LG Innotek Accelerates FC-BGA as the Global No.1 Business

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LG Innotek (CEO Jeong Cheol-dong) is accelerating the business activities in full-scale for targeting the Flip-Chip Ball Grid Array (hereafter referred to as FC-BGA) substrate market.

LG Innotek recently unveiled the latest FC-BGA for the first time at the ‘CES 2023’. LG Innotek’s FC-BGA is highly integrated, multi layered and large scaled. Also, it has fine patterning and a lot of micro vias. Via means a hole connects circuits and chips. FC-BGA of LG Innotek is known for minimizing the ‘warpage’ that is a kind of bending phenomenon due to the heat and pressure in the manufacturing process. It was produced by utilizing Digital Transformation(DX) technologies, which received great interest from many companies and spectators.

LG Innotek is continuing the efforts by accelerating the process on constructing the new facility and capturing new customers in near future.

In January, LG Innotek held a celebration (commemorative event for bringing in new facilities) at the latest Gumi plant(Gumi No.4 factory) where will be mainly producing FC-BGA. LG Innotek has been constructing the latest FC-BGA production lines in the Gumi No.4 factory in the total gross area of approximately 220,000? that was acquired in June, 2022.

After the commemoration, LG Innotek is planning to gain speed the construction for FC-BGA. The new plant will have advanced production system by the first half of this year and get started full-scale production from the second half of 2023.

Especially, this outstanding facility for FC-BGA will be constructed as the smart factory that is integrated with the latest DX technologies including AI, robotization, unmanned system and intellectualization, etc. When a production on a large scale is initiated at the new place, it is expected to speed up the target for the Global FC-BGA market; for network/modem and digital TV. Also, Development of the products for PC/server can be feasible.

In last June, LG Innotek successfully produced FC-BGAs for network, modem and digital TV, and products are currently being supplied to the various companies.

The first FC-BGA production that was utilized by the pilot line of Gumi No.2. Even LG Innotek officially entered the FC-BGA market in February of last year, this company achieved remarkable results in less than a year.  Regarding FC-BGA business, even if a company announces its entry into the market, it takes at least two to three years to produce FC-BGA with excellent quality and profitable quantity.

The key to LG Innotek reducing the period is the innovative technology accumulated through the substrate business for the strong trust from the existing clients.

LG Innotek is currently No.1 in the Global market share for the substrates for Radio Frequency System in Package (RF-SiP) and Antenna in Package (AiP). Lots of substrates have similar manufacturing processes and technology to FC-BGA’s. Also, LG Innotek is in the technical lead of the mobile semiconductor substrate industry such as flip chip-chip scale package (FC-CSP) which is used in the high-performance Application Processors (AP).

For the development of FC-BGA, LG Innotek is actively utilizing the unequaled technologies such as the ultra-fine circuit, high-integration array and high multi-layer substrate matching (piling several substrate layers accurately and evenly) and coreless (removing the core layer on the semiconductor substrate) technologies during 50 years in the industrial fields.

Moreover, the trust with the existing customers accumulated through long partnership in the communication/semiconductor/household appliance fields contributed greatly to reducing the output period. FC-BGA is a type of semiconductor substrate, and mostly compatible to the major clients who are taking the substrates for RF-SiP and AiP.

In addition, the extensive efforts by LG Innotek, such as the quick response to qualified production by utilizing the existing pilot line in Gumi No.2 factory, strict supply chain management and quick warehousing of major equipment, etc. contributed to cutting down the producing period.

Based on the construction of the new plant for FC-BGA and experience of first big success, LG Innotek is actively proceeding with the promotions for tentative customers. Starting from the first investment of USD 336 million (KRW 413 billion) in last year, LG Innotek plans to continue investing in FC-BGA.

CEO Jeong Cheol-dong stated that “Since LG Innotek has been leading the substrate material market with its world-class technology, it will be able to develop our FC-BGA business into a Global No.1”. 

According to the Fuji Chimera Research Institute, the Global FC-BGA substrate market size is estimated to show annual average growth rate of approximately 9% from USD 8 billion (KRW 9.984 trillion) in 2022 to USD 16.4 billion (KRW 20.4672 trillion) by 2030.