Electronics: a major contract in China on cutting edge display technology

Air Liquide was recently awarded a major long-term contract in China by CEC Panda Flat Panel Display Technology Co. Ltd (a CEC-Panda and Sharp LCD Joint-Venture) to supply ultra-pure carrier molecules to their first fab that will manufacture Oxide-TFT screens for mobile devices and TV sets on Generation 8.5 size (G8.5) glass substrates.

Oxide-TFT is a disruptive and complex high resolution display technology that only a few manufacturers have mastered at the mass production level. Applied to mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablets and notebooks, it helps optimize battery life and improves user experience by increasing run time and decreasing the weight of the devices.

Air Liquide will invest around 25 million euros in a large on-site generator to produce ultra-high purity nitrogen and required bulk gases and back-up infrastructures for CEC-Panda’s new fab, which will be based in Nanjing Crystal Park, in Jiangsu Province. The total amount of ultra-pure nitrogen under the new contract will be 23,000 Nm³/h. Air Liquide will also supply electronic specialty gases, equipment and installation, and on-site management.

This is Air Liquide’s second contract with CEC-Panda. The Group has been supplying CEC-Panda’s first G6.0 fab, based in Nanjing Crystal Park, since 2010. By 2015, Air Liquide will supply a total of 37,000 Nm³/h of ultra-pure nitrogen to these two CEC-Panda fabs.

CEC Panda was established by CEC (China Electronics Corp.), the largest state-owned IT company in China, founded in 1989, and Sharp Corporation, a Japanese multinational corporation that designs and manufactures electronic products.

Michael J. Graff, Air Liquide Group Senior Vice-President for the Americas and Executive Committee member overseeing Electronics, commented: “We are honoured by CEC-Panda’s decision to expand our relationship to the supply of their new fab in the Nanjing Crystal Park. This new contract attests to our ability to supply leading electronics customers with products and services that meet the highest standards. It also reaffirms the value and competitiveness of our offer and our position in the fast growing mobility and smart devices revolution. Air Liquide is positioned to capture the growth of the high resolution and next generation mobile displays.”