Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. (SHI) has announced the acquisition of a leading European semiconductor business. This aims to strengthen its presence in the rapidly growing semiconductor market.

Particularly, SHI has entered into a share purchase agreement with SCREEN Semiconductor Solutions Co., Ltd. (SCREEN SPE) to acquire 100% of shares in Laser Systems & Solutions of Europe SASU (France; LASSE). LASSE is a subsidiary of SCREEN SPE that operates a semiconductor manufacturing equipment business.

The transfer of shares from SCREEN SPE to SHI is scheduled for November 2024.

Background of Acquisition of Shares

In the Medium-Term Management Plan 2026, which started in 2024, SHI has designated the semiconductor field as one of the priority investment areas that will drive its growth. Now, the company is working to promote the development of next-generation models designed for market expansion and change, and to expand sales channels on a global basis.

Mainly, laser annealing equipment belonging to the Mechatronics segment (*) is mainly used in the manufacturing process of power semiconductors. Particularly, it holds the largest share of the domestic market in this field. Nowadays, demand for power semiconductors is expected to increase in the future. This is backed by the expansion of electric vehicles, a major application of power semiconductors.

Meanwhile, LASSE is a wholly owned subsidiary of SCREEN SPE, a semiconductor manufacturing equipment company. Particularly, it develops, manufactures, and sells laser annealing equipment. It has established a global network with customers. Additionally, LASSE possesses proprietary laser oscillator technology. Also, it is conducting joint research and development of laser annealing technology in the semiconductor manufacturing process with public research institutions.

Currently, semiconductor manufacturing equipment manufacturers are required to provide products and services without delay to semiconductor manufacturers that are expanding globally.

“By welcoming LASSE, which has strong relationships with power semiconductor manufacturers in Europe, into our group, we plan to leverage our mutually complementary relationship in sales, service, and R&D. Accordingly, this ensures our competitive advantages in power semiconductors. At the same time, we plan to expand our sales and marketing activities by leveraging LASSE’s customer and development networks,” says SHI.

Mainly, by combining the management resources of both LASSE and SHI, it can expand its business range globally and contribute to the growth of the semiconductor industry.

(*) In the previous Medium-Term Management Plan, we divided the business segments into four, taking into account the compatibility among products and technologies of group companies. Mechatronics segment consists of the gear reducer business, which mainly handles gear reducers. Meanwhile, the mechatronics business handles semiconductor-related products.

-17 October 2024-