In the green: First pure-play custom MEMS manufacturer to maintain profitability

Grenoble, France —

has announced that the fiscal quarter that ended Sept. 30 marked its fifth consecutive quarter of net profit, making the company the first pure-play contract manufacturer of advanced microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices to achieve consistent profitability. The privately held company declared that the 2007 fiscal year will close in December with a solid net profit; revenues for 2007 are expected to increase from last year by more than 50%.

Also read from Control Engineering :
Sensing at the Nano-Level: Development of sensors that harness the power of nanotechnology is progressing as hurdles remain to manufacturing and commercializing products for general application.

“The MEMS foundries and contract-manufacturers businesses have experienced a very strong market — 35% average annual growth — but the profitability is still not there,” said Jean-Christophe Eloy, general manager and founder of YOLE Developpement, a French market research company and leader in MEMS market analysis. “The strong growth of Tronics Microsystems, almost two times higher than the market, and the net profitability over five quarters demonstrates its leadership in manufacturing specialized custom products and provides a strong outlook for their continued growth and success.”

The growth stems from establishing strategic partnerships with leading systems and sub-systems manufacturers in their fields and in developing and manufacturing differentiated specialized products for demanding applications, the company says. The business model has fueled growth among a customer base in Europe, North America, and Japan in segments such as life-sciences instrumentation and transportation.

Unlike MEMS foundries that focus on wafer processing, Tronics says it takes complex MEMS concepts from design to product manufacturing, including wafer processing, assembly, custom packaging and testing. The company proposes some platforms for custom products.

“Our industry-leading performance assures customers and potential customers that Tronics can be counted on to deliver high-quality, custom MEMS well into the future and to sustain the long-term relationships required for customer success. Moreover, our performance positions Tronics to be a driving force in shaping the MEMS industry,” said Tronics CEO Peter Pfluger.

Tronics expects future growth to be driven by higher demand for custom products in the life sciences and transportation industries. These include ultra-miniature pressure sensors for medical implantable applications, inertial transducers for different motion sensing and navigation applications, and microfluidic devices for lab automation.

Control Engineering News Desk
( Register here and scroll down to select your choice of eNewsletters free .)

Do you have experience and expertise with the topics mentioned in this content? You should consider contributing to our CFE Media editorial team and getting the recognition you and your company deserve. Click here to start this process.