Fabless Semiconductor Association Releases 2003 Management Information Systems Survey Results Report; Report Features Significant Changes from 2002 Edition.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 26, 2003

The Fabless Semiconductor Association (FSA), a premier semiconductor trade association, today announced the release of its annual Management Information Systems (MIS) Survey Results Report.

The FSA's MIS Survey Results Report is an extensive report highlighting industry trends in the use of MIS systems by fabless companies. It provides an in-depth overview of the implementation and spending on specific technologies, including manufacturing execution systems (MES); enterprise resource planning (ERP); accounting systems; advanced planning/scheduling (APS); supply-chain management (SCM); and yield and engineering systems.

Among the highlights of the findings of the four major operating system environments (Linux, Solaris, Unix, WinNT) the distribution of use is relatively even, slightly weighted toward WinNT, driven primarily by companies with revenues less than $5 million. A majority of respondents (92 percent) spent less than six percent of revenue on IT, 30 percent use some form of eCommerce, and almost half have at least one supplier who supplies data "automatically" (i.e. automated data entry).

The FSA's Business Management Systems (BMS) committee significantly expanded the scope of the survey questions from previous years and has generated a series of summaries to view data trends. The data was tabulated against respondents' company revenue and headcount to provide a reference for company size.

For more information about the survey findings or the report, visit www.fsa.org.

About the BMS Committee:

The BMS Committee strives to raise awareness of how management systems can increase the effectiveness of fabless companies. The committee responsibilities include oversight and direction of the FSA MIS Survey and tracking RosettaNet activities as they apply to fabless initiatives. The committee also hosts a series of forums which allow participants to gain a broad overview of available system solutions that increase the effectiveness of fabless companies.

About the Fabless Semiconductor Association:

In 1994, industry leaders incorporated the FSA (www.fsa.org) on the premise that the fabless business model would be a viable, long-term business model. Today the viability of outsourcing as a sustainable business model for the industry has been proven. The organization encourages the relationship between semiconductor companies and suppliers; facilitates business partnerships; creates awareness of the fabless/outsourced business model; disseminates industry data; and fosters standards and policies.

FSA members represent fabless companies, integrated device manufacturers, foundry providers, packaging/assembly houses, electronic design automation companies, investment bankers, venture capitalists, intellectual property providers and other companies.

The FSA's vision is that by 2010 half of all integrated circuit revenue will come from fabless/outsourced operations.