【Topic】Value Chain Evolution in Semiconductor Industry in light of Moore's Law and Innovative Service Case Studies on the basis of Production Strength

【Speaker】Professor Chen-Fu Chien, Taiwan Tsing hua University

【Time】9:30 - 11:00am, Nov. 9, 2009, Monday

【Venue】Room 501 Weilun Building, Tsinghua SEM

【Language】Chinese/English

【Organizer】Department of Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Abstract:

Semiconductor manufacturing is one of the most complicated and capital-intensive industries. The evolution of the semiconductor industry can be understood from the point of view of modularity and technical considerations driven by the simplification of complex production problems. Since tsmc established pure wafer foundry business model in 1987 that assume all the costs of capital expenditure and expenses in wafer fabrication but never compete with its clients of fabless design houses and IDMs. The pure foundry can easily scale up or down its production capacity according to an individual customer’s needs, while maximizing fab utilization with a portfolio of various customers. Such a business model freed fables and IDM designers from the burden of capital investment for advanced technology capacity. Thus, IC designers can concentrate on creating design of chips for various applications including PC and consumer electronics. Meanwhile, the semiconductor industry is moving to more narrow specialization such as Ardentec that focuses the middle layer of wafer sort between front-end of IC design and wafer fabrication and backend of IC packaging and final testing. Nevertheless, Global Unichip Corporation that positions itself as a design foundry focusing on SoC (system on a chip) is trying to virtually integrate the supply chain to deal with technical challenges driven by Moore’s Law and technological inseparability involved in SoC and SiP (System in Package). This talk aims to review the evolution of value chain in semiconductor industry and try to discuss some of the challenges and ongoing changes in continuously following Moore’s Law.

CHEN-FU CHIEN is a Professor in the Department of Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management and an EMBA Professor in the School of Technology Management, National Tsing Hua University (NTHU). He is now also the Deputy Dean of R&D and CEO of University-Industry Collaborations Office in NTHU. From 2005 to 2008, he has been on-leave to serve as the Deputy Director of Industrial Engineering Division in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which is the world largest semiconductor foundry.