[
THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electro-Mechanics, an electronic parts affiliate of
Samsung Group, is preparing to dive into the integrated circuit packaging industry, according to news reports on Monday.
Joining hands with Samsung Electronics, a chip maker, the electronic components firm will likely plan to win new supply contracts of chips for smartphone makers, including U.S.-based Apple.
 |
Workers at Samsung Electronics’ chip assembly line in Xian, China, pose with the firm’s NAND flash memory wafer. (Samsung Electronics) |
Samsung Electro-Mechanics will transform Samsung Display’s two liquid crystal display assembly lines in Cheonnan into ones for IC packaging, reported Etnews, a local electronics news outlet.
IC packaging is a part of the last phase in manufacturing semiconductors. It involves encapsulating semiconductor materials in a case to prevent damage and corrosion.
The Samsung Group affiliate will package power management ICs, which control the flow of electricity, by utilizing Fan-out Wafer Level Package (FoWLP) technology
Such technology is said to have played a core role in Taiwanese chip maker TSMC winning a deal to supply its chips for Apple’s next flagship smartphone. It enables chip makers to pack multiple chips in one package, a technology often dubbed as “system in package.”
The workforces of Samsung Electronics’ system LSI -- a division in charge of producing non-memory chips -- and Samsung Electro-Mechanics will join the project to launch the IC packing business.
Following a series of tests, the IC packaging factories will go into full operation in the first half of next year.
By Kim Young-won (
wone0102@heraldcorp.com)
