Taiwan Earthquake Impacts Semiconductor Manufacturing Supply Chain: Places Japan on Notice

A 7.4 magnitude earthquake rocked Taiwan early Wednesday April 3. Taiwanese Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) temporarily evacuated some of its manufacturing capacity, reports CNN. The earthquake was the strongest in 25 years.

Taiwan is home to many companies serving a mature semiconductor manufacturing industry. See graphic above. The earthquake raises some concerns about disruptions to the global, semiconductor supply chain.

Recent events could lead to cuts in greenfield investments in semiconductor industry which could lead to revised forecasts for companies producing semiconductor wafer fab equipment, assembly equipment, testing equipment (SoC and memory).

Japan impact

The earthquake in Taiwan triggered tsunami warnings in Japan, also home to a robust semiconductor industry. Some Japanese wafer fab equipment firms include Hitaching High-Tech, NuFlare Technology and, Tokyo Electron Limited - a leading global company in semiconductor and display production equipment.

Semiconductor assembly and test equipment companies in Japan include precision processing and equipment toolmaker DISCO, Tokyo Seimitsu, Micronics Japan, to name a few.

Some readers will recall the 2011 earthquake in Japan, resulting in ways Japanese companies changed how they sourced 30,000 parts from the supply chain to produce one automobile.