Entrepix Expands Tempe Facility in Response to Increased Demand

TEMPE, Ariz.-March 11, 2008-Entrepix, Inc., a leading provider of chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) equipment and foundry services, announced that it has opened a new facility adjacent to its current location in Tempe, Ariz. The new space was added to accommodate growing demand for CMP and related process outsourcing services, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) contracts plus equipment and process support. Entrepix has seen strong growth in OEM contracts, signing exclusive, worldwide contracts with four major OEMs in the past year.esearch and development, as well as advanced packaging, specifically including advancements in through silicon vias (TSV).

"Over the past year the industry has increasingly recognized that the majority of semiconductor manufacturing is still done at 90nm and larger technology nodes on 200mm or smaller wafers," explained Tim Tobin, president and CEO of Entrepix. "Now called 'mainstream semiconductor manufacturing' or sometimes the 'More than Moore' segment, this year's ITRS noted that the industry is at an inflection point, and recognized the divergence of mainstream and leading-edge manufacturing. Naturally, this creates a market demand to develop equipment, processing and technology solutions that will support long-term utilization of the very cost effective mainstream semiconductor manufacturing platforms."

To support mainstream manufacturing, Entrepix recently added new capabilities complementary to its existing CMP portfolio, including wafer surface conditioning applications based on SEZ spin processor technology, for which the company has already landed first orders to do wafer thinning and surface conditioning for advanced packaging applications. In addition, Entrepix announced the definitive agreement to acquire inventory and key assets of Ascentec Process Equipment, LLC., which includes the Novellus Auriga/C/EC and IPEC 676 platform equipment offerings, as well as Ascentec's lapping capabilities.

The new facility effectively quadruples the company's cleanroom space with the addition of a 5,000 square foot cleanroom which will house these expanded capabilities. The facility will also feature a showroom for refurbished CMP and metrology equipment, as well as a new class 10,000 cleanroom space dedicated to the refurbishment of Lam (OnTrak) DSS-200 post-CMP cleaners and other systems that require a clean production facility. Finally, the new facility offers space for additional CMP processing capacity.

"The increased industry attention to mainstream semiconductor manufacturing recognizes the value of sufficiently scaled technology nodes and highly depreciated 200mm facilities while highlighting their unique production constraints, such as manufacturing floor space and technical expertise for critical processes like CMP and surface conditioning," said Tobin. "Increasingly, this is driving manufacturers and OEMs to turn to outsourced providers, such as Entrepix, in order to reduce cost and accelerate time-to-revenue. Our expansion and broader portfolio of CMP-related products allows us to deliver a truly comprehensive solution to the industry."

Entrepix' comprehensive CMP FastForward equipment, services and foundry offerings are comprised of:

Refurbished equipment, including :
. CMP polishers
. Post CMP cleaners
. Thin film and surface metrology
. OEM authorized support and software licensingt

Equipment Services, including :
. Refurbishment, installation, qualification and warranty
. Process development and transfer
. Spare parts, subassembly rebuild and field service
. Tool upgrades
. Equipment and process training

Foundry Services
. CMP (all wafer sizes, ≤ 200 mm and 300 mm diameter)
. SEZ (all wafer sizes, ≤ 200 mm and 300 mm diameter)
. Lapping
. Engineering and technology development
. Cost reduction studies
. Integration of new materials
. Process/performance enhancements
. Materials benchmarking
. Pilot and volume production device outsourcing

Entrepix, Inc. is a leading provider of Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) and related process outsourcing and equipment services. The company provides production, engineering and technology development services to IDMs, OEMs, MEMS, nanotechnology and CMP consumables suppliers from its ISO 9001:2000 certified foundry in Tempe, Ariz. Entrepix also supplies CMP and metrology equipment as well as applications, spare parts and field service to support customers' internal processing requirements. The company's comprehensive processing and equipment capabilities provide customers complete CMP solutions, from initial integration and optimization, through pilot production and high volume manufacturing.

Media Contact:
Amy Smith, Impress Public Relations
401.369.9266
amy@impress-pr.com

Company Contact:
Bob Tucker
602.426.8675
btucker@entrepix.com