TFS's display monitor business or electronic
manufacturing services businesses in Redmond, WA; Penang, Malaysia; and Manila.
TFS estimates the total value of the transaction at $11 million to $21 million, including $8 million in cash to be paid to TFS at closing; up to $3 million more in cash to be paid over time, based upon inventory consumption and accounts receivable collections; and up to $9 million in IDW common stock to be paid to TFS in May 2006.
ALAMEDA, CA - Computer systems account for 44% of all outsourcing - a figure that will remain constant even as ODMs grab a larger portion of the market, a top research firm said last week. The total value of computer systems market, including revenues from EMS and ODM manufacturing, will grow 25% to $376 billion by 2008 from $300 billion today, predicts Technology Forecasters Inc.
"The opportunity to manufacture computers for brand-name OEMs ... ," said senior analyst Matt Chanoff, " ... remains the largest opportunity available to outsourcers. In short, computer system manufacturing has been and is likely to remain the lifeblood of the outsource manufacturing industry, but today those outsourcing revenues are being captured more by ODMs rather than EMS companies.
Chanoff said Taiwanese ODMs have supplanted competitors to become the top builders of computing products. "In many respects, the dynamics of the industry have shifted. Most dramatically, Taiwanese-based ODMs, with most of their manufacturing capacity in mainland China, have become the largest manufacturers of PCs and notebooks, outpacing EMS companies for the first time in 2004."
TFI also reported on the getting ready for the WEEE directive, identifying concrete ways that companies can reduce material and assembly costs, accelerate time to market and improve product reliability. "We encourage our member management teams to avoid the reactive tactical approach and take a broader more strategic view of the opportunities these initiatives offer both for the environment and the bottom line," said Pamela Gordon, president.
Finally, the firm introduced a new qualitative research tool that combined signals collection and analysis for identifying opportunities in strategy formulation processes and product innovation. The data suggest that one of the main problems for the industry has been a focus on process rather than on customers.
"The data reflect an industry that is reactive by nature and stuck in its standard way of doing things," said Eric Miscoll, principle analyst. "The dominating perspective seems to be recognition of the changes in the industry and competitive landscape but uncertainty as to how these should to be addressed."
TFI focuses on electronics manufacturing outsourcing.
The SMTA seeks abstracts for the 2nd Annual International Wafer-Level Packaging Congress and Exhibition (IWLPC). The event, scheduled for Nov. 3-4 in the San Jose Doubletree Hotel, will track leading-edge IC packaging and test technologies with special emphasis on 3-D stacked packaging.
200-word abstracts are being accepted through April 1 for two tracks, Wafer-Level Packaging (WLP) and 3-D Stacked Packaging/Chip-Scale Packaging.
For more information:
http://www.smta.org/iwlpc/call_for_papers.cfm
The loss was $831,541 versus a loss of $693,145 in 2003.
Sales were below expectations because of delays in homeland security and defense contracts, the company said in a press release.
Northstar Electronics, and its wholly owned subsidiaries, Northstar Technical Inc. and Northstar Network Ltd., specializes in advanced sonar technology, systems integration and electronics contract manufacturing.
Sales were boosted $10.5 million by by the Ottawa operations acquired in the first quarter of 2004. Organic growth was $7.9 million, the firm said.
Operating margins fell to 10.2%, from 10.7% in 2003.
Fourth-quarter sales and operating margins were below the annualized rates. Sales fell 3.5% year-on-year, and operating margin were 7.5%.
Chin Poon was the world's 36th largest PCB maker in 2003, according to PCD&M consulting editor Dr. Hayao Nakahara of NT Information.
CALRSBAD, CA - Palomar Technologies, a maker of equipment and process development for electronics assembly, has moved to a 39,000 sq. ft. facility with a larger cleanroom and applications lab.
"It was important for Palomar to acquire upgraded laboratory facilities for advanced R&D and applications development," said Kevin Conlon, president of Palomar Technologies. "These new facilities will better enable us to develop the equipment and process solutions required for the advanced applications under development by our customers, notably those which require a cleanroom."
The new plant will house Palomar's central offices, design and manufacturing, a larger cleanroom, and an applications, process development and prototyping lab.
CHICAGO - Almost every leading tech firm says it will hire new employees in 2005, according to an annual survey of chief executives by a major consulting firm.
Deloitte & Touche, in its 2005 CEO Survey of the fastest growing technology companies in North America, found 95% of tech CEOs plan to hire more workers this year.
The survey was administered to CEOs of companies ranked on Deloitte's listing of the 500 fastest growing technology companies. Nearly 150 CEOs responded to the survey, conducted earlier this quarter.
Of the 95% of CEOs who say they are hiring, 42% plan to add at least 25% more employees in the next 12 months, and 19% plan to add more than 50%.
More CEOs are convinced that 2005 will bring better times. A total of 36% of respondents predicted higher growth in 2005, compared to 21% last year (results may not correlate due to differences in reporting). And almost 75% of the CEOs surveyed were "extremely" or "very" confident about their companies' future growth.
The top challenge for growth is bringing new products to market, said more than one-quarter of the respondents. Other ranking issues are pricing pressure and building strategic relationships.
Tech CEOs feel government initiatives aren't called for to promote growth over the next 12 months, the survey found.
The new facility houses a manufacturing plant for rework vision equipment, plus sales and administration offices for all APE companies.
APE's government and through-hole manufacturing will continue at its New York facility, while training, classrooms and technical development will be conducted in Key Largo.
Elk Grove Village, IL, March 29 - EMS company SigmaTron International Inc. has signed a non-binding letter of intent to purchase Able Electronics Inc., headquartered in Hayward, CA, with an additional manufacturing facility located in Tijuana. The company also announced its intent to sell its Las Vegas operation to Grand Products Inc.
Able is an ISO 9001:2000 certified, privately-held EMS company serving OEMs in the test and measurement, medical instruments, telecommunications, computer peripherals, industrial controls and genetic research industries.
Peter Dennis, Able's president, said, "Combining with SigmaTron completes one of our strategic goals - increasing capabilities domestically while reducing time to market and total cost for our customer base...With SigmaTron's international footprint we believe we will be in a position to offer our customers a wider range of solutions to their EMS requirements."
SigmaTron operates manufacturing facilities in Elk Grove Village, Las Vegas, Acuna, Mexico, Fremont, CA and Suzhou-Wujiang, China, with engineering and materials sourcing offices in Taipei, Taiwan.
The Vegas EMS center specializes in the assembly of electronic products and cables for a range of customers primarily in the gaming industry.
Grand Products is contract assembler of coin-op games and gaming machines. Based in Des Plaines, IL, the company is licensed by the Nevada Gaming Commission to manufacture and distribute gaming devices.
Terms of the proposed transactions were not disclosed.
