Sony to boost production capacity for stacked CMOS image sensors
Press release; Jessie Shen, DIGITIMES [Monday 2 February 2015]
Sony has announced plans to invest in Sony Semiconductor in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016 in order to increase production capacity for stacked CMOS image sensors. Sony Semiconductor also plans to reorganize and optimize its production sites as it accelerates the shifting of resources to the image sensor business.
This investment is intended primarily to augment production facilities used in the mastering and layering processes for stacked CMOS image sensors, specifically at Sony Semiconductor's Nagasaki Technology Center (Nagasaki TEC), Yamagata Technology Center (Yamagata TEC), and Kumamoto Technology Center (Kumamoto TEC). With this investment, Sony plans to increase total production capacity for image sensors from its current level of approximately 60,000 12-inch wafers per month to approximately 80,000 units by the end of June, 2016.
Previously, as a mid to long range target, Sony had aimed to raise its total production capacity for image sensors to approximately 75,000 12-inch wafers per month. To facilitate this increased production, Sony has continued to expand production facilities at each site, and it established Yamagata TEC in March 2014. Through this investment, Sony will exceed its previous target ahead of schedule.
The total investment amount is projected to be approximately JPY105 billion (US$890 million), comprising about JPY78 billion of investments in Nagasaki TEC, JPY10 billion of investments in Yamagata TEC and JPY17 billion of investments in Kumamoto TEC.
In addition, Sony announced the discontinuation of operations at Sony Semiconductor Oita Technology Center (Oita TEC), which is a base for the development and production of high-density semiconductors such as LSIs, by the end of March 2016. Oita TEC began in 1984 as a production site for memory packaging, but in recent years its primary focus has shifted to the development and production of advanced packaging for LSIs used in game consoles.
This decision to cease operations at Oita TEC was necessitated by the changing business landscape, Sony indicated. Oita TEC's approximately 220 employees are scheduled to be transferred to other sites engaged in the production of image sensors or to other Sony Semiconductor sites that will take over some of the operations of Oita TEC.
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