SINGAPORE: KLA-Tencor, the leader in process control solutions for semiconductor manufacturing and related industries, celebrated the official opening of its new facility in Singapore. The company will use this facility to significantly expand its high-precision manufacturing as well as enlarge its extensive training, sales and corporate functions.

Located at 4 Serangoon North Ave 5, in Singapore, the newly constructed 17,400 m² building provides state-of-the-art cleanroom space for manufacturing KLA-Tencor's process control products, with ample room for future expansion. These products are extensively used in virtually every semiconductor 'fab' worldwide. The latest systems can detect nanometer-scale defects and anomalies on the wafers used to make the most advanced chips.

"We started our manufacturing in Singapore two years ago, and the remarkable success of this operation laid the groundwork for our new expansion here," said Rick Wallace, CEO of KLA-Tencor. "This new facility is a major step forward for KLA-Tencor in diversifying our process control product manufacturing and supplier relationships into Asia, where a growing percentage of our customer base is located. Singapore is an important regional hub and offers compelling advantages for our future business operations. "

The Singapore operation is key to KLA-Tencor's global business strategy, by continuing to increase the company's local presence in Asia, where approximately 70 percent of customers' operations are located.

Dan Lee, President of KLA-Tencor SouthEast Asia, said: "Expanding in Singapore offers the opportunity to optimize our global strategy by transitioning selected activities to this new facility, both now and in the future. Our Singapore operation is a key part of KLA-Tencor's globalization efforts, putting us closer to customers with the ability to improve our responsiveness to changing customer requirements and market conditions."