Carl Zeiss SMT acquires NaWoTec
Oberkochen, June 01, 2006. Carl Zeiss SMT and a group of investors led by Wellington Partners, CIPIO, Target Partners, and Intel Capital have signed an agreement under which Carl Zeiss SMT acquires 100% of the shares of NaWoTec GmbH, Rossdorf, Germany, for its Semicon-ductor Metrology Systems Division. This move will further strengthen Carl Zeiss SMT’s technology base in the area of nanostructuring and mask repair technology and aims at further broadening the semiconductor equipment related business of Carl Zeiss SMT beyond lithography optics.
Dr. Hermann Gerlinger, President and CEO of Carl Zeiss SMT AG, explained: “With the acquisition of NaWoTec, Carl Zeiss SMT is adding to its technology portfolio excellent application know-how of mask repair processes, highly flexible application software allowing easy adaptation for further applications, and computer controlled gas injection hardware to precisely control chemical reactions.”
Frank Averdung, CEO of NaWoTec, added: “Combined with the out-standing performance of the Carl Zeiss SMT E-Beam platform and Carl Zeiss SMT’s worldwide sales and service network, the business is well poised for accelerated and sustained growth on a long-term basis.”
In order to broaden the product portfolio, Carl Zeiss SMT has devel-oped the E-Beam based mask repair system MeRiT™ MG in close cooperation with NaWoTec GmbH. For MeRiT™ NaWoTec won the Innovation Award of the German Industry in 2004.
Bart Markus, General Partner at Wellington, concluded: “We are very happy with the Carl Zeiss SMT / NaWoTec transaction. Carl Zeiss SMT has been an extremely professional partner of NaWoTec for the past 3 years, and we believe NaWoTec is a great contribution to further strengthen Carl Zeiss SMT’s position as a leading European semicon-ductor equipment powerhouse.”
NaWoTec’s operations will be closely integrated with the Semiconduc-tor Metrology Division of Carl Zeiss SMT, and the transaction is ex-pected to close during the second quarter of 2005.
