Hamamatsu Photonics establishes subsidiary in Korea

On March 6th, the Japanese company, Hamamatsu Photonics acquired a 55% stock share in Hamamatsu Photonics Korea Co., Ltd. in South Korea, which is a new company where Hamamatsu Photonics has shifted its local sales distributor activities, the company states in a press release. This new company is now a subsidiary in Korea and aims to further increase sales in the Asian region by strengthening the sales structure for Imaging and Measurement Instruments business in Korea and responding to the demands of Korean semiconductor manufacturers. Currently, Korean semiconductor manufacturers have a high share in the semiconductor memory chip market, yet they are also taking measures to expand their share in the market of logic chips that have higher added value. Korean semiconductor manufacturers are likely to expand their business even further with the full-on spread of AI technology and 5G as well as a recovery in business investments in data centers. Hamamatsu Photonics has been selling Imaging and Measurement Instruments such as failure analysis systems for semiconductor memory chips via local sales distributors in Korea. The new company took over the sales and service activities of Korean sales distributor MODOO TEK Co., Ltd (MDT) and is aiming at expanding sales of failure analysis systems not only for semiconductor memories but also for logic devices by directly grasping and meeting the needs of semiconductor manufacturers. Another goal is to win orders for Imaging and Measurement Instruments such as inspection instruments for micro LED chips that are the focus of recent attention for the next generation displays and measurement instruments for semiconductor manufacturing processes. With this strategy in place, Hamamatsu Photonics intends to double the sales of Imaging and Measurement Instruments currently made through MDT and achieve annual sales of JPY 2 billion (EUR 16.6 million) from the local subsidiary within four years time. Other goals include further sales expansion in the Asian region via business links with subsidiaries in China and Taiwan. Hamamatsu Photonics will also build up a system for R&D work on prototype devices at the local side to meet customer issues and needs.