Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (Ultra Clean) has signed a global supplier agreement with FEI Company (FEI) to offer hosted manufacturing services in the FEI Hillsboro, Oregon facility. This includes mechanical and electrical test of various different modules and final integration; ensuring a high quality standards for the end customer.
It is also expected that the Ultra Clean’s Asia operations will be used to produce some FEI sub-assemblies. Both the companies are targeting the first quarter of 2009 for the transfer of current product lines to the company’s technology operations.
This agreement is an important part of the restructuring program we announced last spring, said Brian Pierson, senior vice president, worldwide operations, for FEI. Our overall goals include material cost reduction, more effective use of our fixed assets, increased flexibility and currency balance. Working with high-quality partners such as Ultra Clean will help us reach those goals, while FEI focuses its energy on further technology leadership in growing life sciences, research and electronics markets.
We are very excited to be working with FEI Company as their new outsourcing partner, said Clarence Granger, Ultra Clean’s chairman and chief executive officer. This is an excellent opportunity to utilize our capabilities to extend into new markets.
David Savage, Ultra Clean’s president and chief operating officer added At Ultra Clean, we use our core skills to produce high quality, complex, electromechanical assemblies at a cost that rivals offshore manufacturers. FEI highly values finding a U.S. outsource partner that could meet their cost targets while providing close, local coordination and business efficiencies.