KUALA LUMPUR (March 1): More than 170 top industry representatives agreed on a number of joint steps and strategic measures to strengthen their competitiveness and sustainability at the International Semiconductor Strategy Symposium (ISS Europe) over last weekend, said the US-based Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturers’ Industry association (SEMI).

In a statement on its website on Feb 28, SEMI said the issue of the best way to attack future challenges ended “in an expected compromise, namely that the industry should pursuit both strategies concurrently, the high-caliber participants of a panel expressed”.

It said that in a global scale, the semiconductor industry was approaching the move to 450mm wafer processing technology — a step that promises to greatly boost the productivity of semiconductor manufacturers.

“However, since the investment to build a 450mm fab easily exceeds the 10 billion dollar mark, this move is regarded as risky and, for this reason, reserved to only the very largest enterprises,” it said.

SEMI said that at the event, SEMI Europe, an industry association embracing enterprises that represent the entire value chain and organizer of ISS Europe, set up a high-ranking panel discussion on options and choices of a single European semiconductor strategy.

“The panel proved that entrepreneurial spirit is well alive among Europe's chipmakers, technology suppliers and researchers,” it said.

SEMI cited CEO of the Belgian research center imec Luc Van den hove as saying that the time was ripe to close the ranks and take on the challenges, as the speakers in the panel pointed out.

"We have to think in European terms.

"Talking in a common voice allows the European Commission to act and support this industry,” it cited Van den hove as saying.

Meanwhile, Jean-Marc Chery, chief manufacturing and technology officer of chipmaker STMicroelectronics said: “We have to push the full value chain cooperatively," it said.

SEMI said the panel participants recognized that the European semiconductor industry possesses the necessary expertise.

So far the willingness to jointly face these challenges has been affected adversely by the macroeconomic environment and the Euro crisis, which discouraged far-reaching strategic decisions, it said.

“The main concern of the industry is the slow decision process of the European institutions due to a complex political approval process inside of the European Union, the participants agreed. This industry is moving fast and so the decisions have to be taken fast, too.

“The strong Euro and the lack of qualified labor are further regarded as potential stumbling blocks for the technological progress and the business competitiveness,” said SEMI.