SUSS MicroTec SE

Summary

SUSS MicroTec SE, based in Garching near Munich, makes machines used in semiconductor production. Its role becomes especially interesting when several chips need to work together inside one package. Making the chips smaller is only part of the job; putting them together is an engineering problem of its own.

Customers buy equipment for steps such as coating wafers, exposing patterns and temporarily bonding wafers during processing. SUSS also supplies photomask-cleaning equipment. These machines serve chipmakers, foundries and packaging specialists, supported by installation, spare parts and service.

Customer value

• Supporting advanced packaging: Manufacturers use its processing equipment to build the connections and structures needed when multiple chips are combined.
• Protecting production quality: Controlled coating, exposure and cleaning help customers repeat demanding manufacturing steps consistently.
• Keeping equipment productive: Service and process support help customers qualify tools, maintain production and adapt to new requirements.

What sets it apart

SUSS focuses on particular process steps rather than supplying an entire semiconductor factory. Its equipment is designed around the practical details of materials, alignment and wafer handling.

Customers must qualify a machine for their process before relying on it in production. That creates demanding engineering work and lengthy sales cycles, while semiconductor investment still rises and falls.

Growth plans

SUSS is developing advanced-packaging equipment and an innovation centre in Karlsruhe, with a planned investment of about €45 million. It is also expanding cooperation in semiconductor inkjet printing.

In October it entered wafer cleaning with the GreenTec product line and GT200 machine. The product applies existing cleaning know-how to another chipmaking step. Larger-volume platforms are planned for 2027 and 2028; the launch does not yet show how much revenue this new business will contribute.