Ultra Clean Technology (Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc.) (NASDAQ:UCTT) and FEI Company (NASDAQ:FEIC) announced today they have signed a Global Supplier Agreement under which Ultra Clean will provide hosted manufacturing services in the FEI Hillsboro, Oregon, facility. It is also anticipated that Ultra Clean's Asia operations will be utilized to produce some FEI sub-assemblies. The two companies are targeting the first quarter of 2009 for transfer of current product lines to Ultra Clean Technology operations.
Ultra Clean is a leading developer and supplier of critical subsystems for the semiconductor capital equipment, flat panel, solar and medical device industries. FEI Company is a leading provider of high-resolution imaging and analysis systems.
Ultra Clean will provide turnkey manufacturing for products currently manufactured at FEI's Oregon facility, as well as new tools currently under development. This includes mechanical and electrical test of several different modules and final integration; ensuring high quality standards for the end customer.
"This agreement is an important part of the restructuring program we announced last spring," said Brian Pierson, senior vice president, worldwide operations, for FEI. "Our overall goals include material cost reduction, more effective use of our fixed assets, increased flexibility and currency balance. Working with high-quality partners such as Ultra Clean will help us reach those goals, while FEI focuses its energy on further technology leadership in growing life sciences, research and electronics markets."
"We are very excited to be working with FEI Company as their new outsourcing partner," said Clarence Granger, Ultra Clean's chairman and CEO. "This is an excellent opportunity to utilize our capabilities to extend into new markets."
David Savage, Ultra Clean's president and COO, added, "At Ultra Clean, we use our core skills to produce high-quality, complex, electromechanical assemblies at a cost that rivals offshore manufacturers. FEI highly values finding a U.S. outsource partner that could meet their cost targets while providing close, local coordination and business efficiencies."