TEMPE, Ariz., Sept. 19, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Amtech
Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASYS), a global manufacturer and supplier of
advanced thermal processing and polishing equipment and related
consumables to the semiconductor / electronics, power IC
businesses, solar, and advanced lighting markets, today announced
its solar subsidiary, Tempress Systems (Tempress), has received an
order for the first of a potentially multi-phase capacity expansion
project from Trina Solar Limited (Trina
Solar) for its planned production of high efficiency N-type
solar cells. Trina Solar is a
leader in mass production of high-efficiency solar cells, a member
of the solar industry's Silicon Module Super League (SMSL).
Trina developed its TopCon N-Type process flow under China's Top Runner Program and is ramping up
mass production of solar cells using their TopCon technology.
Tempress and Trina have collaborated on the development of the
technology with the common goal of quickly ramping up TopCon
technology for mass production. The combined value of this
and the other recently announced N-Type order is greater than
$11 million.
The order includes our latest generation of high-throughput
Boron diffusion systems and Tempress' new LPCVD poly systems.
This multi-million dollar order is expected to be shipped and
installed in the first half of Amtech's fiscal year 2019. The
Company also expects to receive an order for the second phase of
this expansion project, upon the successful installation and
testing of Phase I.
Mr. Fokko Pentinga, Chief
Executive Officer of Amtech, commented, "Success in the solar
market today is driven by having the best next-gen solar technology
solutions. Over the years, we have made advances in N-type
technologies in collaboration with industry-leading customers as
well as with the foremost research institutes, including the Energy
Research Center of the Netherlands
(ECN). N-type is emerging as the future for mass production
of high-efficiency solar cells and with recent declines in the cost
of N-type wafers and market demand for higher efficiency and lower
cost per watt, we are seeing increased adoption of N-type
technologies for production of c-Si cells. We believe that
Amtech has the right mix of N-type cell technologies and the
high-performance tools to capitalize on the growing market demand
for these higher-efficiency cell technologies. While this
contract is strategically important to our solar business, we
continue to put increased emphasis on our semiconductor
business."
Mr. Pentinga continued, "We are pleased that Trina chose our
Tempress' N-type systems and to collaborate with us on the R&D
for this advanced technology solution and providing us with this
repeat order for next-gen equipment. We expect this
technology's cell efficiency will be in an industry-record range of
22-23 percent. With this first order, we look forward to
assisting with the integration of this new equipment into Trina's
production lines, and to the Phase II order where Tempress is
expected to supply the tools to upgrade Trina capacity from P-multi
technologies to N-type Topcon."
Mr. Shouzhong Chen, Trina Solar's
Head of Global Module Supply and Manufacturing added, "To our goal
of continuous improvement of our production portfolio, the R&D
team of Trina Solar has collaborated
with that of Tempress' R&D team in the development of our
advanced Topcon technology. We selectively work with partners
as we address capacity gaps and plan for the growing global demand
for our products and we are pleased to have had a long relationship
with Tempress and continue to do so over time. Their diligent
team is proven in their ability to deliver equipment meeting our
very strict quality specifications as we upgrade and expand our
production capacity."
About Amtech Systems, Inc.
Amtech Systems, Inc. is a
global supplier of advanced thermal processing and polishing
equipment and related consumables to the semiconductor /
electronics, power IC businesses, solar, and advanced lighting
manufacturing markets. Amtech's equipment includes diffusion,
solder reflow systems. wafer handling automation, ALD and PECVD
systems and polishing equipment and related consumables for surface
preparation of various materials, including silicon carbide
("SiC"), sapphire and silicon. The Company's wafer handling,
thermal processing, polishing and consumable products currently
address the diffusion, oxidation, and deposition steps used in the
fabrication of semiconductors, printed circuit boards,
semiconductor packaging, solar cells, MEMS, and advanced lighting,
including the polishing of newly sliced sapphire and silicon
wafers. Amtech's products are recognized under the leading brand
names BTU International, Bruce TechnologiesTM, PR
HoffmanTM, Tempress SystemsTM, R2D
AutomationTM and SoLayTec.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
Certain information contained in this press
release is forward-looking in nature. All statements in this press
release, or made by management of Amtech Systems, Inc. and its
subsidiaries ("Amtech"), other than statements of historical fact,
are hereby identified as "forward-looking statements" (as such term
is defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended). The forward-looking statements in this press release
relate only to events or information as of the date on which the
statements are made in this press release. Examples of
forward-looking statements include statements regarding Amtech's
expectations of future orders, financial results, operating
results, business strategies, projected costs, products under
development, competitive positions, and plans and objectives of
Amtech and its management for future operations. In some
cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology
such as "may," "will," "should," "would," "expects," "plans,"
"anticipates," "intends," "believes," "estimates," "predicts,"
"potential," "continue," or the negative of these terms or other
comparable terminology used by our management are intended to
identify such forward-looking statements. These statements
are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks,
uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. The
Form 10-K, as amended, for the year ended September 30, 2017, and its Form 10-Q for the
quarterly period ended June 30, 2018,
each as Amtech filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
listed various important factors that could affect the Company's
future operating results and financial condition and could cause
actual results to differ materially from historical results and
expectations based on forward-looking statements made in this
document or elsewhere by Amtech or on its behalf. These
factors can be found under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Form
10-K and the most recently filed Form 10-Q and investors should
refer to them. Because it is not possible to predict or
identify all such factors, any such list cannot be considered a
complete set of all potential risks or uncertainties. Except
as required by law, we undertake no obligation to publicly update
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events, or otherwise.
Contacts:
Amtech Systems,
Inc.
Robert T.
Hass
Chief Financial
Officer
(480)
967-5146
irelations@Amtechsystems.com
|
Christensen
Investor
Relations
Patty
Bruner
(480)
201-6075
pbruner@christensenir.com
|
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SOURCE Amtech Systems, Inc.