Business　Basics

【Semiconductors produced in Nasushiobara Unit】

Seiko NPC Corporation (herein after Seiko NPC) was established in 1975, for the purpose of development and manufacturing of semiconductors for watches.
Its manufacturing base, Seiko NPC - Nasushiobara Unit is located within the beautiful nature connecting to Nikko National Park. With having the land area of 170,000 m2 which equivalent with 3.7 times of Tokyo Dome and the factory area of 20,000 m2, total employees of 450 are working. There ia an abundant nature in the site, and strict control system for environment protection have been established.
Semiconductors produced in the Nasushiobara Unit are,
　・For video images
　・Clock generators
　・Sensors
　・For audio
　・For crystal oscillators
　・For clocks and watches
　・Melody
　and so on. Especially the crystal oscillators boast world No.1 market share.

Tochigi Prefecture and its Business Environment

Nasushiobara Unit is located in an ideal location for the plant of semiconductors, with vast amount of water and fresh and clean air for manufacturing, further with good access of only 5 minutes from the Nasushiobara Interchange on the Tohoku Expressway.

Made in Tochigi

【SSCG】

The production line is equipped in a huge clean room without any impunities such as dusts or dirt, and workers involved in manufacturing of semiconductors are wearing "Dust clothes" like a spacesuit.
The plant operates 24 hours a day, machine stops only for a regulated inspection for electric equipment. It takes 2 to 3 days for restarting if machine is stopped once.
A general semiconductor manufacturing process proceeds, firstly making precise circuits on the top of sliced ham like circular silicone wafer (silicone made thin base plate), separating the wafer into few thousand pieces of chips, bonding the wiring, further inspections of the product functions are made, and finally ICs are completed.
In Nasushiobara Unit, only the processing portion of several layers of circuits on the top of silicone wafers are performed. It is a very important process and normally told that almost 80 % of the equipment investment for the semiconductors manufacturing plant is incurred for this "Circuit making process". Nasushiobara Unit delivers wafers made from this processing or separated chip products from wafers.
In this operation, ICs for crystal oscillators are boasting world No.1 share, and other various semiconductors are produced. Really "MADE in Tochigi" are used at all over the world.

Contributing Local Community

【Cleaning volunteer for local regions】

Nasushiobara unit is located along a road connected to Shiobara hot spring, cleaning activities around our factory are periodically made as a local contribution activity.

By locating to the next door of Nikko National Park, we put a great importance to environment preservation activities.
In IC manufacturing, thoroughgoing washing of wafers is essential. In our plant, sophisticated products are manufactured in 500 of manufacturing processes, one washing is needed for 5 - 6 processes, this ends up as many as 100 times of washings to complete the product in our calculation. For washing, depends on the materials to be removed, different types of various chemicals such as a sulfuric acid or hydrofluoric acid are used, and further, ultra-pure water is required for rinse-washing of chemicals or for the final washing. Total volume of required washing water reaches almost 400 tons per day.
In our company, aiming to save important water resources, among the total washing water of 400 ton, 240 ton of waste water of relatively low level of chemical contamination has been recovered and reused as ultra-pure water after purified by ion exchange resin and filters. This water recycle not only prevents depletion of underground water, but also reduces cost of water supply.

Remained 160 ton of waste water and waste water from household are fed to the process facilities within the premises. After neutralized and purified through coagulating sedimentation and bacterial decomposition, they are filtered and chlorine sterilized before releasing for drain.
Strict self controlled criteria have been set for the quality of water released. One of the water quality index of BOD (biochemical oxygen demand) has been set for 8 mg/L which is far lower than the criteria stipulated in the Water Pollution Control Law and far lower than the criteria of the Ordinance of Tochigi Prefecture. (the Water Pollution Control Law requires lower than 160 mg/L, and the Ordinance of Tochigi Prefecture requires 25 mg/L)
Also during the waste water processing, 450 kg of residues are precipitated every day in the settling tank. Silicone or iron components included in the residues are recycled as a sub material for concrete after dehydration.

For such consistent environmental activities, this plant was awarded as an excellent plant for energy control by the Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry of the Kanto region in 1995, and further enhancements had led us to the award by the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy of METI in 2001.

Comments for the People in Tochigi

"Small in scale but indispensable and unsung hero" is a feature of our products. Clock generating IC, a source of operations of equipment which used in every electronic equipment, is our company's typical product. Other different types of, not so distinct but indispensable devices such as small power source IC, and IC for back light LED drive on LCD display, are produced.
It is a biggest feature of those products that our products are not standardized mass- production type products in most cases, but rather "Technology proposal type" products which offer the best solution for meeting with customers requests or concept of their products.

Seiko NPC believes that it is our company's role to have customers grow by providing products of expected qualities and prices in challenging spirits of ingenuity and innovation.
As a member of Seiko Holdings Group, we challenge to realize better enterprize which every employees may contribute for the development of society and global environment conservation with their confidences and prides.