Applied Materials Enters FAB300 Software Collaboration and Licensing Agreement with Intel.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 2, 2001

Applied Materials, Inc. today announced a multi-year collaboration and licensing agreement for its FAB300(TM) MES (manufacturing execution system) software with Intel Corporation. The two companies will work together to refine and implement the FAB300 product in Intel's future 300mm wafer fabs.

This agreement will also serve to validate the capabilities of Intel-based clients and servers to run mission-critical applications in extremely complex and demanding manufacturing environments. Intel's decision was based on an extensive, multi-year evaluation of all available MES technologies.

"Intel's decision to engage with us on FAB300 is a tremendous milestone in our introduction of this software, which is the result of more than five years of continuous development, customer input, and demonstrations," said Sass Somekh, Executive Vice President of Applied Materials. "Having FAB300 as an integral part of the chipmaking process validates our years of efforts toward making it the most highly automated, functional software of its kind."

Applied Materials' FAB300 product is the first MES package designed specifically for 300mm wafer facilities and features capabilities never before found in semiconductor factory control software. FAB300 has an exceptionally flexible framework for integrating processing tools and systems for fully automated manufacturing. With FAB300, managers can observe the real-time operating status of each of the hundreds of processing systems, track the flow of individual wafers throughout the fab, and easily re-route wafers to optimize efficiency. The software also contains functionality to perform most factory decisions automatically, based on management processes. Unlike previous MES systems, FAB300 is designed to support the extension and modification of business practices; allowing their rapid, controlled modification in response to changing requirements driven by both business and technology cycles.

"This agreement and collaboration for a next-generation MES technology is important for Intel. The factory control system has a significant impact on the efficiency of our global semiconductor manufacturing operations," said Jai Hakhu, Vice President, Technology & Manufacturing Group of Intel. "FAB300, which runs exclusively on Intel Architecture (iA) platforms, also demonstrates the capability of iA-based solutions to support mission critical applications."

Applied Materials (Nasdaq:AMAT), the largest supplier of products and services to the global semiconductor industry, is one of the world's leading information infrastructure providers. Applied Materials enables Information for Everyone(TM) by helping semiconductor manufacturers produce more powerful, portable and affordable chips. Applied Materials' Web site is http://www.appliedmaterials.com.