WAFER WORKS CORPORATION was established in 1997, with its founding team originating from Silicon Valley in the United States and the domestic semiconductor industry. The team members have extensive experience in the field and have deep expertise. WAFER WORKS is one of the top ten semiconductor silicon wafer material suppliers globally, with its main products being semiconductor-grade polished silicon wafers and epitaxial wafers. The management team has extensive wafer manufacturing experience, a long-standing focus on research and development investment, and is dedicated to providing high-quality products and excellent service to global customers.
 
Strategic Layout and Global Expansion as the Key to Success
 
General Manager HY Chang stated that, as a semiconductor materials supplier, WAFER WORKS has focused on strategic layout over the years and established bases in various parts of the world, including China, where the company has been operating for over 20 years. WAFER WORKS was one of the early pioneers in this market and is currently the only materials supplier in the industry with a presence in both Taiwan and China. Due to the geopolitical tensions between China and the U.S., along with specific regulations on imports and exports in mainland China, WAFER WORKS has developed a "divide and conquer" strategy based on geopolitical factors, customer needs, and market development. This strategy strengthens local service. WAFER WORKS’ market approach connects Taiwan with the international market, while Shanghai caters to the Chinese market. In terms of products, WAFER WORKS is shifting its focus towards the growing demand for 12-inch silicon wafers, while transitioning smaller product lines to maximize efficiency.
 
HY Chang pointed out that WAFER WORKS has maintained close cooperation with world-class customers for many years, including domestic giants like TSMC and UMC, as well as international players like Infineon and ON Semiconductor. WAFER WORKS subsidiary, WAFER WORKS Shanghai, has been operating for many years and successfully completed its A-share listing on February 8, 2024, raising funds for local capacity expansion. Compared to its peers, the company’s financial position is relatively strong. According to WAFER WORKS’ statistics, 8-inch wafers account for about 75% of revenue, and epitaxial wafers account for 51%. Looking ahead, WAFER WORKS hopes its 12-inch products will take over as the primary revenue driver.
 
Regarding the ongoing capacity expansion, HY Chang mentioned that a 12-inch wafer plant with a maximum monthly capacity of 200,000 wafers is being built in Erlin Township, Changhua County, to serve international customer orders. The opening ceremony is scheduled for December 5 of this year. For customer demands from China, WAFER WORKS’ Zhengzhou plant in Henan will handle the second phase of production. The capacity of the Zhengzhou plant will be similar to that of the Erlin plant, significantly enhancing the company’s supply capabilities.
 
Independent R&D to Enhance Company Strength and Value
 
WAFER WORKS has gathered semiconductor experts from both domestic and international markets, accumulating rich experience in material development, process development, and management, from crystal growth to epitaxy, and has cultivated a complete independent R&D capability. WAFER WORKS’ strong reputation has helped it build a solid market brand, with a customer base spanning Taiwan, Japan, the Americas, Europe, Southeast Asia, and mainland China, securing its position as a market leader.
 
WAFER WORKS’ Senior Director of New Product Technology Div., Hertz Hsu, mentioned that WAFER WORKS has achieved significant breakthroughs in compound semiconductors, with a primary focus on gallium nitride (GaN) epitaxy, including silicon-based GaN and silicon carbide-based GaN. WAFER WORKS is also working with strategic partners to develop GaN applications and special silicon carbide substrate technologies to seize new opportunities in next-generation semiconductor materials. Additionally, WAFER WORKS has invested in SweGaN, a Swedish silicon carbide-based gallium nitride epitaxy wafer factory, positioning itself for high-frequency, high-voltage electric vehicle inverters and power management chips.
 
According to WAFER WORKS’ plan, from 2024 to 2026, the focus will be on GaN/Si, targeting applications in AI data centers. From 2026 to 2028, the company will shift towards GaN/SiC for use in electric vehicles, PV inverters, and 6G markets. After 2028, the focus will turn to gallium oxide (Ga₂O₃), suitable for high-current, high-voltage applications in sectors like transportation, wind power generation, and the electrical power market.
 
In the face of the booming AI sector, which requires substantial power for server operations, power supplies’ pursuit of energy efficiency is unavoidable. The use of gallium nitride materials enhances power density while meeting the goals of miniaturization and maximizing energy efficiency. This makes GaN the best choice for kilowatt power converters, leading domestic manufacturers to adopt it widely. WAFER WORKS’ silicon wafers and compound semiconductor solutions help customers achieve IC miniaturization and energy savings, producing various automotive power components, light and heavy power management devices, communications components, and MEMS components, among other applications in automotive electronics, industrial semiconductors, IoT, mobile communications, and consumer electronics. Recently, the company successfully mass-produced near-perfect, low-defect silicon wafers (NPC, Low COP), which are supplied to major global foundries for the production of advanced digital logic and analog ICs.
 
WAFER WORKS has also spared no effort in developing SOI (Silicon on Insulator) wafer technology, with annual R&D investments ranging from 20 to 30 million yuan. In 2023, the company hired Kuo-Chun Wu. Ph. D., an expert with experience in both industry and academia, as the Vice President of New Business Development, reflecting WAFER WORKS’ commitment to the development of SOI products.
 
SOI applications include various MEMS (micro-electromechanical) sensors, power semiconductors, and the popular silicon photonics technology.
 
WAFER WORKS has focused on its core business for many years, intensifying efforts to improve wafer processes by enhancing chip flatness, warpage, and edge cutting precision. This enables the provision of SOI wafers with good substrates for subsequent thermal and grinding processes. WAFER WORKS’ SOI team has met expectations by precisely controlling the thickness of both the device layer and handle wafer to match customer requirements, preserving the crystal growth characteristics, which enhances the precision and reliability of advanced MEMS sensors. Combined with near-perfect silicon wafers, this meets the performance and stability needs of power management ICs. Moreover, with the massive data transmission generated by AI high-speed computing, silicon photonics technology will simultaneously improve transmission efficiency, reduce energy consumption, and enable faster speeds, smaller sizes, and lower costs. SOI serves as a platform for silicon photonics technology, allowing integration of optical transceivers and enabling efficient, low-latency, compact, energy-saving, and cost-reducing solutions.
 
Taiwan’s deep experience in optics and logic components, along with the collective efforts across the industry chain, positions silicon photonics as the next driving force in the semiconductor industry. WAFER WORKS’ SOI team will continue investing in R&D to provide solutions that meet customer needs.
 
Close to Customers, Seizing Business Opportunities to Strengthen Service
 
Today, WAFER WORKS Technology has production bases in Taiwan and China, with six specialized manufacturing centers. The company has also established a global service and sales network, with subsidiaries in the United States serving the American market and sales offices or representatives in Europe and Asia, enabling quick responses to customer demands, shortened lead times, and local after-sales technical support. This strengthens product competitiveness. Through global marketing, precision manufacturing, and excellent customer service, WAFER WORKS has become an internationally recognized silicon wafer supplier. The company continues to grow rapidly and will continue to focus on enhancing product technology, developing products that meet customer needs, and establishing mutually beneficial partnerships with customers, moving toward its goal of becoming a "customer-oriented semiconductor material supplier."
 
"Be grateful to your customers" – Corporate Culture
 
Chairman Pat Chiao discussed WAFER WORKS’ corporate culture, stating that in terms of products, the company strives to offer high-quality products with excellent cost-effectiveness, and from the customer perspective, it always places customers first. His motto is "Be grateful to your customers," which extends into the business philosophy of "helping others succeed as you succeed." As a self-made entrepreneur, he hopes his employees can grow and thrive, spreading their success further. In the conclusion of the interview, Chairman Pat Chiao shared emotionally, “Employee entrepreneurship is one of my ideals and dreams.” With the efforts of the management team, WAFER WORKS CORPORATION Technology is expected to shine both in traditional and innovative fields, taking the group’s development to new heights.