HLnovel Chapter 413 Liang Mengsong Selects a Chip Factory
Chapter 413 Liang Mengsong Selects a Chip Factory
Hong Kong, August 5, 2002.
When Ling Yun got out of the car, Liang Mengsong was already waiting at the hotel entrance. He was wearing a light blue shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and his face showed a rare hint of excitement. He was holding a thick folder with neatly trimmed edges.
"Mr. Ling, the location has been chosen."
Ling Yun nodded, and the two entered the hotel lobby, took the elevator, and went into a small conference room. Liang Mengsong placed the folder on the table and opened it. The first page was a photograph of a factory building with white exterior walls, a blue roof, and a neatly trimmed lawn. The factory wasn't large, but it looked very new.
"This is an 8-inch wafer fab of Chartered Semiconductor in Woodlands, Singapore. It went into production in 1999, and the equipment used 0.25-micron technology, which was considered advanced at the time. Although it is now a generation behind TSMC, the foundation is very good, and the equipment is well maintained."
Liang Mengsong turned to the second page, which was a densely packed list of equipment, detailing the models, quantities, and conditions. "I personally went to see it twice and checked every single piece of equipment. The lithography machine is from Nikon, the etching machine is from Applied Materials, the thin film deposition machine is from Novartis, and the ion implantation machine is from Varian. They're all high-quality products, and in good condition."
Lingyun asked him, "Why are they selling?"
Liang Mengsong said, "It's losing money. This factory has been losing money since it started production. Chartered Semiconductor's main business is foundry services, but their customers are mainly small and medium-sized design companies, and their orders are unstable. TSMC and UMC have taken away the big customers, and they can only take what's left. Last year they lost more than 80 million US dollars, and they expect to lose money again this year. The parent company can't hold on any longer and wants to sell it to get cash."
"How much is the price?"
"The offer is $1.2 billion, including all equipment, factory buildings, land, and a portion of the technical team. If negotiations go smoothly, we can reduce it to around $1.1 billion."
Ling Yun thought for a moment. Eleven billion US dollars, which at the current exchange rate is roughly nine billion RMB. Not cheap, but not expensive either. The key point is that this isn't an empty factory; it's a complete, operational production line. It has equipment, processes, and personnel. Production can begin immediately upon taking over; there's no need to start from scratch.
"What about the tech team?" Lingyun asked.
Liang Mengsong said, "The factory currently has more than 300 engineers and technicians, of which about 50 are core technical personnel. Spectrum Semiconductor said that if we take over, we can keep the entire team; they won't take them with them. But I know that some people are already looking for other jobs, and if we don't finalize things quickly, we'll lose people."
"Can you keep them here?"
Liang Mengsong nodded. "Yes. I've worked at TSMC for fifteen years, and many of these people are my former subordinates and colleagues. They trust me. As long as the conditions are right, I can keep the core team in place."
Ling Yun said, "Then buy it. You negotiate the price. If it's under 1.1 billion, sign directly and don't ask me again. If it's over 1.1 billion, give me a call."
Liang Mengsong made a note in his notebook. He looked up at Ling Yun. "President Ling, there's one more thing. The current process technology at this factory is 0.25 micrometers, which is one generation behind TSMC. I want to upgrade it to 0.13 micrometers within three years."
Lingyun asked him, "Can you do it?"
Liang Mengsong said, "Yes, we can. We have good equipment and a good team. The improvement from 0.25 to 0.18 is mainly due to process optimization, which we are confident in. The improvement from 0.18 to 0.13 requires replacing some equipment, but the core equipment does not need to be replaced. The biggest problem is money. The R&D investment, equipment modification, and tape-out costs will be at least two hundred million US dollars a year."
Ling Yun said, "Money isn't the problem. The problem is time. Three years is too long. Can we shorten it?"
Liang Mengsong thought for a moment and said, "If we have enough money, enough people, and enough equipment, it will take two and a half years."
Ling Yun said, "Then it'll be two and a half years. You're responsible for taking over the factory, stabilizing the team, and improving the technology. I'll take care of the money."
Liang Mengsong closed the folder and stood up. "President Ling, I'll head to Singapore now to begin negotiations."
Ling Yun nodded. The two shook hands, and Liang Mengsong turned and left. He walked quickly, as if afraid of missing something if he slowed down.
As Ling Yun watched his figure disappear at the end of the corridor, he suddenly remembered what Ni Guangnan had said a few days ago: "President Ling, our generation has waited our whole lives for someone we can let go and do things."
Liang Mengsong is also from this generation. They spent most of their lives working at TSMC, UMC, and under the spotlight of those giants. Their technical skills were second to none, but they never truly controlled their own destiny. Now, their opportunity has arrived.
Ling Yun took out his phone and sent a text message to Ni Guangnan: "The Singapore wafer fab is booked. $1.1 billion, starting at 0.25 micrometers, and it will reach 0.13 micrometers in two and a half years."
A few seconds later, Ni Guangnan replied: "Okay. I'm in Shanghai, just finished talking with the people from Spreadtrum. There's progress on the baseband chip issue."
Ling Yun glanced at the message and a slight smile played on his lips. One piece of the puzzle had just been completed, and another was already on its way.