PETALING JAYA: Stratus Global Holdings Bhd is stepping up investments in its cleanroom automated material handling system (AMHS) technologies to keep pace with the semiconductor industry’s evolving needs, with innovation remaining a key priority.
Over the past 28 years, the group has developed a comprehensive suite of solutions, including conveyor-based AMHS, Hybrid AMHS, automated storage and retrieval system and its proprietary transport control software to deliver customised automation solutions for different semiconductor manufacturing environments.
Executive director and CEO Ryo Narisawa said the group undertakes the entire project lifecycle in-house, from design, fabrication and assembly through to installation, integration and commissioning.
He said this enables the group to maintain high quality standards, respond quickly to customers’ evolving requirements and deliver solutions tailored to their specific operational needs.
“Equally important is our long-standing track record with multinational semiconductor customers.
“Having successfully delivered projects of increasing scale and complexity across Asia, Europe and North America, we have built strong customer confidence, deep engineering expertise and proven execution capabilities.
“We believe these strengths position us well to support the next generation of semiconductor automation and create long-term value for our customers,“ Narisawa told SunBiz.
He said Stratus Global’s customer base includes multinational semiconductor manufacturers across Asia, Europe and North America.
When asked how the group builds and maintains these long-term customer relationships, Narisawa said it takes more than technical capabilities.
He said customers in the semiconductor industry place significant emphasis on reliability, responsiveness, and the ability to consistently deliver mission-critical automation solutions.
“Over the past 28 years, we have earned our customers’ trust by consistently delivering reliable, customised AMHS solutions that meet their operational requirements.
“We work closely with our customers throughout the project lifecycle from solution design and engineering through to installation, commissioning and after-sales support, allowing us to better understand their evolving needs and provide value-added solutions.
“We also place strong emphasis on continuous innovation and long-term partnerships.
“By continually enhancing our technologies and engineering capabilities while maintaining a high level of service and responsiveness, we have been able to secure repeat business, deepen relationships with existing customers and expand our presence across multinational semiconductor manufacturers in Asia, Europe and North America,“ Narisawa said.
Touching on the group’s listing, he said the company’s debut on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia in July marked a significant milestone in Stratus Global’s 28-year journey.
“It reflects the progress we have made in establishing ourselves as a trusted provider of cleanroom AMHS solutions for the global semiconductor industry.
“More importantly, our Main Market listing provides us with the financial resources to execute our business expansion plans.
“The proceeds from the listing will support the expansion of our manufacturing capacity, strengthen our engineering and research and development capabilities, and establish overseas sales and engineering offices to better serve our existing customers while expanding our presence in key semiconductor markets,“ Narisawa said.
“These initiatives will enhance our ability to undertake larger and more complex projects, support our customers’ growing requirements and strengthen our position for long-term sustainable growth.”
Narisawa said the group is using about 65.8% of the RM285 million IPO proceeds for business expansion, including developing a new manufacturing facility in Bayan Lepas, Penang, expanding overseas operations, and strengthening its research and development capabilities.
A further 28.9% will be allocated for working capital, with the balance used to defray listing expenses.
Narisawa said, “Among these initiatives, we believe the new manufacturing facility will be particularly significant. By substantially expanding our production floor space and manufacturing capacity, it will provide the operational scale needed to support larger, more complex and higher-value AMHS projects while improving workflow efficiency.
“Together with our overseas expansion and continued investment in R&D, these initiatives will strengthen our customer support capabilities, broaden our market reach and enhance our ability to capture future growth opportunities across the global semiconductor industry.”
Looking ahead, Narisawa said Stratus Global expects the back-end segment to deliver the highest percentage growth over the next three to five years.
However, in absolute revenue terms, the strongest growth is expected to come from legacy 200mm fab automation across the US, Southeast Asia, Europe and Japan.
“We see significant growth opportunities as semiconductor manufacturers continue to invest in automation to improve productivity and manufacturing efficiency. In particular, we are encouraged by the growing market recognition and adoption of our proprietary Hybrid AMHS solution,“ Narisawa said.
Hybrid AMHS is well suited for 200mm brownfield semiconductor facilities, where manufacturers are upgrading and modernising existing fabs without extensive modifications to their production layouts, he added.
“As adoption of this technology continues to increase, we expect to further strengthen our footprint in this segment.
“At the same time, we see opportunities to expand our reach into 300mm semiconductor facilities, deepen our relationships with second-tier semiconductor manufacturers and broaden our presence in the semiconductor back-end segment.
“Supported by our expanding solution portfolio, in-house engineering capabilities and long-standing customer relationships, we believe these initiatives will position Stratus Global for sustainable long-term growth,“ Narisawa said.