The Taiwan Continuous Improvement Award (TCIA) is a leading national program that promotes lean management, process optimization, and a culture of continuous improvement among enterprises, serving as an important benchmark for enhancing operational competitiveness and long-term sustainability. GlobalWafers once again demonstrated its strong capabilities in innovation and continuous improvement at the 2025 Taiwan Continuous Improvement Award (TCIA). Two teams participated in the competition, namely the United Crystal Forging Team and the Crystal Flatness Excellence Team. The teams focused on improvements in 150 mm gallium arsenide ingot unit productivity and epitaxial silicon wafer flatness optimization, respectively. Leveraging solid technical expertise and strong teamwork, GlobalWafers was awarded the Gold Tower Award and the Bronze Tower Award in the Unity Group category. This year also marks the fourth time GlobalWafers has received the Gold Tower Award, underscoring the company’s long-standing commitment to innovative management practices and a deeply rooted culture of continuous improvement.
Significant Breakthrough in 150 mm Gallium Arsenide Ingot Productivity Wins Gold Tower Award
The “United Crystal Forging Team” launched a productivity breakthrough and cost optimization project targeting one of the company’s major product lines in response to sustained growth in global demand for power semiconductor applications. By integrating years of accumulated crystal growth expertise with process simulation, mechanical design experience, and flexible application of QC tools, the team conducted repeated verification and fine-tuning of critical process parameters. As a result, unit productivity of 6-inch gallium arsenide ingots was successfully enhanced, effectively overcoming existing capacity constraints. This achievement not only improved production efficiency but also further strengthened the GlobalWafers’ overall competitiveness in responding to market demand.
Optimization of Epitaxial Silicon Wafer Flatness Earns Bronze Tower Award
The “Crystal Flatness Excellence Team” from GlobalWafers Taisil Branch focused on enhancing the flatness of epitaxial silicon wafers. Through Pareto analysis, the team identified key factors affecting flatness and established clear improvement targets. Improvement measures were then implemented systematically and standardized to ensure consistent execution. Following the completion of the improvement initiatives, all three key flatness metrics achieved a high level of target attainment. The successful outcomes were subsequently extended to other product lines, delivering substantial revenue benefits while further stabilizing product quality and process performance.
Guided by the Industrial Development Administration of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and organized by the Corporate Synergy Development Center, the Taiwan Continuous Improvement Award was established in 1988 and has grown over nearly four decades into Taiwan’s most prestigious cross-industry improvement platform. This year’s competition attracted 137 companies and institutions with 253 teams, generating improvement benefits exceeding NT$19 billion. GlobalWafers’ continued recognition in the competition reflects not only sustained advancements in process optimization and quality enhancement, but also the long-term dedication and collaborative efforts of our employees. Looking ahead, GlobalWafers will continue to deepen its technological capabilities, strengthen quality management, and cultivate talent, creating lasting value for the global semiconductor industry.