Competitive and Sustainable Semiconductor Manufacturing

Dear Colleagues,

Semiconductors are widely used in our daily lives. They are found in personal computers, notebooks, mobile phones, etc. With the trend of globalization, the competition within the semiconductor manufacturing industry is becoming increasingly fierce. To survive in this industry, every firm must strive to continually improve its competence in one way or another. For example, some firms do not have their own factories, so that they can focus on activities that are more profitable, while others continue expanding their manufacturing capacity to further drive down costs. Other common strategies include outsourcing, blue ocean strategy, green and lean technologies, applying the competitiveness diamond model, developing next-generation technologies, forming alliances, etc.

In contrast, some studies have shown that even with considerable R&D capabilities, semiconductor manufacturers cannot guarantee long-term competitiveness (i.e., sustainability). In addition, in the past, support from the government enabled the continued growth of semiconductor manufacturers in some regions. After such support disappears, maintaining competitiveness and sustainability becomes a big problem. Further, the rise of the Chinese market, and of its manufacturers, bring opportunities and threats to existing firms.

This special issue is intended to provide details regarding sustainable development and competitive strategies, and their applications to semiconductor manufacturing, for researchers in product engineering, industrial engineering, marketing, and business administration, as well as practicing managers/engineers. This special issue features a balance between state-of-the-art research and more conventional reported applications. This special issue also provides a forum for researchers and practitioners to review and disseminate quality research work on competitive and sustainable semiconductor manufacturing strategies and their applications, and to identify critical issues for further developments.

Prof. Dr. Tin-Chih Toly Chen
Guest Editor

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