Embedded Processor Watch

Senior Editor: Tom Halfhill

Contributor to this issue: Keith Diefendorff, Senior Analyst

In This Issue:

• Motorola Buys Hyundai Fab
• New Web Portal Targets IC Designers
• Palmchip Ships IDE Controller Core
• Embedded Processor Forum: June 12-16
• Cahners MicroDesign Resources Seeks New Analysts
• Microprocessor Forum Call for Proposals

Motorola to Refit Hyundai Fab

By Keith Diefendorff

Motorola recently announced plans for a major expansion of its semiconductor manufacturing capability in Europe. The company is purchasing from Hyundai a 150-acre, one-million-square-foot manufacturing facility in Dunfermline (Scotland), adding to its existing three U.K. plants in East Kilbride, South Queensferry, and Easter Inch.

Apparently, the new facility's previous owner finished construction on the site three or four years ago but stopped short of outfitting the 100,000-square-foot clean room; it then abandoned plans to put the fab into production because of a downturn in demand. Motorola, on the other hand, is currently operating all its facilities at full tilt and needs extra capacity. In fact, the company is contemplating increasing the Dunfermline clean room to 150,000 square feet before it goes into full operation in 12 to 18 months.

Although Motorola has declined to reveal the fab's ultimate capacity, such a large facility could easily pump out more than 5,000 wafers per week, adding significantly to Motorola's worldwide fab capacity. The purchase of this new facility seems to run counter to Motorola's stated plans of outsourcing more of its embedded-processor manufacturing.

Motorola hasn't made a final decision on which semiconductor process to install first at Dunfermline, saying only that it will be a deep-submicron process based on 200mm (8-inch) wafers. We believe the decision is between the company's 0.18-micon copper HIP6 process -- which Motorola is currently using to produce PowerPC G4s, and which process-development partner AMD is now installing for Athlon at its new Fab-30 in Dresden (Germany) -- and its next-generation HIP7 process. Once the Dunfermline fab is fully equipped, Motorola expects its total outlay to approach $2 billion.

New Web Portal Targets IC Designers

SiliconX, a startup based in San Jose, plans to launch a new Web portal for chip designers in June. The business-to-business portal will link to other Web sites so designers can quickly find and choose IC-related resources, such as design services, libraries of intellectual property (IP), development tools, fabrication services, packaging, and test services. The site will also be a sales and marketing channel for providers of those services. For more information: http://www.siliconx.com. --T.R.H.

Palmchip Ships IDE Controller Core

Palmchip has introduced the BK-3709, an IDE host-controller core designed for integration with microcontroller cores. The BK-3709 is a complete IDE subsystem with all of the logic required to build an interface between a system CPU and an IDE- or ATAPI-compatible disk drive. It includes programmed I/O, multiword DMA, and Ultra ATA interface logic, and it supports up to four drives. Palmchip is delivering the core as Verilog source code with documentation, synthesis scripts, and a test bench. For more information: http://www.palmchip.com. --T.R.H.

Embedded Processor Forum: June 12-16

It's time to register for the Embedded Processor Forum, to be held June 12-16 at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose. Vendors will introduce more than 20 new embedded processors, and analysts will present six full-day technical seminars. Embedded Processor Forum will give you the in-depth technical information you need to make winning embedded-design decisions. Due to high demand, registration is filling up quickly. Detailed information about the presentations at the forum is now available on the Cahners MicroDesign Resources web site at http://www.MDRonline.com/EPF. You can also call 800.527.0288 or 408.328.3900 for more information or to receive a brochure.

Cahners MicroDesign Resources Seeks New Analysts

Cahners MicroDesign Resources, the publisher of this newsletter as well as Microprocessor Watch and Microprocessor Report, and the organizer of Microprocessor Forum and Embedded Processor Forum, is seeking new analysts to join its team. Positions focused on either embedded processors or PC processors are available. Our analysts are highly visible thought leaders in the microprocessor industry and frequently meet with top architects and executives. Candidates must have at least five years of relevant design, marketing, or analysis experience as well as excellent communication skills. For more information, contact Keith Diefendorff (mailto:kdiefendorff@mdr.cahners.com).

Microprocessor Forum Call for Proposals

Cahners MicroDesign Resources is accepting presentation proposals for its thirteenth annual Microprocessor Forum, October 9-13, 2000, at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose, California.

We will consider proposals from companies making announcements of new high-performance microprocessor technology. Presentations must include significant technical detail and include new information not previously disclosed. Microprocessors disclosed in detail for the first time will be given preference. Areas of interest include processors for PCs, processors for workstations and servers, embedded processors, DSPs, and programmable multimedia processors.

Your abstract must be submitted electronically to: mailto:mpfprogram@mdronline.com

Deadline for proposals is June 1, 2000.

All presentation proposals will be kept confidential. Proposals may be preceded or accompanied by appropriate non-disclosure agreements. For more information, go to http://www.mdronline.com/mpf/call.html.