FormFactor, Inc. (NASDAQ: FORM), a test and measurement supplier, was again ranked as the world’s number one supplier of semiconductor probe cards by market research firm VLSIresearch, after growing 18% in 2020. FormFactor has held the top position for eight consecutive years.
FormFactor’s probe card revenues are primarily comprised of advanced wafer probe cards, a segment, which according to VLSIresearch, accounts for more than 85% of the overall probe card market. Key to the company’s success in 2020 was 40% revenue growth year-over-year in advanced probe cards used to test non-memory ICs. This growth was driven by Foundry and Logic customers as they ramped production of chipsets for 5G handsets, and accelerated adoption of advanced packaging techniques such as heterogenous integration of chiplets. VLSI forecasts the market for advanced probe cards will grow at >7% CAGR from 2020-2025 to reach $2.7 billion.
“Advanced probe card revenues continue to grow as IC manufacturers introduce increasingly sophisticated chip designs,” said Risto Puhakka, president of VLSIresearch. “Chief among the factors driving FormFactor’s growth are advanced packaging technologies and the ramp of 5G devices, which continue to deliver chip scaling and performance enhancements. Advanced probe cards are essential to test these complex ICs.”
“We are very grateful to our customers, suppliers and employees that made the past year extraordinarily successful in a very difficult environment,” said FormFactor CEO Mike Slessor. “Our customers continue to push the envelope for device performance, requiring FormFactor to keep pace with their challenging test requirements. We’re continuing to invest in innovation and capacity that make it possible for our customers to bring their new products to market faster and accelerate their profitability.”