EDUCATION: Technology: Only by design 
by MICHAEL SUN 

April 24, New Sunday Times

Microchip design engineers need jobs but design houses will only be attracted to Malaysia if more of these engineers are trained here. Michael Sun looks at a solution to the chicken-and-egg situation. 

THERE is a need to train sufficient numbers of microchip design engineers to attract foreign design houses to Malaysia, thereby generating new employment and value-added manufacturing exports. 

Raising capabilities for intellectual property design and putting Malaysia higher on the technology rung in the cyber economy is Bruce Gray, president and chief operating officer at Khazanah-backed microchip wafer foundry SilTerra Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. 

“In order for companies to relocate here, there has to be a ‘source’ of design engineers because they are the people whom design houses hire,” says Gray, a graduate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). 

Describing himself as “a business man not encumbered by policy matters”, he adds: “One of the ways SilTerra can encourage the employment of design engineering graduates is by bringing advance technology here to train existing design engineers at local universities and to provide fertile ground to attract design companies to locate at Kulim High Technology Park.” 

In November last year, SilTerra Malaysia announced the successful development of functional 8-megabit Static Random Access Memory (SRAM) chips made from 0.13-micron wafers. 
DYNAMIC PARTNERSHIP: Gray and Othman say the future is bright for microchip design engineers 

These wafers are a product of 0.13micron Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) process technology jointly developed with Belgium’s Interuniversity MicroElectronics Center (IMEC), Europe’s leading independent nanoelectronics headquarters in Leuven. 

Silterra started the joint development project with IMEC in June last year. 

Dubbed CLI130G, the new technology will enable electronic companies to produce communication, computation and digital consumer products with wider functions in a more cost effective manner. 

Headquartered at the Kulim High Technology Park in Kedah – Malaysia’s Silicon hub – Silterra Malaysia also has an internship arrangement with undergraduate design students at the nearby School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in Penang. 

“There is nowhere for them (graduate design engineers) to go unless there are more design houses around,” says Othman Sidek, associate professor and dean of the school at USM. 

Most of the USM students attempting engineering design end up being employed at Agilent Technologies Malaysia. 

“It is a chicken-and-egg situation. The more designers we are able to train, the greater the possibility of attracting design houses to set up in this country – that’s our function as a university,” he adds. 

“There should be a clear programme to get to this point (of critical mass in the number of design engineers to attract foreign direct investment),” says Othman. 

Up to four years ago in Malaysia, universities had been left out of Information Technology (IT) design programmes offered by foreign companies. 

HIGHLY-SPECIALISED: Engineers working in the photo cleanroom “ Certain institutions should have coordinated the IT design activities in the country but they failed to do so,” he adds, without elaborating. 

As a result, Malaysia now faces competition from India and Dubai (UAE) for foreign direct investment of microchip design houses owing to a head start in the latter countries design capabilities and development, he said. 

“This has be addressed,” he adds. 

Gray explains: “You start out with a fabrication facility with the manufacturing concern and participate with local universities to create more competent and highly trained graduates in the design engineering field. 

“They then provide the rich background which we work with to plan new products for new-product companies. The new-product companies are all over Malaysia and increasingly here (at Kulim). 

“That’s how you raise the overall levels of the capabilities of the country beyond mere manufacturing into the intellectual property design phase.” 

Semiconductor manufacturing not only involves high-quality supplies and complex equipment but also a highly skilled labour force to support activities. 

An ideal location is in an established high-technology hub with strong packaging and testing presence. Close proximity to backend service houses that significantly reduces costs and cycle time in the supply chain is another advantage. 

These geographical advantages are met at the Kulim High-Technology Park where Silterra Malaysia is located, says Steve Della Rocchetta, its executive vice president (sales and marketing), in a research paper titled Foundry Suppliers: The Competition Heats Up (Semico Research, April 2003). 
Furthermore, a location of exceptional quality of life is also required to attract the appropriate engineers into the Silicon hub, he adds. 

Over the years, Silterra had hired 65 new graduates from various local universities. It intends to hire 10 this year. 

“Over the next few years, we will probably continue to do the same. If business increases, that number may well increase,” says Gray. 
INTRICATE WORK: Technicians loading wafers in the Standard Mechanical Interface (SMIF) pod 
He views it is important to have additional fresh graduates coming into the company. 

“Quite often, they see things in a fresh light and this provides economic value to the company. 

But semi-conductor manufacturing is subject to economic cycles, particularly those of the United States – Malaysia’s major export market. 

“It is just coming out if a small dip. Business today is looking better than it did a quarter ago but it is not as good looking as it did a year ago. 

“We tend to be driven by better consumer sentiments. If the price of oil comes down it would be a lot better as it would give people a lot more money to spend.” 

However, challenges during economic downturns bring opportunities to foundries like Silterra Malaysia as integrated device manufacturers outsource their needs when they delay or reduce capital investments. 

“New foundries will do well if they stay focused on their customers and do not jump into too many projects or over-extend their resources,” says Della Rocchetta. 

Hence, design engineers may still find employment or keep their jobs in foundries like Silterra Malaysia during a downturn. 


About Silterra Malaysia Sdn. Bhd.:

Silterra Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. is a leading semiconductor wafer foundry that provides advanced foundry standard CMOS logic, high-voltage and mixed-signal/RF technologies. The company’s wafer fab has a designed capacity of 38,000 eight-inch wafers per month. Silterra, which is committed to world-class service and environmental friendliness, received Notable Mention in the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Hibiscus Award competition for Environmental Performance in 2003. The company is ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001 certified. Silterra’s headquarters and factory are located in Kulim, Malaysia, and has offices in San Jose (California), Scottsdale (Arizona), Hsinchu (Taiwan) and Munich (Germany). For additional information on Silterra or its services, please visit www.silterra.com.