Fujitsu suspended production at a semiconductor manufacturing plant in Iwate prefecture soon after a fairly large earthquake jolted northeastern Japan Monday.Fujitsu said it could take four to five weeks to restart production at the Iwate plant.

Chip-packaging giant Amkor Technology Inc. Tuesday said the earthquake caused minor damage at its factory in Iwate--an event that impacts Japan's Toshiba.Amkor reported no injuries associated with the earthquake. Amkor expects the factory, which is a joint venture with Toshiba Semiconductor Corp., to be closed for 1 or 2 days pending repairs.

However, as a result of suspended production at Toshiba's Iwate wafer fabrication complex, Amkor's Iwate factory will experience an interruption of wafer supply from Toshiba.

The full extent of this interruption is not presently known but is expected to be approximately two weeks. Amkor anticipates that these events will result in a reduction of revenue at Amkor's Iwate factory of approximately $5 million to $10 million for the second quarter. Amkor said that the earthquake did not have any severe impact on its materials suppliers.

At Fujitsu, the company said there was some damage to the Iwate factory. “No fire occurred, [but there were] some cracks observed on hallways and walls,” according to Fujitsu.

“Iwate factory suspended the lines and it is now checking their damage level and possibility of restoration,” the company said, noting that there is a 70 percent chance of an earthquake equivalent to a “M5 or above” taking place Thursday.

“So, we are taking a full caution on all of our employees as a first prioirty in order to restore the facility,” the company said. “We presume from the present situation that it may take about four to five weeks to restart production, but of course, we will make every effort to accelerate its recovery.”

By: DocMemory
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