Monthly Archives: March 2022

Reasons to Use a Wet Bench Manufacturer with In-House Expertise

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When dealing with third-party distributors who offer wet bench stations built by someone else, customers often pay more and get less. A wet bench manufacturer that designs and builds its own wet bench equipment in-house develops the expertise and capabilities needed to satisfy customer requirements. The manufacturer can respond directly to customer requests and design tailored or full custom solutions to meet specific requirements. With a wet bench manufacturer who has in-house expertise, customers can get exactly what they need.

Customizing Wet Bench Designs to Match Customer Needs Requires In-House Expertise

Semiconductor manufacturers and research labs often work with tight specifications that can’t be satisfied with standard wet bench stations. Customization requirements can range from space limitations to special robotics and software to control specific processing requirements. When manufacturers carry out their own design work, they are aware of the possibilities and limitations of specific semiconductor manufacturing processes. They can then easily advise customers what solutions are available and help choose the best one. Customers end up with optimized designs for equipment that works the way they want.

Building Custom Wet Bench Stations Requires Extensive In-House Manufacturing Experience

When wet bench manufacturers carry out their own design work, they know how to build what they design. Their designs are based on extensive in-house manufacturing experience gained over many years of building wet bench stations. They know what works and have been able to feed this experience back to their design engineers. With suppliers that carry out both design and manufacturing in-house, customers get wet bench equipment that is designed to their specifications and that is based on extensive manufacturing experience.

Wet Bench Manufacturers Can Provide Superior Customer Service and Support

With in-house design and manufacturing personnel, companies can provide knowledgeable customer support and after-sales service. When design, manufacturing, and process expertise resides in-house, service personnel know who to call if they run into problems. Support and service people will already be familiar with their own standard equipment and they have direct access to the design and manufacturing specialists that can guide them to find the best solutions for after-sales issues.

For wet bench technology, it’s especially important that the manufacturer also designs and writes the software that runs the process. Automation is becoming an increasingly important part of wet process equipment. Even if process steps are initiated manually, the software may be responsible for timing and dosages. For fully automatic stations, the software runs the whole process. Only the specialists who write the software can perform effective troubleshooting if there are unexpected operations or results. The wet bench manufacturer’s in-house expertise has to include the software.

Modutek Has Extensive Expertise Based on Long-Term Design and Manufacturing Experience

With over 40 years of experience in designing and building wet bench stations for industrial clients, Modutek is a leading wet bench manufacturer. Modutek works closely with customers to develop new technical solutions for current problems. In addition, Modutek actively leads technological innovation in fields such as wet bench process control, efficient chemical use, and reduction in particle contamination of silicon wafers. When customers identify new issues with semiconductor manufacturing, Modutek can often contribute to finding the best solutions.

Based on this long-term experience, Modutek personnel have developed extensive expertise in wet bench technology. The company designs its own equipment, including the development of its automation software. Wet bench stations are assembled and tested in-house at Modutek’s facility in San Jose which allows for easy customization. Modutek has a product line of standard equipment, including process tanks, chemical handling equipment, and complete wet process stations, the company can change dimensions, materials, robotics, process variables, and operator interfaces in accordance with customer requirements. In-house expertise is the key to these capabilities.

Why Ergonomics and Safety Are Important in Wet Bench Station Design

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Because semiconductor manufacturing with wet bench technology uses dangerous chemicals in many of the process steps, ergonomic design helps keep employees safe. Toxic and corrosive chemicals such as hydrochloric acid are used to clean, etch and strip silicon wafers in wet process stations. Ergonomics helps ensure that operators don’t have to strain or overextend themselves when carrying out their work.

A safe working environment means that safety measures such as interlocks and alarms are in place, the risk of fire and explosions are minimized, and access to hazardous areas is restricted. Adequate employee training is a key factor in handling dangerous chemicals safely. Wet bench design has to take into account ergonomic factors when creating operator interfaces and safety measures to ensure the risks inherent in wet process operation are reduced to a minimum.

Ergonomics and Safety Can Increase Productivity and Employee Satisfaction

When the design of wet process stations makes it easy for operators to run each process step, increased comfort and safety allows them to focus on the work instead of worrying about possible mishaps. Safety has to be built into the stations, with prominent signaling of hazardous conditions such as spills, the use of explosion-proof measures such as low power electric signals, and the avoidance of flammable materials.

The Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI) Safety Guidelines detail some of the measures that are required for wet benches, including guidelines for many aspects of semiconductor manufacturing. For example, SEMI S2 is a standard on safety labeling, safety interlocks, emergency shut down, electrical design, and ventilation. The SEMI S8 standard gives safety guidelines for the ergonomics of operation, maintenance, and service. Experienced semiconductor equipment manufacturers follow these guidelines because they realize that it makes sense to provide operators with a safe workplace and ergonomically designed equipment.

Modutek Incorporates Ergonomics and Safety Guidelines Into Their Wet Bench Station Design

Both Modutek’s standard lines of wet process equipment and customized versions are designed and built to the SEMI guidelines. Ergonomic design measures include features that make it easy for operators to carry out their work. Safety guidelines are followed so that the operation with the dangerous chemicals used in the process remains safe. For each wet process station, the ergonomic and safety requirements are either met or exceeded.

For example, ergonomic design has wafer loading trays brought to the front of the wet bench, making it easy for operators to load the trays. The operator interface is mounted on a swing arm, allowing operators to move it into different positions so they can see it while monitoring the process. The same thinking carries over to maintenance and service, where designs also respect ergonomic guidelines.

Modutek pays special attention to the safe design aspects of wet benches. Stations dealing with flammable substances are certified as hazardous locations to Class 1 Division 1 or Division 2. Safety interlocks are paired with process monitoring, leak detection, and alarms for dangerous conditions. Electrical controls are designed with low levels of power too weak for possible sparks to set off an explosion. Wiring satisfies NFPA 70 and 79 and there is an emergency off mushroom button.

Depending on the process, additional safety measures can include auto-lids to seal off the chemicals, gaseous automatic fire suppression systems, and access controls to ensure that only qualified operators can run the process. PVC safety shields, N2 head case purging and a deionized water hand spray may also be used.

Based on their extensive experience with the safe operation of wet benches, Modutek implements such ergonomic and safety measures while maintaining excellent operational reliability and superior yields. The complete line of Modutek wet process equipment is designed and built to the highest safety standards while delivering top-level performance for customers.