Gudeng Precision Industrial, a semiconductor front-end equipment manufacturer specializing in mask solutions and wafer handling tools, broke ground on April 27 for a new plant in northern Taiwan.

Company chairman Bill Chiu pointed out that the new capacity in Tucheng will be used mainly to produce EUV pods and will act as a backup base for its existing plant in southern Taiwan.

Currently, TSMC, Samsung Electronics and Intel are all major clients of the Taiwan-based Gudeng and have increased their orders for EUV pods with the company, according to industry sources. Gudeng has also recently entered China's 8-inch wafer pod and cassette market, said the sources.

The company's sales are expected to turn strong starting the second quarter of 2021 and will see its profitability surge in 2022, the sources said.

Gudeng will equip its new plant in northern Taiwan with automated equipment to reduce reliance on manual labor. The company is also planning to start another capacity expansion at its southern Taiwan plant in the next 2-3 years.

Gudeng breaks ground for new plant in northern Taiwan
Photo: Monica Chen, Digitimes, April 2021