ASMPT snaps up sensor assembly and test specialist

The acquisition of AEi is consistent with ASMPT’s strategy of pursuing sustained, profitable growth via expansion into promising adjacent markets.

It provides ASMPT a significant presence in the automotive camera assembly and test solutions space - an addressable market of approximately $60m in 2021. The deal also enables ASMPT to offer total solutions for automated and scalable end-to-end camera module assembly to a significantly expanded served market that encompasses global Tier 1 and 2 automotive component providers.

ASMPT will now pursue new adjacent market opportunities in security surveillance, drones and LiDAR, which will expand the addressable market to around $460m in 2025.

AEi will in turn be able to tap on ASMPT’s extensive global sales and fulfilment networks, particularly in Asia, to capture new and emerging opportunities at a faster pace.

Finally, the collective customer base will be able to reap the rewards of ASMPT’s focus in integrating Industry 4.0 capabilities into its solutions, offering the potential for powerful analytics and AI capabilities to further augment the collective product line.

According to research firm Yole Développement, growth in non-radar automotive sensors (LiDAR, ADAS and camera modules) is expected to reach $13.4 Billion in 2025 from $4.94 Billion in 2020, representing a 2020-2025 CAGR of 22.1%. This strong growth potential is part of the wider pivot toward automotive electrification as a key driver for automotive electronics growth as the cars of the future become more connected, safe, efficient, and therefore require significantly more sophisticated computing power.

Established in 1990 and based in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, USA, AEi is a leader for the automotive camera active alignment market, having benefitted especially from significant and sustained demand for cameras in ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems).

CK Lim, Senior VP and Business Unit CEO (IC/Discrete & CIS), ASMPT said: “The agreement to acquire AEI highlights our focused and strategic intent to pursue inorganic growth - acquisitions and partnerships - as a key part of our corporate strategy to tap powerful synergies and opportunities to extend our product and market leadership. There is a deep synergy between the solutions offered by AEi and ASMPT, and between our customers. The adjacent markets served by AEi also offer opportunities for us for the further development of a successful and profitable business in this area. We believe this combination will open new market opportunities for ASMPT.”

”Our goal has been to find an owner with an existing broad offering towards the automotive industry, who in addition has a technological leadership position in active alignment solutions for camera and sensor assembly and thus can leverage AEi’s technology and know-how. We believe we have found such an owner in ASM Pacific Technology,” said Michael Chalsen, Senior VP, Global Technologies at Mycronic.

“We greatly look forward to continuing to develop AEi’s global market and technology leadership position together with ASM Pacific Technology and enabling full line solutions for the automotive and adjacent markets”, said Jean Marc Peallat, General Manager, AEi.