Shanghai [2006-03-21]
Shanghai, China, March 21, 2006 - Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation ("SMIC", NYSE: SMI and HKSE: 0981.HK), one of the leading foundries in the world, and Hangzhou Sicomm RF Technology, Inc. ("Sicomm"), a company dedicated to the design of RF system, and RF and mixed-signal chips, jointly announced today that Sicomm's SRT3500 chip, a walkie-talkie RF transmitter/receiver chip, has successfully entered commercial production at SMIC. The SRT3500 chip is manufactured by using SMIC's 0.18um RF process technology.
The SRT3500 chip combines low noise amplifier (LNA), mixer, voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), phase-locked loop (PLL), LO (local oscillator) buffer, and IF (intermediate frequency) amplifier, replacing dozens of individual discrete components in the IC design, which can greatly reduce the printed circuit board (PCB) size. The aim is to help customers to create smaller walkie-talkies. A traditional design for this product utilizes a discrete component for the VCO, thus, requiring the installation of a debugging tool on each production line for VCO testing, which can lead to reduced efficiency in the production process. The SRT3500 chip provides a solution by innovatively combining the VCO into the design, bypassing the need for the VCO test in the production process. As a result, manufacturing costs are decreased and the walkie-talkies' final product yields improve. Sicomm believes that the SRT3500 chip is the world's first single-chip RF transmitter/receiver chip for walkie-talkies based on CMOS technology.
"Leading-edge RF technologies and stringent standards are required in RF IC designs. SMIC's top-notch RF technologies and its focus on China-based customers helped Sicomm to break a difficult barrier in setting up our RF design company in China. Since Sicomm's inception, we have received full support from SMIC, and are quite impressed with the excellent service they provide. We attribute Sicomm's SRT3500 achieving successful tape-out on its first trial to SMIC's great support. The establishment of SMIC in China has provided a solid foundation for the advancement of the domestic IC design industry. Sicomm is confident to provide its customers' with better and more advanced RF products as we expand our collaboration with SMIC," commented Dr. Zhongming Shi, CEO of Sicomm.
"We are proud and honored to partner with Sicomm to jointly bring a popular product to the market. By combining SMIC's technology and manufacturing capabilities together with fabless companies' IC designs, we aim to contribute our part to the development of the IC industry in China. We hope to continue our partnership with Sicomm and further extend our mutual successes," said Dr. Joseph Xie, Vice President of Marketing & Sales at SMIC.
# # #
About SMIC
Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, ("SMIC", NYSE: SMI and HKSE: 0.981.HK), headquartered in Shanghai, China, is an international company and one of the leading semiconductor foundries in the world, providing integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing at 0.35um to 90nm and finer line technologies to customers worldwide. Established in 2000, SMIC has four 8-inch wafer fabrication facilities in volume production in Shanghai and Tianjin. In the first quarter of 2005, SMIC commenced commercial production at its 12-inch wafer fabrication facility in Beijing, the first 12-inch fab in China. SMIC also maintains customer service and marketing offices in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, and a representative office in Hong Kong. SMIC's pool of talents includes over 2,500 semiconductor industry experts and technical staff. SMIC has achieved ISO9001, ISO/TS16949, OHSAS18001, TL9000, BS7799 and ISO14001 certifications. For additional information, please visit http://www.smics.com.
About Sicomm
Hangzhou Sicomm RF Technology, Inc., with investment holdings by Softbank Asia Investment Fund and Hangzhou Silan Microelectronics and registered in the Cayman Island, specializes in the design and sales of RFIC and SoC (System on Chip integrated with RF, mixed signal and digital ASIC). The core technical team consists of top-notch engineers, who graduated from top universities in China, and obtained their doctorate degrees in Canada, Europe and US, plus many years of hands-on product design and management experience by working in companies such as Broadcom, Lucent, Nokia and Texas Instruments. Sicomm's mission is to become one of the leading wireless IC providers. Sicomm has established strategic partnership with major end-equipment providers and foundries to offer high-performance and low-cost system solutions. For more information, please visit: http://www.sicommtech.com.
Safe Harbor Statements
(Under the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995)
Certain statements contained in this press release, such as statements concerning the expansion of Sicomm's relationship with SMIC, may be viewed as "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual events, and/or the actual performance, financial condition or results of operations of SMIC to be materially different from any future performance, financial condition or results of operations implied by such forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these risks, uncertainties and other factors is included in the Company's annual report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on June 28, 2005 and such other documents that SMIC may file with the SEC or The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited from time to time.
For more information, please contact:
SMIC Shanghai
Reiko Chang
+86 21 5080 2000 ext 10544
PR@smics.com
SMIC Hong Kong
Calvin Lau / Mei Fung Hoo
+852 9435 2603 / 2537 8480
Calvin_Lau@smics.com
MeiFung_Hoo@smics.com
Shanghai, China, March 21, 2006 - Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation ("SMIC", NYSE: SMI and HKSE: 0981.HK), one of the leading foundries in the world, and Hangzhou Sicomm RF Technology, Inc. ("Sicomm"), a company dedicated to the design of RF system, and RF and mixed-signal chips, jointly announced today that Sicomm's SRT3500 chip, a walkie-talkie RF transmitter/receiver chip, has successfully entered commercial production at SMIC. The SRT3500 chip is manufactured by using SMIC's 0.18um RF process technology.
The SRT3500 chip combines low noise amplifier (LNA), mixer, voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), phase-locked loop (PLL), LO (local oscillator) buffer, and IF (intermediate frequency) amplifier, replacing dozens of individual discrete components in the IC design, which can greatly reduce the printed circuit board (PCB) size. The aim is to help customers to create smaller walkie-talkies. A traditional design for this product utilizes a discrete component for the VCO, thus, requiring the installation of a debugging tool on each production line for VCO testing, which can lead to reduced efficiency in the production process. The SRT3500 chip provides a solution by innovatively combining the VCO into the design, bypassing the need for the VCO test in the production process. As a result, manufacturing costs are decreased and the walkie-talkies' final product yields improve. Sicomm believes that the SRT3500 chip is the world's first single-chip RF transmitter/receiver chip for walkie-talkies based on CMOS technology.
"Leading-edge RF technologies and stringent standards are required in RF IC designs. SMIC's top-notch RF technologies and its focus on China-based customers helped Sicomm to break a difficult barrier in setting up our RF design company in China. Since Sicomm's inception, we have received full support from SMIC, and are quite impressed with the excellent service they provide. We attribute Sicomm's SRT3500 achieving successful tape-out on its first trial to SMIC's great support. The establishment of SMIC in China has provided a solid foundation for the advancement of the domestic IC design industry. Sicomm is confident to provide its customers' with better and more advanced RF products as we expand our collaboration with SMIC," commented Dr. Zhongming Shi, CEO of Sicomm.
"We are proud and honored to partner with Sicomm to jointly bring a popular product to the market. By combining SMIC's technology and manufacturing capabilities together with fabless companies' IC designs, we aim to contribute our part to the development of the IC industry in China. We hope to continue our partnership with Sicomm and further extend our mutual successes," said Dr. Joseph Xie, Vice President of Marketing & Sales at SMIC.
# # #
About SMIC
Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, ("SMIC", NYSE: SMI and HKSE: 0.981.HK), headquartered in Shanghai, China, is an international company and one of the leading semiconductor foundries in the world, providing integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing at 0.35um to 90nm and finer line technologies to customers worldwide. Established in 2000, SMIC has four 8-inch wafer fabrication facilities in volume production in Shanghai and Tianjin. In the first quarter of 2005, SMIC commenced commercial production at its 12-inch wafer fabrication facility in Beijing, the first 12-inch fab in China. SMIC also maintains customer service and marketing offices in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, and a representative office in Hong Kong. SMIC's pool of talents includes over 2,500 semiconductor industry experts and technical staff. SMIC has achieved ISO9001, ISO/TS16949, OHSAS18001, TL9000, BS7799 and ISO14001 certifications. For additional information, please visit http://www.smics.com.
About Sicomm
Hangzhou Sicomm RF Technology, Inc., with investment holdings by Softbank Asia Investment Fund and Hangzhou Silan Microelectronics and registered in the Cayman Island, specializes in the design and sales of RFIC and SoC (System on Chip integrated with RF, mixed signal and digital ASIC). The core technical team consists of top-notch engineers, who graduated from top universities in China, and obtained their doctorate degrees in Canada, Europe and US, plus many years of hands-on product design and management experience by working in companies such as Broadcom, Lucent, Nokia and Texas Instruments. Sicomm's mission is to become one of the leading wireless IC providers. Sicomm has established strategic partnership with major end-equipment providers and foundries to offer high-performance and low-cost system solutions. For more information, please visit: http://www.sicommtech.com.
Safe Harbor Statements
(Under the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995)
Certain statements contained in this press release, such as statements concerning the expansion of Sicomm's relationship with SMIC, may be viewed as "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual events, and/or the actual performance, financial condition or results of operations of SMIC to be materially different from any future performance, financial condition or results of operations implied by such forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these risks, uncertainties and other factors is included in the Company's annual report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on June 28, 2005 and such other documents that SMIC may file with the SEC or The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited from time to time.
For more information, please contact:
SMIC Shanghai
Reiko Chang
+86 21 5080 2000 ext 10544
PR@smics.com
SMIC Hong Kong
Calvin Lau / Mei Fung Hoo
+852 9435 2603 / 2537 8480
Calvin_Lau@smics.com
MeiFung_Hoo@smics.com
