Former Applied Exec Bronson Named CEO of SVTC
R&D fab services provider SVTC Technologies named Joseph Bronson at its new CEO. Bronson, who earlier worked at Applied Materials as the chief financial officer, will seek to expand the SVTC customer base for its semiconductor, solar and MEMS-related development services. SVTC operates fabs in Austin, Texas, and San Jose.
David Lammers, News Editor -- PV Society, 1/13/2009
|
SVTC Technologies LLC (San Jose), which operates development fabs in San Jose and Austin, Texas, named Joseph Bronson as its new CEO. Bronson takes over from David Bergeron, who will move over to the CTO role, which also includes business development activities.
|
|
Joe Bronson, CEO, SVTC |
Bronson spent two decades at Applied Materials Inc. (Santa Clara, Calif.), including a long stint as chief financial officer. More recently, he worked as the COO and president of contract manufacturer Sanmina-SCI Corp. (San Jose), and was the co-CEO of probe card vendor FormFactor Inc. (Livermore, Calif.).
SVTC spun out of Cypress Semiconductor Corp. (San Jose), offering silicon-based development services to companies developing a wide variety of equipment and materials, process technologies, bioelectronics, new transistors, and More Than Moore technologies including a MEMS development center. The company includes Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC, Hsinchu, Taiwan) as one of its customers, providing an R&D fab environment and secure intellectual property procedures.
In December 2007, SVTC took over the former Sematech Advanced Technology Development Facility (ATDF), offering services, including a copper back end of line, to Sematech and other customers. In June 2008, it launched a subsidiary, SVTC Solar, offering photovoltaic development services at a facility called the Silicon Valley Photovoltaic Development Center in San Jose. Bronson said he was attracted to SVTC by its business model, which allows customers to “reduce their development cost, speed time-to-market, and avoid costly capital outlays.”
Major investors include Oak Hill Capital Management and Tallwood Venture Capital. Bill Pade, a partner at Oak Hill Capital, said Bronson brings to SVTC “a network of relationships, and an intuitive understanding of the needs of the customers that SVTC serves.”
