news digest ♦ LEDs
regularly carrying out sustainability projects not only to increase efficiency but also to educate and inspire the community.
Aiming to celebrate true sustainability, the Greenbuild Awards recognise buildings in use that focus on actual measured performance rather than design intent or performance specifications.
The award for the best leisure retrofit project was given by a panel of distinguished industry leaders who were looking for the project that had reduced its environmental impact more effectively than its rivals.
SEMI highlights the need for InP and GaAs
The organisation says that the restriction of the use of indium phosphide and gallium arsenide would have a negative impact on the semiconductor industry and Europe as a whole. SEMI has also described a new directive which will bring down patent application costs
According to Heinz Kundert, president of SEMI Europe, being able to quickly identify and seize the potential offered by new technologies and new markets is critical in the semiconductor industry. Keeping track of public policy developments is equally important.
Decisions made in a national Ministry or an EU institution can have a direct impact on the industry.
A new EU patent procedure, to be introduced by mid- 2014, will significantly reduce the cost and time for a company to obtain a patent valid across 25 European states. The outcomes of the current review of substances under European EHS rules, for example, may have an impact on industry’s research priorities or its access to the EU market.
This article covers these topics: 7th SEMI Brussels Forum; EU Patent Protection; GaAs and InP under Review (REACH); RoHS Exemptions Expiring; Banned Substances under RoHS; EU Conflict Minerals Debate.
The SEMI Brussels Forum is one of Europe’s leading policy events for semiconductor equipment and materials, providing a unique platform for top-level executives and EU representatives to exchange views and debate how to reinforce Europe’s competitiveness in the global market.
The 7th SEMI Brussels Forum will discuss how Europe’s industry and policy-makers can increase their impact - both individually and jointly to reinforce Europe’s position.
84
www.compoundsemiconductor.net June 2013
How can industry build on its leading positions and expertise and optimise synergies? How can Europe balance its values and rules on free competition on one hand, with the need to provide for a global level playing field on the other?
SEMI says this is the only event that brings together top- level management and EU representatives to exchange views on how to reinforce Europe’s competitiveness. More information can be accessed via the link
www.semi. org/eu/brusselsforum.
New EU Patent Procedure Offers Automatic Protection in 25 Countries and Brings Down Costs
The new ‘EU Unitary Patent’, to be made available by April 2014, is expected to reduce the administrative and financial burden of patent protection across the EU. Companies will be able to fill out a single application to the European Patent Office. Once granted, the patent is automatically valid across 25 countries (all EU member states except for Italy and Spain). A single court will be created (Unified Patent Court) with jurisdiction over infringement proceedings in any of these countries.
Companies will no longer need to apply before each national body for their patent to have effect in that territory, nor satisfy local language and administrative requirements or pay local fees. Nor will they need to defend their patents in different jurisdictions and receive different, sometimes conflicting, rulings.
This new system is also expected to significantly bring down the costs of obtaining a patent. The European Commission estimates that today, a ‘classic’ European patent (that needs to be validated individually in 27 Member States) costs EUR (€)36 000. The new unitary patent system will bring the costs down dramatically to around €5 000, or one-seventh of today’s cost.
GaAs and InP under Review for a Possible Restriction under REACH
A recent EU study collected information on the production, import and use of 44 substances, including GaAs and InP, in articles, as a first step towards assessing the need for a possible restriction on their use in the EU. Such a restriction (under Art. 68 REACH) could have an impact not only on European manufacturing but also on imports.
In a joint response with other industry associations, SEMI listed the applications where these compounds are used and the lack of risk to consumers when they are completely encapsulated. SEMI further highlighted the strategic importance of these compounds for micro- and nano-electronics.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179 |
Page 180 |
Page 181 |
Page 182 |
Page 183 |
Page 184 |
Page 185 |
Page 186 |
Page 187 |
Page 188 |
Page 189 |
Page 190 |
Page 191