Optimization and economic analysis for tool portfolio planning in semiconductor manufacturing - Semiconductor Manufacturing Symposium, 2001 IEEE International

The tool portfolio of a plant refers to the makeup, in quantity and type, of processing machines in the plant. Portfolio planning is a multi-criteria decisiontnaking task involving trade-offs among investment cost, throughput, cycle time and risk. In this paper, an economic decision model is first presented for optimal configuration of portfolio and to determine optimal factory loading. I f plants are closely located or have a twin-fab design, portfolio planning at multiple plants can be integrated to enhance the overall effectiveness of portfolios. A novel methodology for arbitrating capacity backup between multiple plants is described in the second part. Finally, robust configuration of portfolio in a dynamic demand environment is addressed. Industry data have been utilized to run through the developed methodologies.