SSMC wins Manufacturing Asia Awards 2024 for three innovative projects

The company is able to achieve production ramps and cost saving equivalent to US$849,000 per year.

Semiconductor fabrication company Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Company (SSMC) bagged the win in the Singapore Manufacturing Innovation of the Year - Electronics category at the prestigious Manufacturing Asia Awards 2024 for its groundbreaking improvement projects that have reduced the costs of hiring needed to support production ramps and transform its 25-year-old Fab.

Amongst its successful projects is the integration of legacy stockers with conveyor systems, which are not supported by its vendors. This innovative way of integration has become an enabler to connect all stockers, including stockers that are out of reach by the initial automated material handling system (AMHS) track, after relocation to support Fab ramp-up.

This is achieved by dynamically converting bins in legacy stockers with a port supported by tag readers, enabling the connectivity between the stocker and the conveyor.

At the same time, enhancements by upgrading existing material controller systems seamlessly allow the flow of communication between two devices.

SSMC has also developed a mini stocker with vendors, which is attached to each furnace to serve as a storage place in the air. This is further extended for future automation to connect the furnaces with a conveyor system built to allow automation in delivery cum loading/unloading. This comes as a limited footprint in the furnace bays have been a pain for the shop floor, worsened by the need to manage empty pods after having the production lots loaded into furnace tools.

To remove dependency of the maintenance team to constantly work at height to clean the conveyor, the company has invented a maintenance kit to auto-clean the conveyor roller at regular frequency along the route set. The cleaning kit attached to the pod is able to move autonomously at the conveyor once set. This project has significantly reduced 80% of preventive maintenance man-hours.

These innovations have saved SSMC US$849,000 per year in supporting its Fab-capacity production ramp. Total productivity has increased by 15%. At the same time, it showcases the benefits of automation and reduced dependency on direct labour. This is also applicable to other sectors that use a similar conveyor system as their transfer medium.

Manufacturing Asia Awards celebrates groundbreaking technologies, sustainable practices, and transformative contributions of game-changers in the heart of Asia's industrial landscape.

The Manufacturing Asia Awards is presented by Manufacturing Asia Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2025 awards programme and be acclaimed for your groundbreaking technologies, sustainable practices, and transformative contributions driving Asia's manufacturing prowess, please contact Jane Patiag at [email protected].

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