CARSEM OFFERS NICKEL-PALLADIUM-GOLD PLATING OPTION

Scotts Valley, CA- November 30, 2004-Carsem, a leading provider of turnkey packaging and test services to the semiconductor industry, announced today that, as part of their continuing program to provide lead-free (Pb-free) environmental friendly solutions to the industry, they now offer a NiPdAu (Nickel-Palladium-Gold) package terminal finish on a wide variety of their Integrated Circuit package portfolio including the MLP (Micro Leadframe Package), and a large portion the Micro and SO (Small Outline) packages.

The industry and global community has several ongoing initiatives in place to provide electronic products that are free of recognized pollutants. One such initiative is the European Directive for Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS), which calls for the reduction or removal of Pb as well as several other elements and compounds.

According to Paul Smith, Carsem’s Director of Marketing, Over the past several years Carsem has produced hundreds of millions of Pb-free packages using our proven matte-tin plating process. We can now provide our customers with an additional option of using a Nickel-Palladium-Gold plating finish for the package terminals. Both of these options are part of our overall comprehensive effort to comply with all of the various world-wide environmental ‘Green’ requirements.”

David Comley, Group Managing Director, stated, “Carsem is fully committed to supporting the global effort to reduce materials that are hazardous to the environment and providing our customers with products and processed that comply with the ongoing requirements.”

About Carsem
Carsem is a leading provider of turnkey packaging and test services to the semiconductor industry, and offers one of the widest ranges of package & test portfolios in the world. To meet the growing demands of the telecommunications and wireless markets for smaller, faster, thermally-efficient devices, Carsem's portfolio includes several advanced technologies, such as the Micro Leadframe Package (MLP), Small Scale Ball Grid Array (SSBGA), Flip Chip On Leadframe (FCOL), and a SiP (System-in-Package) capability. Carsem also offers a full range of turnkey test services for RF, mixed-signal, linear, digital and power devices. Our factories maintain world-class quality standards having achieved SAC Level 1, ISO-9001, ISO-14001, QS-9000, TS16949 certifications, and are supported with a global network of sales and engineering support offices. Carsem is a member of the Hong Leong Group with factories located in Ipoh, Malaysia, Suzhou, China and sales offices across the USA, plus the UK. Carsem, Inc. sales headquarters is located at 269 Mt. Hermon Road, Suite 104, Scotts Valley, CA 95066, phone (831) 438-6861, fax (831) 438-6863, web site: www.carsem.com.