ARTICLE - MARCH / APRIL 2004 SUCCESS STORIES OF PAST CO-OPERATIVE PROGRAMMES 1. Global results 1. Global results The programmes launched as part of the EUREKA initiative, JESSI, then MEDEA and MEDEA+, complementing the Framework Programmes of the European Commission, backed up the industrial efforts both politically and financially. These programmes, widely recognised as successful, did more than provide indispensable financial support: they played a key role in the construction of efficient cooperation throughout the value chain, by generating synergies between manufacturers of equipment for semiconductors, hardware producers, semiconductor manufacturers, electronics companies and ?design houses?. JESSI (1989-1996) primarily focused on closing the technology gap with the US and Japan, MEDEA (1997-2000), thanks to the platform laid by JESSI, has been able to play a more forward-looking role by strengthening R&D cooperation of System suppliers and Semiconductor companies. MEDEA+ (2001-2008) will help Europe to become a leader in System Innovation on Silicon with a strong leverage effect on industry, economy and the society at large. The programmes enabled the European semiconductor companies to take an early leadership in strategically chosen core competences: multimedia, communications, automobile and traffic applications, design techniques and libraries, CMOS based technology platforms and equipment and manufacturing technologies. Europe now has three semiconductor companies in the world top ten: STMicroelectronics, Infineon Technologies and Philips Semiconductors ranked 6th, 7th and 10th by the end of 2003, fighting their way up from 13th,16th and 10th, respectively, in 1989. And the success of Europe?s chip industry has also brought success to its partners, customers and suppliers:
All this has been achieved through a greatly increased willingness to cooperate. Indeed JESSI, MEDEA and MEDEA+ are the leading model for trans-national, cooperative, pre-competitive research in the world, demonstrating how cooperation cuts development time, risk and cost. The European microelectronics industry major positioning is on the markets of the future: communication, automotive electronics, digital consumer applications (audio, video). These are very demanding mass markets, both in terms of volumes and prices. The only way to succeed is to increase faster than competitors the ?intellectual property on the chip?, and therefore its R&D content. 2. Specific technological and marketing achievements In Lithography Lithography R&D for the 120, 90 and 65nm processes was already started during MEDEA, and is being continued in MEDEA+. The progress of the MEDEA+ EUV lithography cluster is of the highest strategic importance. It illustrates the value (and the political necessity) of setting up a Europe-wide platform for the co-operation of highly competent partners from various European countries with clear determination to reach ambitious R&D goals of global significance for future markets. Sales of lithographic equipment are expected to grow significantly in the next few years, and expectations are high that EUV lithography will hold the key to the future. By the end of the decade, hundreds of machines should be shipped, each with a significantly higher value than that of today?s systems. A substantial share of this business, worth a projected ? 10 to 20 billion, would make a significant impact on Europe?s high-technology trade balance and employment prospects. Based on the results of these projects ASML and its supplier for optics Carl Zeiss SMT AG are # 1 in this equipment segment. More than 50 % of the memory chips, and nearly 100 % of the graphic chips are manufactured with ASML technology. In 2002, ASML achieved a 54 % market share in a world market of $ 3 billion. In CMOS technologies In a nutshell, today?s semiconductor manufacturers are aiming at building whole systems on single chips smaller than the size of a thumbnail. And those who can build system-on-a-chip products for the least cost will win. Thus the development of cost-efficient manufacturing processes is as important as any technological breakthrough. Success in the first MEDEA+ sub-100 nm project has been vital to keep Europe on center stage in a global microelectronics market. Philips and STMicroelectronics, are now at the same technology level as their worldwide competitors. Prototype production has already started at their Crolles-2 facility for 90nm technology devices using 300mm diameter silicon wafers. Attracted by the local skills, Motorola recently joined the team in Crolles. In High-Speed Communications The xDSL technologies (ADSL and future improvements) provide digital connections over existing copper local loop telephone connections between exchange and customer premises. ADSL provides domestic broadband Internet connections, enabling downloads to customers? homes at up to 2 Mb/s. North America is still the largest market for ADSL, with over three million lines already installed. But Europe is now set to catch up, thanks to MEDEA projects. VDSL will provide connections up to 52 Mb/s over short distances, and proportionately lower rates as the distance between exchange and customer premises increases. Two examples of MEDEA participants who already benefited from the private-public partnership in this very promising market (MEDEA project A114, MEDEA+ project A106):
In Mass storage advances Battles over data-storage formats for the next generation of consumer electronics and PCs are gradually being resolved. The DVD optical system now appears to have become the main medium-term solution ? displacing videocassettes in home multimedia applications and offering effective high-capacity storage for PCs. However, in the longer term, next-generation storage may well be based on the Blu-ray Disc, which offers more than five times the capacity of a DVD. Novel storage systems are also being developed for new generation personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other mobile multimedia applications. The success of projects in MEDEA and MEDEA+ has ensured that European component and systems manufacturers now have access to the technologies required, whatever the storage medium. And, as importantly, many MEDEA+ participants ? including Philips, STMicroelectronics and Thomson multimedia ? are closely involved in the formulation of the new storage and compression standards. In Smart card innovations Smart cards have been a real success story in semiconductor-based products: no other product has reached such high volume shipments. European companies continue to represent 85 % of worldwide chip card supply in almost all market segments, particularly in the two principal areas: telecom and financial services. A new generation of increasingly sophisticated, secure and feature-rich smart cards, with software platforms based on Java and Windows, is redefining the technology. Enter the era of ?Personal Secure mobile terminals? allowing video mobile phone cards, electronic ticketing, electronic purses and contactless cards. Industry-driven by some of the world leaders in smart card micro-controller and card software manufacturing, MEDEA has paved the way for an open smart card 32 bit architecture, placing the European partners 2 years ahead of the competitors. In parallel, the partners developed two innovative generic reference platforms addressing the full range of smart card terminals in terms of functions and security. MEDEA+ continues the MEDEA tradition of supporting very selected R&D projects in smart card, one of the application priorities of MEDEA+. The ?virtual presence? of persons in business transactions requires innovative and ever more secure technologies to help minimising the risks of crime and disruption of information and communication systems that have become the lifeblood and nervous system of our economies. In Automotive electronics With an annual global market of more than 60 million vehicles, it is crucial that European semiconductor manufacturers, system designers and carmakers can exploit world-class silicon-based technology. Microelectronics applications from in-vehicle entertainment and vehicle position to pollution prevention and collision avoidance are driving global automotive innovation. In fact, automotive electronics are estimated to make up 90% of all innovation in cars worldwide, and the value of vehicle electronics is expected to reach one-third of the overall production costs of a car within the next decade. The MEDEA+ projects targeting both new applications and the underlying technology requirements of the automotive industry will enable European manufacturers to help set the global standards in automotive electronics and compete successfully with the USA and Japan. The MEDEA+ partners, Infineon, Bosch, STMicroelectronics and Philips are ranking number 1, 2, 4 and 5 on the semiconductor automotive market in Europe in 2003. 3. Direct and indirect employment creation The European economy has benefited considerably from the success of its semiconductor industry. In the last ten years, this sector has invested between $30 and $35 billion in factories, laboratories and research and development teams, thereby creating more than 50,000 very qualified direct jobs and inducing with a threefold trickledown effect additional locally created jobs. The Eureka programmes JESSI, MEDEA and MEDEA+ boosted the local infrastructure around the big European microelectronics sites, safeguarding the electronics supply chain, the delivery of goods and services, and contributing to regional development. This radiating effect has resulted in intensive subcontracting, support and service activities in areas such as Catania (Italy), Crolles (France), Dresden (Germany), Leuven (Belgium) and Nijmegen (Netherlands). Example 1: Dresden The following details the situation in Dresden in the last years: site evolution activated strong growth of employment (see note below). In the new factories of INFINEON and AMD the employment increased strongly from 100 persons in 1994 to approximately 6,300 persons in 2002. If one adds the employees from ZMD as a third producer on site, the direct occupation amounts to approximately 7,000 persons in semiconductor production. However, not only the direct employment increased strongly. For each job created in the semiconductor factories, approximately 1.5 additional jobs are created in other fields of the economy. In the year 2002 the employment effect on the German national economy in total was worth 16,000 persons. The employment induced by the evolution of the semiconductor site Dresden has raised by more than 11,000 persons in few years. Study: Gesamtwirtschaftliche und regional Bedeutung der Entwicklung des Halbleiterstandorts Dresden, Deutsches Institut f?r Wirtschaftforschung, Berlin June 2002, p. 6 Example 2: Lithography ASML is a true European success story: founded in 1984 as a joint venture between Philips and ASMI, it became a public company in 1995 and acquired in 2001 the US company SVG. With other 5,000 employees worldwide and sales in excess of ? 1,500 M, ASML is since 2001 the leader in the lithography market (54% of market share, and 90% of the top 10 semiconductor spenders being ASML customers). But they were not alone: their optics supplier also enjoyed a strong growth. Within the Carl Zeiss group, 30 people worked in the field of microelectronics in 1980. In 2003, they are over 3,000. In 2001, a dedicated subsidiary Carl Zeiss SMT AG was founded as the microelectronics part of Carl Zeiss, and at the end of 2001 the first building of the world?s most modern plant for lithography optics was inaugurated in Oberkochen (a small city between Stuttgart and Munich, also hosting the headquarters of the Carl Zeiss group) where the company?s development led to strong job creation. Example 3: Crolles/Grenoble Started in 1991, Crolles is now with over 3,000 employees on-site, one of the most advanced centres of the worldwide semiconductor industry. The expansion will continue when Crolles-2, the 300mm unit shared between STMicroelectronics, Philips and Motorola will reach its full steam. Many support companies have set up operations in the area, and this in turn is attracting further companies and highly skilled engineering professionals. For the research institutes and academic teams, the validation of advanced concepts and modules on the industrial line in Crolles represents a valuable means of extending their influence and attracting interest from other industrial partners for future joint development programmes. With over 17,000 researchers (private and public sectors) and more than 55,000 students, the Grenoble area is one of the most dynamic in France, and the top one for activities related to micro-nanoelectronics. This is why it has been decided by public and private partners to launch a new initiative ?Minatech? to further develop research and industry in this domain. This centre dedicated to nanoelectronics, the first of its kind in Europe, is expected to attract in the Isere valley thousands of new jobs over the next 10 years. | |||
