ASE Global

ASE Milestones

2004 marks ASE’s twentieth anniversary in the semiconductor assembly and test services industry. Over the past twenty years, ASE has built a world-class company, committed to providing global customers with the most advanced technologies, innovative product solutions, and dedicated customer service. ASE’s strong drive and commitment has culminated in the company this year becoming the world’s largest provider of independent semiconductor manufacturing services in assembly and test. Consistently focused on meeting the industry’s ever growing needs for faster, smaller, and higher performance ICs, ASE looks forward to providing customers with an even broader portfolio of leading edge technologies and solutions over the next twenty years, and beyond.

During the course of 2004, ASE will commemorate its twentieth anniversary with a variety of customer events. Please register to receive regular updates regarding ASE’s twentieth anniversary celebrations, as well as product, technology, and industry updates.

To register, please visit: http://www.aseglobal.com/aseinsider/

Milestones:

1984

•	Brothers Jason Chang and Richard Chang established Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. Operations began at its first factory in Kaohsiung, Taiwan in July 1984.

1989

•	ASE Inc. began trading on the Taiwan Stock Exchange.

1990

•	Entered semiconductor test market by acquiring ASE Test Limited.

1991

•	Established packaging and testing facilities in Penang, Malaysia.

1992

•	Received ISO 9002 quality certification.

1996

•	ASE Test Limited listed on Nasdaq; the first Taiwan-based company to make a public offering in the US.
•	Incorporated ASE Material Inc. to establish in-house inter-connection materials (substrates) capabilities.

1997

•	Accredited by the Semiconductor Assembly Council.

1998

•	ASE Test Limited started trading on Taiwan Stock Exchange through the issue of TDR.
•	Awarded QS 9000 certification for quality.
•	Awarded ISO14001 certification for environment quality.
•	Established in-house flip chip assembly and test capabilities.

1999

•	Through ASE Test Limited, purchased a controlling stake in ISE Labs, the largest IC testing company in the US, a strategic acquisition that fortified ASE’s position as a leader in IC testing services.
•	Acquired Motorola’s manufacturing facilities in Chungli, Taiwan and Paju, Korea.
•	Obtained controlling interest in Universal Scientific Industrial Co., Ltd. (USI), expanding into the scope of systems assembly.

2000

•	ASE Inc. started trading in New York Stock Exchange through the issue of ADR.
•	Started volume production of flip chip packaging.

2001

•	Established ASE Chungli Intelligent Industrial Park offering comprehensive turnkey services under one roof in North Taiwan.
•	Completed development and opened facility to handle 300mm wafer bumping.

2002

•	Won the Outstanding Award from the Industrial Technology Development Award of Ministry of Economic Affairs.

2003

•	Combined subsidiaries ASE (Chung Li) Inc. and ASE Material Inc., setting an efficient and effective perform for overall resource utility.
•	In a joint venture with Compeq Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Taiwan’s largest substrate manufacturing service supplier, the company formed ASE-Compeq Technologies Inc. specialized in IC substrate to further reinforce the capability of substrate design and manufacturing.
•	Became the world’s largest IC backend manufacturing company with annual revenues surpassing the nearest competitor.

2004

•	ASE Group acquired NEC Electronics’ IC packaging and testing operation in Takahata, Japan in February. The acquisition enables ASE to enhance its presence and ramp up market share with Japanese IDM (integrated device manufacturers) customers.
•	20th Anniversary of ASE Group

2005

•	Won the Outstanding Award at the 13th Industrial Technology Development Awards hosted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs in Taiwan.

2006

•	Transferred its existing semiconductor material business department to its wholly owned subsidiary, ASE Electronics Inc., to strengthen its core competences and to further develop its material business.
•	ASE and Powerchip formed joint venture to establish PowerASE Technology Inc, focusing on packaging and test services for the memory IC market.

2007

•	ASE and NXP Semiconductors launched ASEN, a joint venture providing IC packaging and test services in Suzhou, China, and offering a variety of package types, such as low pin count QFN, LFBGA, SO, TSSO, and other common packages for mobile applications.
•	ASE Group integrated GAPT in Shanghai, China and renamed the company ASE Assembly & Test (Shanghai) Ltd.

2008

•	Acquired Aimhigh's manufacturing facility. Located in Wei Hai city, Shandong, China and specialized in lower pin count products, ASE offers significant cost advantages for discrete product manufacturing.