Mattson Technology to slash jobs

SAN FRANCISCO—Semiconductor capital equipment vendor Mattson Technology Inc. said Tuesday (Jan. 15) it would broadly reduce its workforce as part of a cost reduction initiative that aims to reduce annual operating expenses by more than 40 percent.

Mattson (Fremont, Calif.) did not disclose how many jobs would be cut. The company did not immediately respond to a request for more information on the job cuts.

Mattson—which markets equipment used in for etching, stripping and thermal processing of semiconductor wafers—said it expects its four-phase cost reduction program to save the company about $30 million per year in annual operating expenses. The company said that through the measures it expects to reduce its breakeven point to between $25 million and $30 million from about $50 million.

"Over the past five quarters, Mattson has taken appropriate measures to restructure and size the company to conserve cash during the down-cycle and enable significant leverage to deliver profitability in the up-cycle," said David Dutton, Mattson's president and CEO, in a statement.