Sep 25 2009
Camtek Ltd. (NASDAQ and TASE: CAMT), today announced the signing of an agreement to acquire the entire share capital of SELA- Semiconductor Engineering Laboratories Ltd. ("SELA").
SELA is engaged in the development, manufacturing and marketing of automated SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) and TEM (Transmission Electron Microscope) sample preparation equipment, primarily for the semiconductor industry.
As consideration for the shares, Camtek will pay to SELA's shareholders contingent future payments in the aggregate amount of up to $9.5 million, based on SELA's revenues.
SELA, with 26 employees and revenues of $3.8 million and $4.4 million in 2008 and 2007, respectively, has more than 275 systems installed worldwide. Many of these systems are located at world-leading semiconductor fabrication facilities. This, combined with Camtek's well-established infrastructure in manufacturing, sales, service, R&D and facilities, will allow Camtek to increase its revenues, shorten the time-to-market of SELA's unique products and further strengthen Camtek's presence in the semiconductor market.
SELA recently introduced the Xact, the first TEM sample preparation tool using Adaptive Ion Milling (AIM) technology. The AIM technology brings numerous advantages to traditional FIB (Focused Ion Beam) technology by reducing the sample thickness to below 30nm over a large area with high precision and throughput and with superior image quality. This complement of attributes is essential to meet the growing market requirements for nano-scale material analysis, both in the semiconductor segment and in the wider field of advanced material development, including delivery of significantly reduced turnaround times and enhanced productivity. The continuous device shrinking trend and material complexity increases the TEM utilization and consequently increases the served available market for SELA's Xact sample preparation solutions.
The transaction is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2009 and its completion is subject to the fulfillment of certain closing conditions. There is no assurance that the transaction will be completed.
"This acquisition of SELA is directly aligned with our strategy of further enhancing Camtek's position and presence in the semiconductor market, enabling us to further expand our offering to this market", commented Rafi Amit, Camtek's CEO. "We intend to leverage Camtek's global infrastructure, sales and support teams, manufacturing and facilities, to service SELA's existing customer base, while targeting new customers".