However, Texas Instruments' supplier awards for 2006 are notable by the absence of any front-end equipment companies!

Granted, TI has only normally honored one or two and in the past five years or so that has been Tokyo Electron or Applied Materials but this year, not one!

Is this a sign of the future?

It is well known that TI is abandoning leading-edge chip manufacturing and becoming fabless for these needs going forward, while adopting a fab-lite model for its trailing-edge products. The point here is that TI may be thinking that it doesn't see much mission critical aspects to front-end fab equipment suppliers in the future?

Another thing about this year's press release from TI was that the first & last paragraphs are identical to press releases stretching back over five years!

Worse is the discovery that Rob Simpson's quotes have a certain familiarity to them!

Here are some examples:

2006: "TI requires excellence from its global supply chain, and the Supplier Excellence Awards recognize our best suppliers for their outstanding performance," said Rob Simpson, vice president, Worldwide Procurement and Logistics, TI. "These companies contribute greatly to the success of TI and our customers. The TI SEA rewards and celebrates their efforts."

2005: "TI requires excellence from its global supply chain, and the Supplier Excellence Awards (SEA) recognize our best suppliers for their outstanding performance," said Rob Simpson, vice president, Worldwide Procurement and Logistics, TI. "These companies contribute greatly to the success of TI and our customers. The TI SEA rewards and celebrates their efforts."

2004: "TI's global business requires excellence from its supply chain around the world and the Supplier Excellence Awards recognizes only those suppliers who meet a very high-standard," said Rob Simpson, Vice President of Worldwide Procurement and Logistics. "These companies contribute greatly to the success of TI and our customers and we thank them for their commitment."

Ok, I agree, they hardly change from one year to the next!

The last two years clearly show the quote is exactly the same. When you also consider the first and last paragraphs are the same most years, except of course the list of suppliers, TI is obviously spending a considerable time on these announcements!

I doubt that TI really doesn't care that much about these annual awards to suppliers but they sure do give the completely wrong impression!

So come on TI PR people, next year actually make an effort, completely rewrite the press release and ask Rob nicely to say something original and quoteworthy and I promise to cover it, even if there are no wafer equipment companies honored!