Japanese equipment major Horiba on Monday said it plans to double its India revenue over the next five years and seeks to engage with chipmakers as the country’s semiconductor sector matures.
The company currently generates close to 15 billion yen (around Rs 927 crore) in annual turnover from India business spread across three sectors: energy and environment; bio and healthcare; and materials and semiconductors.
The company, which commands nearly 60% of the global market for mass flow controllers (MFCs) used in semiconductor manufacturing, plans to work alongside players like Tata and Foxconn in India. “We are ready to roll out products as the ecosystem matures. Our business will grow as more fabs set up base in the country,” Dan Horiba, executive director, Horiba said.
An MFC acts as a super-precise, computerized faucet that regulates the exact amount of chemical gases injected into a chip-making chamber, with etching and deposition accounting for the majority of their applications.
Horiba is also looking to broaden its semiconductor play beyond its established MFC business, with the company developing a portfolio of inspection products for the semiconductor market.
Rajeev Gautam, senior corporate officer, told FE that inspection is a relatively new business opportunity for the group, which already supplies other niche process-control equipment such as vaporizers and pressure sensors.
Horiba earlier this year acquired Pristine Deep Tech, a business focused on product development and advanced R&D around engineered diamond growth. While the technology remains at the R&D stage, Horiba said the acquisition could support its ambitions in both the lab-grown diamond and semiconductor markets.
Executives said building a supply chain in India would become an important consideration as domestic demand grows.
The company has invested around 10 billion yen (around Rs 618 crore) in the country so far. Further investments are being evaluated based on market requirements, with semiconductors and healthcare among the potential areas for future expansion, Gautam said. Around 40% of the products Horiba sells in India are produced domestically.