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UMC takes 100 per cent ownership of Fujitsu’s semiconductor business unit

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United Microelectronics Corporation has agreed to acquire all of the shares of Mie Fujitsu Semiconductor, a 300mm wafer foundry joint venture between both companies.

United Microelectronics Corporation is said to be the first semiconductor company established in Taiwan back in 1980.

In addition to the 15.9 per cent of MIFS shares currently owned by UMC, Fujitsu Semiconductor will transfer the remaining 84.1 per cent of its shares in MIFS to UMC, making MIFS a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Taiwan-based foundry.  [Read more…] about UMC takes 100 per cent ownership of Fujitsu’s semiconductor business unit

Country Insight: Taiwan gets smart about manufacturing

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Taiwan is a relatively large island nation a couple of hundred kilometres off the coast of China. 

It has a population of less than 25 million and its economy is one of the largest in Asia, and many people around the world associate Taiwan with advanced electronics manufacturing.

Some of the largest and most well-known Taiwanese companies include:

  • Hon Hai Precision, better known as Foxconn, the contract manufacturer which makes iPhones and iPads for Apple;
  • Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, another Apple partner which makes chips;
  • Quanta Computer, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of notebook computers;
  • Acer, another computer and computer peripherals manufacturer;
  • HTC, the communications technology giant which recently sold its smartphone-making division to Google; and
  • Delta Electronics, which specialises in industrial and infrastructure technologies.

Just around 50 years ago, the agriculture sector accounted for around half of Taiwan’s economy.  [Read more…] about Country Insight: Taiwan gets smart about manufacturing

Fujitsu partners with FamilyMart to trial robotic grocery store

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Fujitsu and FamilyMart have started a field trial to introduce digital technologies including robots and blockchain at a FamilyMart shop in Taiwan.

Fujitsu Limited and Fujitsu Taiwan will deliver a customer experience that includes store guidance using the communication robot, Robopin, a content delivery service, FlowSign Light, which utilizes visible light communications, and the video communication solution FlowSign Video.

A “stamp rally” promotion will also be conducted that makes use of blockchain technology.

[Read more…] about Fujitsu partners with FamilyMart to trial robotic grocery store

Taiwan launches its first satellite into space

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Taiwan has launched its first domestically designed satellite into space. The satellite will be used for Earth observation. 

The Danish National Space Institute supplied equipment for the satellite and DTU Space representative Professor John Leif Jørgensen says this enables it to have “a very high degree of precision and flexibility for satellite navigation”.

The satellite itself is named FormoSat-5 and is approximately 500 kg in weight.  [Read more…] about Taiwan launches its first satellite into space

Taiwan to develop ‘affordable’ industrial robots for factories and warehouses

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The Industrial Technology Research Institution of Taiwan says it is working with local manufacturers to develop what it says will be more “affordable” robots for factories and warehouses – in other words, collaborative robots.

This is according to a report in the Taipei Times.

Patrick Yu, acting division director of ITRI’s mechanical and mechatronics systems research labs, is quoted on the website as saying: “Traditional industrial robots are suitable for large-scale production lines. They need a lot of space and cost a lot of money, which small and medium-sized enterprises cannot afford.”

Traditional robots – the large industrial machines which tend to be caged off and require separate computers to run them, called programmable logic controllers – are said to be too big and expensive for a lot of smaller companies, says ITRI.  [Read more…] about Taiwan to develop ‘affordable’ industrial robots for factories and warehouses

Taiwan to showcase new Industry 4.0 projects at IMTS 2016

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chicago
Chicago, USA. Picture credit: Pixabay.com

Leaders of Taiwan’s machine tool industry will unveil a series of smart manufacturing initiatives for applications ranging from aircraft part machining to automotive component production at a press conference at the 2016 International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) at Chicago’s McCormick Place.

More than 110 Taiwanese companies will also be exhibiting at the show from September 12-17, including 19 in the Taiwan Pavilion, reflecting the country’s status as the world’s fifth largest exporter of machine tools and components.

The presentation, New Initiatives in the Taiwan Machine Tool Industry, will take plat at
1.30 to 3pm local time, Wednesday, September 14, at the South Building, Level 4, Conference Room S402-A.  [Read more…] about Taiwan to showcase new Industry 4.0 projects at IMTS 2016