SHENZHEN – DEK says its latest manufacturing facility, opening in Shenzhen this month, is expected to account for half its worldwide production by the end of this year.

The facility, part of DEK’s ongoing capacity expansion program designed to support customers in Asia, will at first focus on producing entry-level and medium-range printer platforms.

“China is an extremely important Asian market for DEK, which is why we believe that the opening of the new Shenzhen manufacturing facility is such a positive step,” said CEO John Hartner in a statement.

The company will hold an opening ceremony Aug. 27, with local government officials, international media, and Asian customers and suppliers invited.

CAMBRIDGE, UK – Thermo Fisher Scientific’s K-Alpha has been named by R&D Magazine as one of the top 100 most technologically significant products introduced in the past year.

The K-Alpha uses x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to enable quantitative monitoring of the surface chemical composition, providing chemical characterization of the top few nanometers of inorganic, organic, biological, metallurgical, semiconducting and magnetic solids.

Thermo Fisher Scientific product manager, surface analysis, Richard G. White, said, "We are very proud to be recognized by the R&D 100 award panel for the K-Alpha's novel technical features. The award confirms Thermo Fisher's status as a leader in surface characterization, and is testament to the dedication and technological expertise of our entire team in delivering powerful analytical solutions that make a real difference to our customers in many surface analysis applications." 
 

EL SEGUNDO, CA – Following three years of strong growth, the global electronic equipment market’s expansion will decelerate slightly in 2007, iSuppli Corp. predicts.

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HONG KONG – Top 30 EMS provider Surface Mount Technology (Holdings) Ltd. reported June quarter sales of HK816,843, up 16.1% from a year ago. For its fiscal first quarter, the company’s gross profit was HK105,826, up 3.1%, while earnings were HK15,410, down 27%.

Profits were lower due to higher cost of sales resulting from higher raw material prices, wages, energy cost and depreciation charges, the company said.

“We are seeing a steady stream of new projects. Most of our customers have indicated order growth in the second half of 2007,” SMT said. “As customers are increasingly requiring EMS manufacturers to provide more design services, we are establishing product design and development capability to meet this demand.”
 
Revenue growth was mainly from higher demand for turnkey projects in industrial control and consumer sectors. Gross and net profit margins decreased on a sequential basis from 14.6% to 13% and from 3% to 1.9%, respectively.

For the quarter, cash from operations was HK63,639. Capital investment was HK$70 million, HK$43 million for production equipment. Five new SMT lines were installed in the quarter, and nine more are planned this fiscal year, for a total to 152.

In the June quarter, industrial controls, consumer products and office appliances made up 38%, 10% and 6%, respectively, of revenue, while computer peripheral and telecommunication products were 21% and 3%, respectively, and automotive electronics was 22%.

By region, Japan made up 54% of total revenue, Korea 16%, European and U.S. 20% and other Asian 10%.

At quarter’s end, SMT had HK183,840 in reserves, down 61% year-on-year.
Inventories were 4.8% lower, at HK 298,188.

In June, the firm opened a factory in Changchun, and in July began production on a second factory at TangXia, Dongguan. SMT has also completed the construction on a plant in Suzhou and has begun internal renovation works. Construction of a factory in Tianjin is on schedule, with operations planned to begin in mid 2008.