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        <title><![CDATA[TB-Blog - TechBites]]></title>
        <description><![CDATA[TechBites - The Science and Technology Collaborative Community]]></description>
        <link>http://www.techbites.com/</link>
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                <guid isPermaLink="false">1496-382</guid>
	            <title><![CDATA[The folks at Atmel wave 'good-bye' to their foundry: I wouldn't read too much into the Atmel fab sale...]]></title>
	            <link>/200912171496/myblog/blog/z000c-the-folks-at-atmel-wave-good-bye-to-their-foundry.html</link>
	            <description><![CDATA[
	            	            Last July, Atmel announced plans to convert the Rousset fab from 250 nm to 180 nm. I don’t know if they ever acted on that plan but one could well imagine a rethinking of their fab strategy. Could it be so simple as it being more economic to buy foundry services from, say, a 90 nm or 65 nm fab than enduring the cost of upgrading the existing facility to any affordable process node?

Also, contrary to what we see on this side of the pond, it is very difficult for European companies to shed workers as their businesses and business models evolve. As an example, ST Microelectronics delivers far less productivity (measured in revenue per employee) than, say, Texas Instruments. When I asked last year about the productivity disparity, an ST Microelectronics manager told me that they are hard-pressed to reduce head count and end up carrying many employees for whom they no longer have use. It wouldn’t surprise me if the best way for Atmel to reduce or shift headcount would be to sell the shop.

Lastly, the news of a fab sale strikes neither a positive nor a negative note for the company. It does suggest that the facility no longer represents the best investment for the company in the context of its current business plan. Atmel, like many other companies, have sold several manufacturing facilities and have moved toward what some call a fab-lite strategy. Unlike beer-lite, for many fab-lite has proven a tasteful alternative.
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                <category><![CDATA[TB-Blog]]></category>
                <pubDate>Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:51:35 -0600</pubDate>
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                <guid isPermaLink="false">1496-380</guid>
	            <title><![CDATA[The folks at Atmel wave 'good-bye' to their foundry: Dumping Fabs]]></title>
	            <link>/200912171496/myblog/blog/z000c-the-folks-at-atmel-wave-good-bye-to-their-foundry.html</link>
	            <description><![CDATA[
	            	            There are a few other reasons that could motivate Atmel to sell:

1. they can't afford to invest to the next technology node
2. their money may be better spent developing new products, ie the marginal return on design is better for their case than the marginal return on the fab
3. their defense on the patent front for manufacturing may be waning, thus a sale to another company with a superior position could avoid expensive cross-licenses or lacking enough patents of their own, eliminate the need for very expensive one-sided licenses. 

	            ]]></description>
                <category><![CDATA[TB-Blog]]></category>
                <pubDate>Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:25:46 -0600</pubDate>
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