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CompanyStats

Advantest
  • HQ: Tokyo, Japan
  • 2008 Revenues: $1.8 billion
  • Employees: 3,752
  • Global: Approximately 9 countries
  • R&D: 6 facilities in 3 countries
  • Fortune 500: N.A.

CEOExtra

Advantest Chairman Toshio Maruyama cites the potential of alliances, mergers and acquisitions in Asia and Europe as a good way to access new markets with promising growth prospects. Acting on that belief, in August the company acquired Credence Systems GmbH, a European manufacturer of test systems for automotive semiconductors. The acquisition, says the chairman, expanded Advantest’s customer base and resulted in it being chosen as the testing system for Elmos Semiconductor AG, one of the world’s biggest automotive chip vendors. As for the future, Maruyama says: “I believe that our opportunities for M&A and alliances in the broad sense will only increase.”

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Toshio Maruyama

Advantest

What will be your approach to M&A in the coming years?

The tiny computer chips that are integral to everyday items such as flat-screen TVs, digital recorders and 3G mobile phones might be conceived in the mind of an engineer, but they must be tested in real-world conditions. Enter Tokyo-based Advantest Corp. (ATE), one of the world’s leading suppliers of automatic test equipment to the semiconductor industry, with $780 million in sales in fiscal 2008. Given the overall market consolidation taking place in the sector, Advantest Chairman Toshio Maruyama believes that mergers and acquisitions are attractive. The right deals, he says, can garner efficiency gains and a potential point of entry to new target markets. “I would base any M&A action not only on potential sales volume or the worth of the target,” he says, “but also on our thesis that M&A is one means of accomplishing our corporate goals, which may include entry into new markets where we can put our existing strengths to work.”

“One of the consequences of the current downturn is that it is accelerating the creation of a new business model for the test and measurement industry.”

Maruyama acknowledges that his company has been hurt over the past year, as chipmakers have slashed spending. But he is optimistic that Advantest will hit a new peak. “One of the consequences of the current downturn is that it is accelerating the creation of a new business model for the test and measurement industry,” he says. “The process of responding to these changes should be viewed as a succession of new business opportunities.”