SECS/GEM interface FabLink® in the backend of the semiconductor industry

Challenge

• Expertise in SEMI-specific requirements analysis
• Interpretation of SEMI standards for back-end equipment
• Fast time-to-market with limited resources

Solution

• Configuration of FabLink® for SECS/GEM integration
• Training and workshops on SEMI standards
• Short-notice programming support

Result

• Know-how transfer for follow-up projects
• Worldwide market access to the semiconductor industry
• Successful, on-time commissioning

SYSTRONIC Produktionstechnologie GmbH & Co. KG has been a manufacturer of system technology for stencil cleaning, screen cleaning, solder frame and condensate trap cleaning as well as the appropriate cleaning media for over 25 years.

The use of a cleaning system from SYSTRONIC Produktionstechnologie GmbH & Co.KG in a semiconductor factory required a SECS/GEM interface for connection to the production control system (MES). With FabLink®, Kontron AIS GmbH supplied an established product for system integration with more than 14,000 references. They supported the customer with experienced experts, integrated the SECS/GEM interface component and enabled the customer to successfully implement follow-up projects with SECS/GEM connections themselves.

Comprehensive service package with consulting and know-how transfer from Kontron AIS

Before operators of a semiconductor factory decide on a supplier from the mechanical and plant engineering sector, a detailed and extensive requirements analysis is carried out with a specification sheet of around 100 pages and over 300 requirements. Kontron AIS supported SYSTRONIC along this path, assisted in processing the specification sheet, and clarified relevant details with the semiconductor manufacturing operator.

During the specification phase, we work out exactly how the system is to function and which processes areto be implemented. The SEMI standards relevant to the semiconductor industry are detailed for the frontend area. Their application in the backend area is currently still in the “exploratory phase.” A technically accurateinterpretation is therefore necessary here. One project objective was to enable the plant manufacturer to configure SECS/GEM follow-up projects independently after the first connection.

The SYSTRONIC team was trained by Kontron AIS on SEMI standards and familiarized with the configuration of FabLink® and the FabLink®Designer. In a joint workshop, all data points, the material flow and the status models of the customer systems were defined on a project-specific basis. Kontron AIS supplied the GEM manual so that the end customer could integrate the cleaning system into the production control systems of theMES. In addition, Kontron AIS also provided the support required at short notice for programming the Siemens PLC. In the course of commissioning at SYSTRONIC, processes and scenarios were checked with a separate test system from the end customer’s perspective. This significantly shortens commissioning at the end customer’s factory.

Growing demand for SEMI conformity in the backend

SEMI-compliant interfaces for system integration are meeting growing demand in the back-end area of semiconductor production. More and more factory operators are demanding a GEM300 connection to their host system in order to benefit from the increased efficiency in an end-to-end automated semiconductor factory and to increase transparency and traceability by making production and plant data user-friendly and quickly accessible via the host system.

In addition, from the end of 2023, the EU Data Act will require installations to provide collected data that can also be used by third-party systems. Although this can also be done via a USB interface, the direct and SEMI-compliant connection to the host offers clear added value for the customer, allowing processes to be monitored live and the data to be used effectively for quality assurance and predictive maintenance.

Text taken from the original and translated – Kontron AIS