Strong demand boosted the worldwide market for chemicals and materials for semiconductor manufacturing by 6.

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1% in 2005, and growth for 2006 is projected at 6.8%, according to The Information Network. The clear winner in the market is the silicon-wafer sector, which will grow 8.9% in revenues in 2006 to $ 8,642 billions driven by higher pricing, increased volume demand across all diameters, and a rash of 300mm fabs coming online.

Valor had recently completed the purchase of the Danish TraceXpert, now a wholly owned Valor subsidiary under the name “Valor Denmark”. The purchase will enable Valor to achieve full business and operational integration with the Danish company and its products, resulting in reduced costs and increased profitability. “We see an increasing demand for Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) in the Assembly market. Due to the fact that TraceXpert plays a key role in our solution for that market and due to the great potential that we see in TraceXpert as a company, we decided to complete the purchase ahead of time”, explained Shofman.
“Overall, I am optimistic about the future”, said Shofman. “We expect to see an increase in revenues and net profit in Q2, and to meet or even exceed our original profit outlook of $3 Million for 2006”, he concluded.

Après avoir réalisé une progression d’activité de 50 % au cours de l’exercice précédent, AUTOMA-TECH affiche un chiffre d’affaires consolidé au 31 mars 2006 s’élevant à 23 millions d’euros reflétant un taux de croissance annuel de 44 % ( + 36 % à périmètre constant).
Au cours de l’exercice, le groupe AUTOMA-TECH a confirmé sa position de leadership sur son marché :
· en renforçant son réseau en Chine (5 implantations) et à Taiwan (création d’AUTOMA-TECH Imaging);
· en acquérant au 1er janvier 2006 son principal concurrent américain.
La contribution au chiffre d’affaires consolidé des filiales créées pour la plupart depuis moins de 4 ans passe de 7,5% à 12,6% (à périmètre constant) avec une croissance en valeur de 147 % . Le dynamisme de ces entités est un des leviers de la croissance future du groupe.

Pickering Interfaces Strengthen European Activities and Announce Opening of the French Office in Paris.
May 10, 2006 09:45 (evertiq)
Pickering Interfaces announce the opening its French office based in the Paris region. Pickering Interfaces are a major player in the Test & Measurement market; the multi-national company is very strong in switching, providing products in all the well known and established architectures of PCI, PXI, GPIB, VXI and now LXI.

Michael CRESPIN Sales Director for Pickering Interfaces France Michael Crespin, France Sales Director for Pickering Interfaces, graduated in 1988 from the Israel Institute of Technology, has started his career in 1989 at National Instruments France as Field Sales Engineer. He has successively filled the positions of Strategic Account Sales Manager and North-West France Sales Manager. In addition to those positions, he has contributed to open several offices in Europe thanks to his multilingual knowledge. In 1998, he was named Regional Sales Director of the North West France region and has particularly developed the Telecom market. In 2003, he was promoted to the position of North France Sales Director and has contributed to the success of the PXI architecture.

Avec un chiffre d’affaires 2005 en progression de 14 %, à 221 millions d’euros, l’industrie française de la mesure électronique affiche son meilleur score depuis 2001. Ce sont les conclusions publiées aujourd’hui 28 avril par le Simtec (Syndicat de l’instrumentation de mesure, du test, de l’énergie et des communications). « La tendance s’est affirmée trimestre après trimestre depuis 2004, et va continuer en 2006 », souligne Michel Bègue, le directeur marketing pour l’Europe d’Agilent Technologies, leader mondial du secteur.

Les télécommunications sont de nouveau les premiers moteurs de l’embellie. « Un des vecteurs de la croissance est constitué par les technologies sans fil qui se mettent en place en France, se félicite Eric Fauxpoint, responsable marketing d’Anritsu. Les acteurs sont les sociétés qui font de la recherche et du développement mais aussi les opérateurs. »

ISOLA GROUP, SARL has announced that it has completed the acquisition of Polyclad Laminates from Cookson Group plc, for a cash consideration of $91M following approval by European Union antitrust authorities. Polyclad manufactures a line of laminate and prepreg materials similar to Isola Group.
According to Ray Sharpe, CEO of the new corporation, "This acquisition allows us to broaden our product portfolio and strengthen our geographic footprint. The product lines for both companies are very complementary resulting in the most complete product offering in the industry." Isola plans to spend approximately $50 million U.S. dollars on cash restructuring charges to ensure more efficient use of global manufacturing capacities, creating a global supplier capable of competing effectively in the long term with laminate suppliers based solely in low-cost regions of the world.

Zuken, an engineering consulting company, has acquired the German electrical/electronic Computer Aided Engineering software design company, CIM-Team GmbH.
April 24, 2006 14:16 (evertiq)
This acquisition brings together complementary technology provided by CIM-Team's E³ electrical and cabling software suite with Zuken's longstanding portfolio of electrical system design; including CR-5000, the robust and scalable enterprise wide design solution, CADSTAR, the well known desktop design tool and DS-2, the e-PLM (electronic product lifecycle management) solution.

Le fabricant britannique de décodeurs TV Amino vient de créer une filiale indépendante dont la vocation est de commercialiser ses logiciels IP/TV auprès des constructeurs de produits d’électronique grand public OEM ou ODM, des fournisseurs de composants et des opérateurs. Baptisée IntAct Software, cette société propose à la fois un logiciel client modulaire (intergiciels, systèmes d’accès conditionnel, navigateurs, etc.) et des outils de gestion sur serveur. Selon Amino, la solution IP/TV IntAct a d’ores et déjà été déployée dans 500000 décodeurs et dans plus de 80 réseaux commerciaux. IntAct Software fournit également des designs de référence.

Pascal Puis has been appointed to the position of DEK France Operations Manager, a role which will see him charged with responsibility for the management of Process Support Products in this region.
April 21, 2006 13:01 (evertiq)
Reporting to DEK France General Manager, Patrick Perochaud, Puis' new role will see him focus on the PSP division, managing laser-cut stencil production, tooling, consumables and PumpPrint™. Following his appointment, Puis' first task as Operations Manager was to manage the Technology Day held at DEK's French offices in Lyon. Held over 16th-17th March, the day was heralded a success, attracting over 40 design customers from the local area and beyond. Visitors were given the opportunity to tour the factory, witness technology demonstrations and discuss any process issues with DEK representatives.

Blakell Europlacer Ltd., a designer and manufacturer of comprehensive SMT screen printing and placement systems for the global electronics industry, announces the expansion of its sales business in the United Kingdom to encompass a select set of other products.
April 24, 2006 08:17 (evertiq)
The company has made the strategic move into distribution in order to increase its penetration of the UK market for its own group products, consisting of Europlacer and Speedprint, as well as those of its partners. Blakell Europlacer Ltd. is recognised as one of the longest standing and most well respected suppliers in the UK market and will build on this with a select band of compatible capital equipment products. A new management role has been created specifically for this profit centre.

"We are very excited to make this strategic change in the UK and to expand our presence here. As a UK manufacturer with more than 40 years of history (more than 30 in the electronics industry), we are delighted to bring an increased range of excellent products to the market," said Derek Gaston, Group Managing Director, Blakell Europlacer Ltd.

EDA company Mentor Graphics Corp. has sponsored an electronic design laboratory at the Moscow Institute of Electronic Technology (MIET) in Zelenograd, Russia.
MIET is one of the leading Russian universities preparing specialists in electronic systems design, and the center has been set up to train students to use electronic design tools.
Mentor’s contribution has been to pay for software, computers, training materials and to provide scholarship funding. The laboratory is expected to offer courses in September focused on printed circuit board and system design, on hardware description language (HDL) design and verification. Later courses will address mixed-signal custom integrated circuit design and verification.
“The better prepared new engineering graduates are, the better for the industry,” said Hanns Windele, Mentor Graphics vice president for Europe, in a statement

German PCB maker Jumatech GmbH expands its product portfolio and production capacity
with financial support by Cipio Partners, Chemolio Holding AG and various private investors that are competent in the business.
May 11, 2006 18:05 (evertiq)
"JUMATECH is assuming a clear technological pioneering role in printed circuit board manufacturing industry", explains Werner Dreesbach of Cipio Partners. "JUMATECH's wire-written printed circuit boards open up numerous application areas that previously were not
accessible - at substantially reduced cost."

Cipio Partners is an internationally leading investment management house in the secondary direct market. Founded in mid-2003, Cipio manages a number of international funds in early and late-stage venture capital as well as in mid-market investment segments. The investment which is atypical for Cipio Partners is a result from the longstanding and close relationship with JUMATECH's new management team. Cipio has branches in Munich, London, and San Jose. Chemolio Holding is a holding company with headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland that invests in companies active in technology, leisure and health.

AT&S annual results for 2005/06 show a 13% increase in sales, and EBIT growth of 24%, dividend to be increased. Sales of EUR 375m and EBIT of over EUR 26m; ramp-up of its second Shanghai facility is to follow in August.
May 10, 2006 12:32 (evertiq)
AT&S, Europe and India's largest producer of printed circuit boards and one of the world's most successful suppliers to the mobile phone industry, posted sales of EUR 375m in 2005/06, a 13% increase. Operating profit (EBIT) for the year was up 24%, to about EUR 26m.

Net income for the year was EUR 28.3m, resulting in earnings per share of EUR 1.09. In 2005/06 AT&S's sales of printed circuit boards for mobile phones exceeded the 100 million mark for the first time in its history. This accounted for approximately 65% of total revenues.

In the 2006/07 financial year beginning in April, Management forecasts further revenue growth of somewhat more than 20%, to take sales to EUR 455m. This increase will be driven by the start of production in the second Shanghai plant, continuation of the boom in the mobile telephone market and growth of the Korean subsidiary, Tofic.

On May 5, 2006, FCI signed an agreement for the sale of its Electrical Power Interconnect (EPI) European and Asian activities to the SICAME group. This agreement does not include EPI activities in Japan and in the Americas, where FCI markets its products under the well recognized Burndy brand name. With this divestiture, FCI reinforces its focus on its strongest positions in terms of market share and growth potential. This particularly relates to its automotive, communication, data, consumer and microconnection businesses as well as selective applications in the electrical distribution market.

SICAME is an international group that offers products and services for electricity transportation and distribution, including safety systems and equipment. The integration of EPI Europe and Asia activities within SICAME will permit the company to broaden its product offering and to reinforce its position in emerging countries.

Jean-Lucien Lamy FCI Chairman & Pierre François SICAME Executive Board Chairman

MUNICH, Germany & PARIS & COCKEYSVILLE, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 9, 2006--EADS and Saft America have combined their expertise in the field of thermal batteries via ASB to form the new subsidiary Advanced Thermal Batteries Inc. Located in Cockeysville, Maryland.
With more than 50 years of experience supplying thermal batteries for missiles, launchers, aircraft, torpedoes and submarines, ASB, Saft America and EADS Inc. are merging their know-how and assets to offer both development and production capacities in the United States.
Advanced Thermal Batteries Inc. supplies customized thermal batteries for missiles and smart weaponry. Thermal batteries are inert batteries designed for absolute reliability and shelf storage of at least 15 years.

PCB maker Denali Partners (who most recently acquired two plants from Tyco Electronics) announced that they will lay off 362 of its 400 employees in its PCB factory in Madrid.
May 04, 2006 16:21 (Yahoo! Finance)
by: Jesper Olsson
On March 31 Tyco Electronics sold its PCB plants in Valladolid and Madrid and now the new owners, Denali Partners LLC based in USA, announced that the manufacturing will be transferred from the Madrid plant to the company´s plant in Valladolid and to manufacturing units in China. As a result of the transferred production 362 out of 400 employees will be laid off from the company´s Madrid plant.

Tyco Electronics has now only one site left in Europe, the one in Dublin, Ireland

According to evertiq's sources, Norwegian PCB distributor Elmatica A/S has bought PCB design firm Nordic Printdesign.
May 03, 2006 09:47 (evertiq)
Elmatica and Nordic Printdesign will together have a total of 32 employees. The turnover in 2005 was 13 million Euros. No figures of the transaction have been revealed.

Finland based antenna maker LK Products will down size its operation in Kempele, Finland. 36 workers will be removed between May and August.
May 03, 2006 12:35 (evertiq)
LK Product has decided to turn the Kempele production unit in to a Rresearch and development facility. Later on this year new staff with other skills will be hired to Kempele. LK Product also has production units in Hungary, the United States, China and Korea.

Le holding contrôlé par la famille Wendel a repris Deutsch pour 1,04 milliard de dollars (834 millions d'euros). Spécialisé dans la fabrication de connecteurs pour des marchés variés (aéronautique, défense, véhicules lourds, exploitation pétrolière, télécommunications), la société compte parmi ses clients EADS, Boeing, Dassault Systèmes, Safran, Ferrari, John Deere ou Renault. Son chiffre d'affaires s'est élevé à 500 millions de dollars l'an dernier, dont 40 % réalisé en Europe et 20 % en France. La croissance annuelle était de « 15 % ces dernières années », précise Wendel. Fondé en 1938, Deutsch emploie 3.500 personnes réparties sur 10 sites, dont trois en France.

Pour Wendel, il s'agit d'une première puisque le holding limitait jusqu'à présent son champ d'action à la France. « C'est une affaire familiale correspondant bien à notre philosophie d'investissement », disait-on hier au siège de la société tout en soulignant que plusieurs entreprises du portefeuille opèrent à l'échelle mondiale. D'un point de vue financier, Wendel limite son apport à 350 millions de dollars, le reste étant apporté sous forme de dette. Il contrôlera 89 % du capital « aux côtés du management, qui en détiendra le solde ».

Le rapport commandes sur facturations de l'industrie allemande du circuit imprimé s'est maintenu à un niveau élevé en janvier 2006, à 1,18 très exactement, après 1,30 en novembre et 1,19 en décembre 2005 (chiffres corrigés), vient de nous apprendre le syndicat professionnel Zvei. La bonne santé de cette industrie s'est traduit par une progression des ventes de 5% en janvier 2006 comparé à janvier 2005, une valeur qui n'avait plsu été enregistrée depuis 5 ans. Les commandes ont atteint, elles, un niveau comparable à celui d'il y a quatre ans. Selon le Zvei, l'une des raisons à cette évolution positive résiderait dans la migration vers le sans plomb, avec son lot de conceptions à renouveler. Parallèlement, les sociétés spécialisées dans le prototypage et les petites séries en service rapide profiteraient du lancement traditionnel de nouvelles productions en début d'année. Enfin, des ''retours d'Asie'' seraient également visibles dans les grandes séries.