Winbond Electronics is scheduled to ramp production of specialty DRAM (SDRAM) memory using 46nm process technology in the fourth quarter of 2011, company president Tung-Yi Chan said during a recent investors meeting.
When asked whether Winbond would return to the commodity DRAM market, Chan said the company has no intention to do so. Winbond also currently has no plans to license its in-house developed 46nm process technology, Chan added.
Winbond signed a product transfer and technology licensing agreement with Qimonda in the third quarter of 2009, Chan noted. Since then, Winbond has been developing its own DRAM technology, Chan said. The company has achieved a satisfactory manufacturing yield on the newer 46nm process, Chan added.
Winbond in recent years transformed itself from a PC DRAM manufacturer to a niche-market DRAM and NOR flash supplier. Its SDRAM products are targeted at consumer electronics applications such as LCD TVs and set-top boxes, and in addition to SDRAM, the company also manufactures mobile RAM used mainly in feature phones.
Sales of Winbond's SDRAM products accounted for 42% of company revenues in the second quarter of 2011, followed by NOR flash with 34%. Sales of its mobile RAM chips saw a 10% decrease sequentially in the second quarter due to a slowdown in China's handset market.
Chan revealed that Winbond is gearing up to enhance its SDRAM portfolio, extend its market reach beyond consumer electronics. Products will also be applied to automotive and industrial applications, Chan added.
In addition, Chan said Winbond will outsource, if capacity fails to meet demand. The company currently has a monthly capacity of 36,000 12-inch wafers – 20,000 units for SDRAM, 14,000 for flash and the remainder for mobile RAM.