Rebecca Tang became Mosel Vitelic's general manager towards the end of last year. DigiTimes recently had the opportunity to talk to her about the company's changes and plans.
Q: In the past, your work was mostly related to wafer manufacturing and R&D. But now your role has changed. How do you feel about being general manager of Mosel?
A: Since I returned from the US, most of the jobs I've done have been related to wafer manufacturing and R&D. The first job I had when I joined Mosel, in 1995, was to take charge of the second-phase construction of Mosel's 6-inch fab. At the time, Mosel's deputy general manager, Chen Min-liang (now company chairman), told me he wanted me to come back to Taiwan to help finish construction on the fab. Later Chen and I went to work at ProMOS Technologies, which was then going through its most difficult time.
At the time Infineon was transferring its 0.11-micron technology to ProMOS. But for some reason, Infineon terminated the half-completed technology transfer. People at ProMOS became very nervous, and my job was to keep ProMOS running without Infineon's technology, while at the same time developing our own memory products. These were also very difficult times for me personally.
During my stay at ProMOS, I was also involved in the company's 8-inch foundry operations. This was hugely different from my initial experience in my work related to DRAM production, in large quantities, at 12-inch facilities. Foundry work comes in small quantities and big varieties, while DRAM is exactly the opposite. DRAM comes in small varieties and large quantities. As a result, I've learned two different businesses. This is rather helpful now that I'm back at Mosel as general manager. After all, Mosel is now a member of the foundry sector, and I had already established quite a firm background when I was in charge of technical support for the 8-inch fab.
Q: Can you talk about Mosel's directions for future development?
A: The most important thing, in the first-phase development, is to maintain stable operations at Mosel's 6-inch fab. Then there's Mosel's two major new businesses, the solar cell and RFID businesses. As the 6-inch fab will no longer be suitable for foundry services, the two new businesses have to take off at a fast enough rate to make up for drops in revenues and profits stemming from 6-inch foundry services. Mosel wants to shed its image as a "holding company," and we have to let others understand that Mosel is a company with a long-term plan, and that it is now heading in a firm direction.
Q: Mosel recently sold off some of its stakes in AATI (Advanced Analogic Technologies Inc) and ChipMOS. Will Mosel continue to sell off its investments in other affiliates?
A: Mosel sold off ATTI and ChipMOS shares chiefly because it wanted to raise operating funds. I mentioned that Mosel is gearing up development of its solar cell and RFID businesses, and that requires operating funds. Another key reason for selling shares in these companies is that their operations are less related to Mosel's own business. It is still possible that Mosel will sell more of the two companies' shares.
Q: Will Mosel sell its stake in ProMOS?
A: ProMOS is an important investment for Mosel, and Mosel will not make such a move because ProMOS is related to Mosel's future operations. Mosel wants to maintain its ties with ProMOS by retaining a stake in the company.
As ProMOS will be building more 12-inch fabs, the scrap wafers from ProMOS will, in the future, be good materials for Mosel's solar cell products.
As for the recent purchases of ProMOS shares by UMC (United Microelectronics Corporation), although others believe UMC's stake in ProMOS will affect ProMOS's operations, my opinion is the same as chairman Chen Min-liang's, that UMC has been buying ProMOS shares purely as investments. It is not what others are speculating. Everyone loves good investments, and I think ProMOS offers a good investment opportunity. It should not come as a surprise that UMC has chosen to invest in ProMOS.
Q: What do you think of ProMOS's entering the NAND-flash market?
A: I have to stress that I'm no longer a part of the ProMOS management team, and I'm not in a position to answer questions concerning ProMOS. But I want to point out that whether it's next-generation DRAM technology, or the NAND-flash technology that ProMOS is developing, the most important thing is that a player must have its own technology. They cannot rely on licensing from the big international companies because this will hamper their future development.
Q: Mosel has decided to enter the solar-cell sector. But judging from the current solar-power industry, worldwide, the most worrying question is a shortage of materials. How is Mosel going to tackle this?
A: In fact, Mosel did a thorough market evaluation before deciding to enter the solar cell sector. This of course included the supply of materials. Mosel's first-stage goal for solar cell production is 30MWp. To achieve this goal, according to present estimates, we will need 700,000 wafers per month. Currently, Mosel is confident it can obtain a monthly supply from ProMOS, but not enough to meet all of our needs. That's the reason I've recently traveled abroad a lot. I'm looking for sources of silicon wafers.
In the solar-cell industry, materials account for 60-70% of production cost. Materials are crucial in determining one's success or failure in the solar energy market, so my most important work, at present, is securing quality wafer materials in stable and sufficient quantities. I will go to Russia next. There are a lot of good materials there.
Q: You've taken Mosel's general manager post for almost three quarters. What's the biggest problem you've encountered?
A: In fact, so far I haven't come across too many problems because I used to work here at Mosel. Although I later went to ProMOS, my first position in Taiwan was with Mosel, so I know Mosel's senior staff very well. But at the beginning, I had to deal with many things I was not familiar with, such as finances and personnel management, so I still had to rely on some department heads to help me understand the process. I often had to work overtime.
In the past, morale at Mosel was rather low because employees didn't know where the company was heading. They didn't know what they were working for. Now, however, we've devised a five-year plan for the company's first-stage revamp, at least letting employees understand Mosel's future directions. We're also letting employees make their own choices - whether they want to do solar cell or RFID production. They will do best, if they are allowed to choose what they like to do.
Mosel Vitelic general manager Rebecca Tang
Photo: Hans Wu, DigiTimes
Article translated by Rodney Chan and edited by Chris Hall
