Amkor and Agilent expand outsourcing agreement

CHANDLER, Ariz.--Amkor Technology Inc. today announced an agreement to assemble printer ASIC products sold by Agilent Technologies Inc. The outsourcing-manufacturing pact greatly expands an ongoing relationship between the two companies and covers a broad range of chip packaging technologies, including leadframe and laminate ball-grid arrays (BGAs), said Amkor.

In addition, Amkor will provide multi-site supply assurance and comply with a vendor-managed inventory program under the new agreement with Palo Alto, Calif.-based Agilent. In return, Agilent has transferred assembly assets to Amkor. These unidentified assets are now being "integrated" into Amkor's operations, including the company's newest locations in China, Taiwan and Japan.

Terms of the agreement and asset transfer were not released.

"This agreement provides Agilent with several key benefits, including a cost-effective manufacturing environment, increased operational flexibility, and improved supply chain management," said Gary Waterhouse, senior vice president of business development at Amkor. He said Amkor's early involvement in Agilent's design process will "allow us to concurrently develop packaging technology for new semiconductor products, thus enhancing overall time to market."

The new agreement expands a working relationship between the two companies which was started several years ago, said Tan Bian Ee, vice president and Agilent's general manager of worldwide manufacturing for the Semiconductor Products Group. "Our affiliation now extends from design to warehousing," he added.