In 2021, ficonTEC Service GmbH is celebrating 20 years of development of assembly and test systems for the manufacture of photonic devices. This continuous progress has resulted in a continuously growing number of systems successfully installed around the globe (currently over 900 in total), operating across a diverse range of applications. While much of the required development has come from working closely with each individual customer, a very vital contribution has been gained through continued involvement with international collaborations designed to help the evolving integrated photonics industry. These activities are vital to understanding in what direction the industry as a whole is heading and its near to long-term needs.

The Tyndall National Institute, which is part of University College Cork in Ireland, continues to be one of ficonTEC’s more important technology partners. Through the PIXAPP Pilot Line Gateway, the Irish Photonics Integration Centre, and the National Photonics Manufacturing Pilot Line, Tyndall, ficonTEC and other industry partners have previously come together to establish long-term support for the region. The goal of all these activities is to engage with sectors such as MedTech, Life Sciences and Communications, and to thus develop advanced photonics manufacturing equipment for associated and new emerging markets.

In a move designed to underline the commitment to the developing eco-system in the region, and indeed for Europe, ficonTEC has now established ficonTEC Ireland Ltd. as a unique entity and with a dedicated support team within the Tyndall Institute. Already a partner of the EU-funded PhotonicLEAP, ficonTEC Ireland integrates the existing R&D and Applications Lab located at Tyndall, which – together with ficonTEC’s other Applications Labs located in Achim/Germany, Shenzhen/China, Tallinn/Estonia, and additionally at a new facility soon to be announced in the US – is currently providing active development support for partners and customers in Communications and other technology fields.

Head of ficonTEC’s R&D team, and simultaneously leader of ficonTEC Ireland’s operations, Moritz Seyfried commented, “In particular through ficonTEC’s Tyndall-based collaborations, the new location in Ireland facilitates our access to the highly skilled photonics researchers, the leading-edge technologies, and the world-class infrastructure to be found here. This in turn creates a unique opportunity for ficonTEC to broaden its expertise in existing and newer, rapidly trending technology fields. We expect great things of this investment step and for strengthening our ties with Tyndall and the region”

Prof. Peter O’Brien of the Tyndall Institute said “ficonTEC and Tyndall have collaborated in large-scale research projects over a number of years, including the European Photonics Packaging Pilot Line, PIXAPP. ficonTEC’s new Irish team will further strengthen this relationship. We look forward to collaborating with ficonTEC in new and challenging research projects, helping the company to enter new markets such as medical devices, and building exciting hands-on training courses to showcase ficonTEC’s impressive range of advanced packaging equipment”.

Funding support is being provided by the Irish Government through its Disruptive Technology Innovation Fund (a €500m fund established under Project Ireland 2040), and is run by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, with administrative support from Enterprise Ireland.

For more information, please contact ficonTEC directly.

About ficonTEC

ficonTEC is the recognized market leader for automated assembly and testing machine systems for high-end opto-electronic components and integrated photonic devices. Considerable process capability and dedicated assembly technologies have been accumulated over more than two decades of serving the needs of a broad selection of industry segments – including telecom and datacom, high-power diode laser assembly, IoT-conform sensor devices from bio-med to automotive, micro-optical modules, fiber-optics and more. ficonTEC’s flexible and scalable Industry 4.0 automation options enable customized assembly and test solutions suitable for early device development, for new product introduction (NPI), and all the way up to high-volume manufacturing (HVM) – regardless of whether for contract manufacturing or for in-house corporate R&D and production.

For more information, visit www.ficontec.com