Advance Semiconductor Parts · Service · Solutions
Two technicians in cleanroom coveralls working on a component at a bench.

Home / Services / Equipment support

Equipment Support Division

Support scoped in writing, before anyone touches a tool.

Most equipment support arrangements fail on ambiguity — nobody agreed who does what, to what standard, at what hour. The Equipment Support Division starts with a written plan naming the level of support and the job functions, and ends with audits against it. Thirty years in tools and equipment support sits behind it.

Engagement

Seven stages, in order.

This is the assessment process for an OEM ESD site or a new equipment engagement. Stages three and four exist so nothing is executed that the customer has not read and agreed.

  1. Identify level of support

    Which OEM support functions are in scope, and at which of the four competency levels below.

  2. Provide the Equipment Support Plan

    A detailed breakdown of the protocols and procedures that will be in place for each tool supported.

  3. Review the ESP

    The drafted plan goes back to the customer, who agrees the level of support and the job functions before anything starts.

  4. Implementation

    Training materials reviewed, then off-site and on-site walkthrough of the tools in scope.

  5. Integration

    Execution of the plan as written, inside your operation.

  6. Audits

    Detailed audits against the ESP — the check that what was agreed is what is happening.

  7. Improvement

    Overall Equipment Efficiency as the measure, with total equipment reporting behind it.

Competency

Four levels, so “supported” means something specific.

Support is priced and staffed against a level, not a vague retainer. Each level contains the ones before it.

Level 1 — Common

Understand the tool

  • Undergo training
  • Understand each operational flow
  • Understand parts inside the control box
  • Understand the air piping circuit
  • Reporting
Level 2 — Intermediate

Replace parts

  • Machine parts replacement
  • Electrical parts replacement
  • Solenoid valve replacement
Level 3 — Advanced

Adjust and tune

  • Air valve adjustments
  • Optical camera adjustments
  • Proximity sensor adjustments
Level 4 — Master

Diagnose and optimise

  • Troubleshooting
  • Root cause analysis on equipment failures
  • Detailed summaries and operator tool-efficiency optimisation

Deliverables

Reporting is the product, not a by-product.

High-level total equipment reporting is what turns a support contract into something a fab manager can act on: which tools are costing availability, which failures repeat, and where preventive maintenance is landing or missing.

The programme is built to move Overall Equipment Efficiency, and the audits exist to show whether it did.

Discuss a support plan →

Preventive maintenance
PM solutions defined per tool and executed to the agreed schedule.
Total equipment reporting
High-level reporting across the supported fleet, not per-incident tickets.
OEE improvement
Overall Equipment Efficiency tracked as the outcome measure.
Field response
Custom field service response and repair, on site.

It connects to the parts side. Teams supporting your tools are in the same company that fabricates the quartz, silicon and ceramic parts inside them and refurbishes the ones coming out. Diagnosis and replacement do not have to cross a supplier boundary. See cleaning & refurbishment →

Next step

Scope a support engagement.

Tell us the tool set and where availability is hurting; we will come back with a draft level of support.

Talk to ESD → Request a quote