[News] SK hynix Reportedly Places HBM4 TC Bonder Order With ASMPT Amid Hanmi–Hanwha Patent Clash

As SK hynix pushes ahead with HBM4 production, attention is turning to TC bonder suppliers. According to The Elec, citing sources, SK hynix has placed a new order for thermal compression (TC) bonders with Singapore-based ASMPT to support HBM4 manufacturing. The order reportedly comes amid an ongoing patent dispute between SK hynix’s other South Korean TC bonder suppliers, Hanmi Semiconductor and Hanwha Semitech.

Regarding the order size, the report says, citing sources, that SK hynix placed an order last month with ASMPT for seven TC bonder systems, each equipped with two bonding heads. With each unit priced at about 4 billion won, the total contract value is estimated at roughly 30 billion won.

The report says SK hynix is likely to place an order for roughly 100 TC bonder units in March next year for HBM4 production, as it moves to expand 1b DRAM capacity at its M15X facility in Cheongju. How those orders will be split among ASMPT, Hanmi Semiconductor, and Hanwha Semitech remains to be seen.

Currently, SK hynix is using about fifty sets of TC bonders for HBM4 production, with roughly half supplied by ASMPT, according to the report, citing sources. Hanwha Semitech’s bonders are not currently in use, the report adds.

ASMPT has already secured a separate order in October last year for dozens of TC bonder systems for HBM3E 12-high production, which SK hynix says helped enable the successful mass production of HBM3E, as the report indicates.

Patent Battles Complicate the TC Bonder Landscape

As the report explains, some sources believe ASMPT secured the recent order partly due to the ongoing dispute between rivals Hanmi Semiconductor and Hanwha Semitech, while others say the order had been expected earlier this year but was only finalized recently. In April, Hanmi recalled around 60 engineers dispatched to SK hynix as support staff—a move widely viewed as a protest against the chipmaker’s decision to source equipment from Hanwha.

The report notes that Hanmi Semiconductor filed a patent lawsuit against Hanwha Semitech in December last year. Hanwha responded in May by seeking to invalidate the patents and filed a countersuit for patent infringement two months ago.

Hanmi had been SK hynix’s exclusive TC bonder supplier for HBM production until last year, when ASMPT joined the supply chain toward year-end. Hanwha Semitech entered earlier this year, the report adds.

Meanwhile, according to The Korea Herald, Hanwha has recently established a strategic unit to explore mergers and acquisitions for businesses under Vice Chairman Kim, raising the prospect of M&A in collaborative robotics and semiconductor equipment. Hanwha Semitec competes with Hanmi Semiconductor for leadership in TC bonders, and analysts suggest M&A may be needed to support growth, the report notes.

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(Photo credit: ASMPT’s LinkedIn)