news digest ♦ Novel Devices
approximately $113 million,” continues Peeler. “LED & Solar orders totalled $85 million, with $70 million in MOCVD and $15 million in MBE. MOCVD orders increased 19% sequentially, with system orders from customers in Korea, China, Taiwan, Japan and North America.”
MBE orders increased 71% sequentially on production orders from wireless customers but data storage bookings declined 62% sequentially to $29 million as customer consolidation activity temporarily stalled capacity investments. Veeco’s book-to-bill ratio was 0.81 to 1 and quarter-end backlog was $305 million.
Second Quarter 2012 Guidance & Outlook
Veeco’s second quarter 2012 revenue is currently forecasted to be between $120 million and $145 million. Earnings per share are currently forecasted to be between $0.20 to $0.40 on a GAAP basis.
Peeler comments, “I am proud of our team’s ability to execute, stay nimble and deliver solid profitability in a tough year. We are experiencing growth in our Data Storage and MBE businesses, as well as in Services across all of our technologies. Veeco is focused on keeping our infrastructure lean and discretionary costs low, while at the same time developing next-generation technology solutions to drive future growth. We are on track to deliver 2012 revenue of $500-600 million.”
He continues, “While MOCVD bookings grew modestly in the first quarter, we have not yet seen a clear inflection in customer buying patterns. LED customers remain cautious about capacity investment plans and it is still unclear when the MOCVD market will recover. Some positive signs are emerging, including increasing tool utilization rates in Korea, Taiwan and China, and a pick-up in customer quoting activity.”
“Overall, we are seeing positive trends in LED lighting – lower prices, more LED lamp products, and heightened consumer awareness. LED manufacturers are focused on how to position their businesses for growth as LEDs become the dominant lighting technology. Despite the business decline in 2012, we firmly believe that the future MOCVD market opportunity will be larger than what we have experienced so far. With leading market share, strong LED customer relationships,
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technology leadership, and lowest cost of ownership production systems, Veeco is poised for substantive long term growth in LED lighting,” concludes Peeler.
Forepi orders six more Aixtron reactors for LED production
Four CRIUS II-XL systems in a 19 x 4-inch wafer configuration and two G5 HT reactors in a 14 x 4-inch wafer configuration, will be used for the manufacturing of UHB gallium nitride based blue and white LEDs
Aixtron SE has announced that long-time customer Formosa Epitaxy Inc. (Forepi) has placed a new order for several MOCVD systems.
The order is for four CRIUS II-XL systems in a 19 x 4-inch wafer configuration and two G5 HT reactors in a 14 x 4-inch wafer configuration.
The tools will be used for the manufacturing of ultra- high brightness (UHB) GaN-based blue and white LEDs.
Forepi placed the order in the second quarter of 2012 and following their delivery between the third and fourth quarter of 2012, the systems will be installed and commissioned at the company’s new facility in the Pin-Jen industrial zone, Taiwan.
“Forepi began using the CRIUS II-XL system a few months ago and as we must now make provisions for the capacity increase at our new factory in the Pin-Jen industrial zone, we once again turned to Aixtron to provide the epitaxy systems.With short time-to- production and highest performance, throughput and yield, these systems are best suited to our needs,” a spokesperson from Forepi comments. “As we focus on 4-inch substrates, we have great confidence in Aixtron’s cutting edge epitaxy technology.”
Aixtron’s Chief Operating Officer Bernd Schulte, adds, “We are very pleased to once again be able to support one of our longest-standing customers in Taiwan as they continue to expand. An order such as this from Forepi provides further proof of the
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