|
ROODMICROTEC REALISES SEVERAL OPERATING SUCCESSES
(Hugin (English) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) GENERAL
Sales growth of Rood Testhouse International N.V. (RoodMicrotec) in
the third quarter of 2009 compared to the second quarter of 2009 was
at least equal to the growth of the global semiconductor industry as
a whole.
According to the SIA (Semiconductor Industry Association) global
semiconductor sales increased by 17% in the third quarter of 2009
compared to the second quarter 2009, while RoodMicrotec realised 18%
sales growth in the same period. The sales developments of the past
few years are shown in the diagram below (please download PDF).
The sales growth was driven largely by Supply Chain Management and
Test & Related services. This was offset by a lower gross margin as a
percentage of sales caused by a considerably higher purchasing volume
in Supply Chain Management compared to the other sectors. The sectors
Failure & Technology Analysis, Qualification and Test Engineering
remained at the same level as in the second quarter of 2009.
The order portfolio further increased in the third quarter, which
raised the book-to-bill ratio by 10%.
'While we are still far from satisfied with the way things are going,
we consider this clear increase of the number of orders as a good
sign. Furthermore, we have achieved a number of operational successes
over the past few months. We continue to be cautiously optimistic,
but we expect that significant positive developments will not occur
before 2010,' said Philip Nijenhuis, CEO of RoodMicrotec.
DEVELOPMENTS
High reliability
In the area of space and satellite communication and in acoustic
microscopy we have secured major new clients, in particular for the
business units Failure & Technology Analysis and Qualification, and
the number of applications for our services has increased.
HERMES
Based on an EU review, we have qualified for the next phase in the
HERMES industrialisation project. The HERMES project aims at further
developing the concept of embedded thin chips in electronic boards as
a basis for an integrated manufacturing of electronic circuits.
HERMES will have significant benefits in terms of technology, cost
reduction and time-to-market.
Automotive, space and aeronautical industries
For the automotive, space and aeronautical industries, where there is
a need for fast access to measurement results in order to fine-tune
products, we have invested in an automatic burn-in loader.
This constitutes a major step towards optimising the entire
qualification and reliability process, and secures long-term product
reliability. This process is also known as 'safe launch'. This
reconfirms the strength of 'certified by RoodMicrotec' (see also the
press release dated 26 August 2009).
LED Light-for-YOU
We are a certified partner of OSRAM's LED Light-for-YOU network.
This network boasts high-calibre service partners in the area of
LEDs. The online platform www.ledlightforyou.com offers various
optical, thermal and electronic solutions in the area of LEDs (see
also the press release dated 12 June 2009).
ADDED MOMENTUM TO SALES ORGANISATION IN UNITED KINGDOM
We have expanded our sales capacity in the United Kingdom with the
appointment of Mr Mike Jarvis as our sales representative. Mr Jarvis
(56) has over 25 years' experience in the semiconductor industry in
the UK and has an extensive and impressive network. For many years,
he worked as a sales manager for Eltek Semiconductors Ltd in
Dartmouth. He currently represents both RoodMicrotec and Eltek
Semiconductors (see also the press release dated 28 October 2009).
Rationalisation
Next to several internal rationalisation projects, we have succeeded
in reducing the hardware costs for new specific test applications by
dozens of percents, increasing our competitiveness.
Personnel
The permanent workforce, which has been reduced year-on-year by
approx. 34 FTEs (approx. 20%), will be further reduced over the next
year. Personnel costs are being reduced as far as possible by means
of short-time working, for which schemes are in place until January
2011.
However, in order to improve our market strength, we will recruit new
staff in the high-level growth sectors.
Outlook for 2009
In view of the continuing uncertainty about economic developments, we
cannot at this time make any concrete predictions for the fourth
quarter of 2009. The increase of the number of orders and the sales
developments so far indicate to us a continuation of the recovery in
the last quarter of 2009, barring unforeseen circumstances. Due to
our market position, sales efforts, cost reductions and optimisation
of the organisation, RoodMicrotec will benefit from a market
recovery.
The SIA has recently raised its growth forecasts for 2010 and 2011 to
10.2% and 8.4% respectively. We will continue our strategy of growing
above the market growth rate. We therefore maintain our previously
defined objectives of long-term (beyond 2010) average annual
autonomous growth of between 5% and 15%, improving the operating
result and the net result and further reducing our debt position.
RoodMicrotec continues to be interested in collaboration with other
parties.
FINANCIAL AGENDA
12 January 2010 Publication sales figures 2009
25 February 2010 Publication annual figures 2009
25 February 2010 Conference call for press and analysts
11 March 2010 Publication annual report 2009
25 March 2010 Annual general meeting of shareholders
Forward-looking statements
This press release contains a number of forward-looking statements.
These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and
prognoses of the board of management and on the information currently
available to the company. The statements are subject to certain risks
and uncertainties which are hard to evaluate, such as the general
economic conditions, interest rates, exchange rates and amendments to
statutory laws and regulations. The board of management of
RoodMicrotec cannot guarantee that its expectations will materialise.
Furthermore, RoodMicrotec does not accept any obligation to update
the statements made in this press release.
RoodMicrotec's activities
With almost 40 years' experience in value-added service provision,
RoodMicrotec has built up a strong position in Europe in the
microelectronics and optoelectronics sectors. Its services include
failure & technology analysis, qualification & burn-in, test- &
product engineering, production test - device programming -
end-of-line service, reliability engineering - ESD/ESDFOS assessment
& training and supply chain management. These services comply with
the quality requirements of the automotive, aerospace,
telecommunications, medical, IT and industrial electronics sectors.
RoodMicrotec has branches in Germany (Dresden, Nördlingen, Stuttgart)
and the Netherlands (Zwolle).
For further information:
Philip Nijenhuis, CEO Phone: +31 38
4215216 Fax: +31 38 4216410
Correspondence address:
Rood Testhouse International N.V., P.O. box 1042, 8001 BA Zwolle,
The Netherlands
E-mail: info@roodtechnology.com Web-site:
www.roodmicrotec.com
This announcement was originally distributed by Hugin. The issuer is
solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
http://hugin.info/130789/R/1354476/328460.pdf
http://hugin.info/130789/R/1354476/328461.pdf
Copyright © Hugin AS 2009. All rights reserved.
[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
|
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Activate Email 
TMCnet LOGIN
Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO West, October 4-6, 2010. Los Angeles, CA.
