Having met a bottleneck in lifting the yield-rate of its fifth generation LCD panel plant, Hannstar is adjusting the plant's monthly substrate input goal for 2004, from 70,000 sheets to 25,000 sheets. Meanwhile, equipment installation will continue, to complete the equipment set-up for full capacity production by the first half of 2005. Plans for constructing a sixth generation LCD panel plant, previously postponed to 2005, is now under reevaluation. The plan may be scrapped if Hannstar's fifth generation plant yield rate fails to climb from the current 50% to 80% in three months.

 

Yield rates became a problem for Hannstar's fifth generation plant when it began adopting the wide viewing angle AS IPS (Advanced Super In-Plane-Switching) technology in August 2004. Precision adjustment of rubbing and ODF (One Drop Fill) equipment went amiss in the line switching process, which impacted the production of other models.

 

The LCD panel maker's prime concern for now is to increase the yield rate of its fifth generation plant to 70% by the end of 2004. All expansion plans will be pushed back indefinitely. As Hannstar's fifth generation substrates are larger than that of other makers, it is capable of producing three extra 19" LCD panels per input. 17" wide screen, 19", and 20.1" panels will be the focus of its fifth generation plant.