Takeda Riken Enters US ATE Market

Takeda Riken last week confirmed plans to come into the US ATE (automatic test equipment) market and said it will introduce a 5O-MHz logic test system late next year. The move follows persistent reports of a pending Japanese presence in the lucrative American ATE market, and pits Takeda. a wholly-owned Fujitsu subsidiary, against Fairchild. Teradyne. Tektronix. GenRad, and other major U.S. suppliers.

According to Takeda, which reportedly did over $75 million in sales last year, it will offer a version of its 3300 series of testers developed several years ago for Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp. Takeda said that only three of the high-speed test systems are in operation, with two systems installed in Japan and one in the U S at an unnamed Japanese semiconductor maker. While it did not name the U.S, user, sources last week identified it as Fujitsu of America in San Diego, a branch of Takcda's parent firm engaged in memory device production...