Tian Zhi Precision is a semiconductor equipment company empowered by Su Chuang Investment Group under the guidance of “investing in national needs and industrial needs”.
The C-Molding equipment (chip compression molding) that the company focuses on is the core process equipment in the field of advanced semiconductor packaging, and its localization is a key link in achieving independent and controllable semiconductor chip production across the entire industry chain.
“Last Mile” of MoldingOnly Domestic Gap
As chips can no longer be shrunk, and Moore’s Law gradually approaches physical limits, stacking multiple chips into a “high-rise” through advanced packaging technology has become the optimal solution for continuing chip performance improvements, and is also a new battlefield for technological competition and industrial rivalry in the semiconductor industry.
Chips need an additional “protective shell” to dissipate heat, resist moisture, and withstand impact; this step is called Molding (molding process). The C-Molding process, which emerged around 2010, is an important part of the advanced packaging process that ensures efficient interconnection of chips. Currently, C-Molding equipment is the only segment in semiconductor back-end packaging that has not achieved localization breakthroughs, and it is also a bottleneck in the domestic manufacturing process of high-bandwidth memory (HBM).
Currently, only two companies in Japan can mass-produce high-end C-Molding equipment; mainland China has an annual procurement amount exceeding 1 billion yuan, but 100% is imported. If a HBM production line gets stuck at this step, all previous TSV, RDL, and bonding efforts will be in vain, marking a true “bottleneck” endpoint.
Tian Zhi Precision entered the field in early 2024, focusing on one thing: producing domestically-made C-Molding equipment that can be integrated into customers’ mass production lines. The company’s first prototype has entered trial production on the production line of a leading customer, and is expected to be the first to cross the finish line, filling the last gap in the localization of semiconductor back-end packaging equipment.
Deep Technical AccumulationEstablishing a Pioneer for Domestic Substitution
The core members of Tian Zhi Precision have long been engaged in the underlying technology of compression molding, forming their own technical system in key indicators such as packaging precision control and warpage control. General Manager Zhou Quan has served as the head of the Mold Engineering Department at Samsung Semiconductor, and as the director of the Science and Technology Development Bureau of Suzhou Industrial Park, while also being the deputy secretary-general of the Suzhou Integrated Circuit Industry Association, possessing both equipment and industry knowledge.
The R&D team has transformed the “laboratory curve” into a “mass production line,” completing the assembly of the first C-Molding prototype. The self-developed system can automatically scan and detect the number of chip layers and volume, and the dual-layer press ensures production efficiency… It not only meets the compression packaging needs of mainstream Memory and SiP products but also offers greater competitiveness in terms of price, sustainable iteration, and after-sales service.
As China accelerates its layout in the AI chip field, the demand for advanced packaging equipment will become even more urgent. The application of C-Molding in the domestic market has just begun, with a potential annual demand exceeding 100 units and a potential annual market scale of over 1.5 billion yuan.
Tian Zhi Precision is expected to leverage market opportunities to occupy the leading position in domestic production, while extending upstream to molding materials and downstream to panel-level packaging equipment, forming a strong industrial ecosystem.
Su Chuang Investment’s investment in Tian Zhi Precision is not just an investment in a machine, but rather the “last key” to the localization of advanced packaging equipment.
When the key turns, the production lines of chip customers can be fully connected;
When the key turns, the AI chip supply chain can be equipped with a “safety lock.”
What we invest in today is equipment, what we build tomorrow is a defense line, and what we harvest the day after tomorrow is a “safe house” for China’s “core.”
Source: Group Strategic Research and Evaluation Center
Editor: Group Strategic Research and Evaluation Center