Demand for chip production systems will continue to grow in the coming years

Demand for chip production systems will continue to grow in the coming years

There has been a significant chip shortage worldwide for some time now, something chip manufacturers are responding to with substantial investments. This is also reflected in the figures for the chip production systems market. Global sales are expected to grow to $117.5 billion by 2022, a 14.7% increase from $102.5 billion in 2021 revenue. Sales are expected to increase further to $120.8 billion in 2023.

This is according to figures from SEMI, the global trade association for electronics manufacturers and the design supply chain. The industry association showcased its Mid-Year Total Semiconductor Equipment Forecast – OEM Perspective at SEMICON West 2022 Hybrid. The research is based on information provided by major market players, the SEMI Worldwide Semiconductor Equipment Market Statistics (WWSEMS) data collection program and the SEMI World Fab Forecast database.

Growth for both front-end and back-end production systems

Both front-end and back-end manufacturing equipment sales are expected to grow. Front-end production here refers to the production of wafers. Back-end manufacturing refers to the manufacturing processes that take place once all the circuits on the wafer have been created.

The wafer manufacturing segment, which includes wafer processing, manufacturing facilities and mask/reticle equipment, is expected to grow by 15.4%. SEMI expects the segment with a revenue of $101 billion in 2022 to set a new record. Segment revenue is expected to increase by 3.2% to $104.3 billion in 2023.

“In line with the semiconductor industry’s determined commitment to increase and upgrade capacity, the wafer manufacturing equipment segment is poised to reach the $100 billion milestone for the first time by 2022,” said Ajit Manocha, president and CEO. of SEMI, please. “Secular trends in a wide range of markets coupled with strong investments in digital infrastructure set up another record year.”

Foundry and logic segments are growing fast

SEMI sees a high demand for both advanced and mature process nodes. As a result, the foundry and logic segments of the market are expected to grow 20.6% year-over-year to $55.2 billion by 2022. SEMI expects the market to continue to grow in 2023, with global revenue of $59.5 billion. realizes. This equates to an increase of 7.9%. Together, the two segments account for more than half of total wafer production equipment sales.

The trade association also points to a strong demand for memory and storage. This is expected to drive higher spending on DRAM and NAND equipment in 2022. The DRAM segment is expected to grow by 8% to reach $17.1 billion in revenue. The NAND equipment market is expected to grow 6.8% to $21.1 billion. SEMI also expects growth in 2023, although it is significantly lower than in 2022. For example, investment in production equipment for DRAM is expected to grow by 7.7% in 2023. Expenditure on NAND equipment increases by 2.4%, the industry association predicts .

Demand for assembly and packaging equipment is declining

The assembly and packaging equipment segment grew by no less than 86.5% in 2021. Growth will slow down in the coming years, SEMI predicts. For example, turnover is expected to increase by 8.2% to $7.8 billion in 2022. A contraction of 0.5% to $7.7 billion is forecast for 2023.

The market for semiconductor test equipment is also expected to grow. SEMI forecasts growth of 12.1% to $8.8 billion in 2022, followed by 0.4% growth in 2023. The organization attributes this mainly to the strong demand for high-performance computing (HPC) applications.

Taiwan is the most important sales market

In terms of geographic markets, Taiwan, China and Korea are the largest markets for chip production systems, the organization predicts. Taiwan will regain its leading position in both 2022 and 2023, SEMI predicts. China and Korea follow. However, investments in other regions worldwide are also expected to increase in both years.