Shipley, Rexam and Union Petrochemical to form joint venture for dry film photoresists

Citation

(2001), "Shipley, Rexam and Union Petrochemical to form joint venture for dry film photoresists", Circuit World, Vol. 27 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/cw.2001.21727aab.019

Shipley, Rexam and Union Petrochemical to form joint venture for dry film photoresists

Shipley, Rexam and Union Petrochemical to form joint venture for dry film photoresists

Keywords Shipley, Rexam, Union Petrochemical, Photoresists

Shipley Company, Rexam Image Products, and Union Petrochemical Corporation, an affiliate of MITAC International, have announced they will form a partnership to produce dry-film photoresists in Zhongshan, China, for distribution throughout Asia. The as-yet unnamed three-way joint venture is scheduled to begin production in 2002. Financial details were not disclosed.

The group will build the first dry-film photoresist manufacturing facility in China, a focal point for the electronics device, equipment and assembly market. Dry-film photoresists are used to make printed wiring boards found in personal computers, cellular phones, electronic equipment and a host of other devices. Michael S. Foster, president of the Shipley Ronal Printed Wiring Board (PWB) division, explained, "This venture strengthens Shipley's competitive position in the Asian market". He explained that his company currently is bringing dry-film photoresists and related materials to China from its facilities in Japan, North America and the UK. "The new operation in China will allow us to improve customer service, logistics, and speed up our time to market for new products in this large and fast-growing market".

Shipley is partnering with Union Petrochemical Corporation, an affiliate of MITAC International Corporation, one of Taiwan's manufacturers of computer systems and computer components, and with Rexam Image Products, a unit of Rexam PLC, which specializes in the manufacture of coating paper, film and specialty substrates for imaging and electronic technologies.

Rexam Image Products' president, Robert W. Champigny, commented, "We are pleased to broaden and deepen our relationship with Shipley, and to form a new relationship with UPC in order to address evolving market needs".

Matthew Miau, president of Union Petrochemical Corporation and chairman of the MITAC-Synnex Group, reinforced the significance of the relationship. "China is one of the most important strategic locations of our business deployment for the new century", Miau said. "Combining Shipley's state-of-the-art technology and the strong logistic and human resources support of UPC will enable the JV to fulfill the fast-growing demand and enable the growth of the microelectronics industry in China and throughout the region".