News

15 August 2008

 

Tegal’s sales hit by project postponements and cancellations

For its fiscal first-quarter 2009 (to end-June 2008), plasma etch and deposition system maker Tegal Corp of Petaluma, CA, USA has reported revenue of $4.7m, down on $7.4m last quarter.

Gross margin of 49.2% is down slightly from 50.6% last quarter. Operating loss was $1m, compared to operating income of $0.8m. Cash reserves have fallen by $1.1m to $18.2m.

“Our results for this quarter were below our expectations, as several projects in which we were engaged were either postponed or cancelled,” says president & CEO Thomas Mika. “The current environment in semiconductor capital equipment is challenging - more so than any other time since the beginning of the decade,” he adds.

Nevetheless, during the quarter Tegal shipped an advanced etch system to SVTC Technologies of San Jose, CA, USA, which operates a process development foundry for the rapidly growing novel memory and transistor market along with the MEMS/MOEMS, photovoltaics, biotechnology, image sensors and high-voltage markets. As part of the order, Tegal is also working with SVTC on process recipe development for these applications.

“The shipment of an advanced 6500 etch system to SVTC was a big plus for the quarter,” says Mika. “It is a high-visibility installation, and we have already generated several sales leads from SVTC development customers.” In addition, Tegal is completing its Compact 360NLD system for shipment later this month. “The official launch of the product at Semicon West in mid-July was a great success,” he reckons.

“While we expect the environment to remain challenging in the near future, we have a strong cash position and believe we will sustain or improve our market position,” Mika concludes.

See related item:

Tegal reports third consecutive quarter of profitability

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