Almatec News & Updates

ALMATEC Air-Operated Double-Diaphragm pumps have established themselves as a purpose-built solution for semiconductor applications. Unlike conventional pump technologies that often require trade-offs between safety, purity and durability, ALMATEC pumps are engineered to address all three dimensions simultaneously.

The semiconductor industry is experiencing rapid growth driven by advanced electronics, 5G, AI and IoT. As production volumes rise and chip geometries shrink, fabs face unprecedented demands for purity, safety and uptime. To meet these requirements, auxiliary equipment such as pumps must combine contamination-free operation with explosion protection and exceptional reliability.

The supply, circulation and filtration of high-purity chemicals, many of which can be toxic or hazardous, the transfer of abrasive slurries and solvents, and the removal and neutralization or reconditioning of wastewater are common applications during the production of semiconductors. Because of their critical nature, the demands that are placed on the pumps that are used to facilitate these liquid-transfer operations are high.

The roots of eMAXX GmbH can be traced back to the 1990s when a group of people who were working in the German semiconductor industry struck up a friendship. The ultimate outcome of that friendship reached fruition in 2017 when they pooled their resources together to found their own consulting, engineering, design and programming company for the industry.

Befitting their status as essential components in most of the electrical circuits that are produced globally, the manufacture of semiconductors, also known as integrate circuits (ICs), is one of the most important and critical industrial applications in the world. In fact, global semiconductor industry revenue has nearly tripled since 2001, growing from US$149 billion (€155 billion) then to US$439 billion (€457 billion) in 2020, with a peak of US$469 billion (€489 billion) in 2018.

As renewable energies continue to grow more important in the global economy, the solar and photovoltaic industry face increasing demand. However, even before there was a focus on more sustainable energy sources, semiconductor and solar operations held exacting standards for industry pumping applications. Luckily for those involved, Almatec® has developed its air-operated double-diaphragm (AODD) pumps to meet this growing global demand and the stringent handling requirements in semiconductor/solar applications, offering advanced engineered solutions operators can trust. In fact, Almatec has manufactured a range of specialty pumps for supplying and circulating chemicals in the semiconductor industry since 1984.

Some OEMs are listening to customer demands for less expensive products.