Introducing and discussing best practices in wafer fab cycle time management.
Join our community of nearly 3000 people from across the semiconductor industry, all dedicated to improving fab manufacturing performance. The FabTime newsletter contains technical articles related to wafer fab cycle time management, a robust subscriber discussion forum, and industry news and announcements. Recent topics have included: the impact of PM schedules on cycle time; managing one-of-a-kind tools; the impact of tool qualification on fab cycle times; forward-looking cycle time metrics; and managing operators during a staffing shortage.
Each volume below contains a list of the newsletters published that year, displayed as a brief summary, or abstract, of that newsletter’s main topic. There is no charge to subscribe to the newsletter. Past issues are available to subscribers via PDF download. Current subscribers can email Jennifer Robinson for the password, or use the Contact form to request it. To subscribe, click here.
The most recent issue was distributed on March 19, 2024. View current publication
Cycle Time Improvement for 300mm Fabs (Issue 24.05)
Commonly Reported Wafer Fab Cycle Time Contributors (Issue 24.04)
Forward-Looking Cycle Time Metrics (Issue 24.03)
Managing Time Constraints between Process Steps in Wafer Fabs (Issue 24.02)
10 More Recommendations for Improving Fab Cycle Time (Issue 24.01)
Managing Operators During a Staffing Shortage (Issue 22.05)
Fundamental Drivers of Wafer Fab Cycle Time (Issue 22.04)
Quantifying the Impact of Rework on Fab Cycle Time (Issue 22.03)
10 Recommendations for Fab Cycle Time Improvement (Issue 22.02)
On Breaking Up PMs and Other Unavailable Periods (Issue 22.01)
Dispatch Compliance in Wafer Fabs (Issue 20.06)
The Impact of Tool Qualification on Cycle Time (Issue 20.05)
How the Space Program Launched the Semiconductor Industry (Issue 20.04)
Defining a Metric for WIP Hours (Issue 20.03)
A Metric for Green-to-Green (G2G) Analysis (Issue 20.02)
Cycle Time Metrics for Make to Stock vs. Make to Order (Issue 20.01)
Our Required Reading List for New Employees (Issue 18.06)
Helping Factories Transition from R&D to Production (Issue 18.05)
Measuring Variability of Availability (Issue 18.04)
Understanding Why Lots Miss Their Due Dates (Issue 18.03)
Variability Impact of Temporary Fab Shutdowns (Issue 18.02)
Thinking Critically About Data (Issue 17.06)
Computational Issues in Reporting "Average WIP" (Issue 17.05)
Managing High-Mix Low-Volume Wafer Fabs (Issue 17.04)
Why Fabs Need Multiple Metrics (Issue 17.03)
FabTime Short-Interval Scheduling (Issue 17.02)
A Hidden Source of Cycle Time in Wafer Fabs: Gas and Chemical Changes (Issue 17.01)
Implementing OEE for Cluster Tools (Issue 16.06)
Identifying Sources of Arrival Variability (Issue 16.05)
Motivational Aspects of Goal-Setting for Wafer Fabs (Issue 16.04)
Balancing Fab Cost and Cycle Time (Issue 16.03)
Using WIP Turns for Forward Cycle Time Estimation (Issue 16.02)
Goals for Fab Leadership to Drive Cycle Time Improvement (Issue 16.01)
How Can We Get Better at What We Do? (Issue 15.06)
Using Trend Lines to Enhance the Value of Dynamic X-Factor Charts (Issue 15.05)
Identifying and Solving Problems in Wafer Fabs (Issue 15.04)
Helping People to be Better Problem-Solvers (Issue 15.03)
Impacts of Changing a Fab's Lot Size (Issue 15.02)
Why I'm Still in the Industry after 30+ Years, by Frank Chance (Issue 14.06)
Six Sources of Equipment Variation and How to Control Them (Issue 14.05)
Factors Contributing to High Cycle Times in Fabs (Issue 14.04)
Why Should Foundries Care about Cycle Time? (Issue 14.03)
The Hawthorne Effect, Revisited (Issue 14.02)
Overcoming Productivity Losses During Shift Change (Issue 14.01)
Variability Metrics for Fabs: Part 1 (Issue 12.06)
Using OEE to Enhance Factory Performance (Issue 12.05)
PM Scheduling and Cycle Time (Issue 12.04)
Queueing Models for Wafer Fabs (Issue 12.03)
Ten Fab Management Discussion Topics (Issue 12.02)
Improving Factory Cycle Time through Improvements at Non-Bottleneck Tools (Issue 10.09)
The Hawthorne Effect Revisited (Issue 10.08)
Using Short-Term Indicators to Improve Long-Term Performance (Issue 10.07)
Forecasting Lot Completion Dates (Issue 10.06)
Problems that Stem from Broken Assumptions (Issue 10.05)
Responses to Four Recent Discussion Topics (Issue 10.04)
Equipment Availability versus Equipment Uptime and Manufacturing Time (Issue 10.03)
Correlation in Wafer Fab Data (Issue 10.02)
Improving Cycle Time during a Downturn, Redux (Issue 9.10)
WIP Bubbles in Wafer Fabs (Issue 9.09)
Tool State Calculations for Cluster Tools in Fabs (Issue 9.08)
How To Extend the Life of Your Fabs? Measure, Monitor, and Control (Issue 9.07)
Definitions for Short-Term Line Yield Metrics (Issue 9.06)
Paper vs. Electronic Lot Travelers (Issue 9.05)
Dynamic X-Factor and Shipped Lot X-Factor (Issue 9.04)
Batch Loading Policies for Wafer Fabs (Issue 9.03)
Manual Lot Transfer in Wafer Fabs (Issue 9.02)
Our Top Recommendation for Cycle Time Improvement: Tackle Single Path Operations (Issue 9.01)
A Fab Cycle Time Improvement Checklist (Issue 8.10)
Definitions for Cycle Time Benchmarking (Issue 8.09)
Wafer Fab Flow Control via Order Release (Issue 8.08)
Scheduling and Dispatching in Wafer Fabs (Issue 8.07)
Cluster Tools in Wafer Fabs (Issue 8.06)
Conquering WIP Bubbles (Issue 8.05)
Sources of Variability in Wafer Fabs (Issue 8.04)
Estimating Planned Operation Cycle Times (Issue 8.03)
What Makes an Effective Morning Meeting? (Issue 8.02)
Highlighting Cycle Time Problems for New Products (Issue 8.01)
In-Depth Guide to Cycle Time Management Resources (Issue 7.10)
Seven Things You Should Know About Wafer Fab Cycle Time (Issue 7.09)
Ways that Fabs Create Arrival Variability (and Cycle Time) (Issue 7.08)
Financial Justification for Cycle Time Improvement Efforts (Issue 7.07)
Resolving the Cycle Time vs. Utilization Conflict (Issue 7.06)
Lean Manufacturing and Wafer Fabs (Issue 7.05)
Cycle Time Variability (Issue 7.04)
Cycle Time Metrics Baseline (Issue 7.03)
Operator Variability and Cycle Time (Issue 7.02)
Operational Recommendations for Wafer Fab Cycle Time Improvement (Issue 6.10)
Estimating and Using Operation Cycle Times (Issue 6.09)
Cycle Time and Hot Lots Revisited (Issue 6.08)
Setup Avoidance and Dispatching (Issue 6.07)
Cycle Time and Holds (Issue 6.06)
The Three Fundamental Drivers of Fab Cycle Time (Issue 6.05)
Lot Dispatch for Wafer Fabs (Issue 6.04)
A WIP-Centered View of the Fab: Part 2: Overall WIP Effectiveness (Issue 6.03)
A WIP-Centered View of the Fab: Part 1: WIP States (Issue 6.02)
Management Behavior and Fab Cycle Time (Issue 5.10)
Analyzing Capacity Using MES Data (Issue 5.09)
Real-Time Alerting based on Fab Conditions (Issue 5.08)
Quantifying the Effect of Tool Downtime (Issue 5.07)
Cycle Time Constrained Capacity (Issue 5.06)
WIP Utilization Percentage (Issue 5.05)
Presenting Fab Performance Data (Issue 5.04)
Dynamic X-Factor Revisited (Issue 5.03)
Cycle Time and Yield Revisited (Issue 5.02)
Cycle Time and Factory Size (Issue 4.11)
Tool Standby and Productive Time Reporting (Issue 4.10)
Identifying Temporary Bottlenecks in the Fab (Issue 4.09)
Identifying Real-Time Cycle Time Problems (Issue 4.07)
In-Depth Guide to Operators and Cycle Time (Issue 4.06)
Arrival Variability and Cycle Time (Issue 4.05)
Cycle Time Effects of Equipment Downtime (Issue 4.04)
Cycle Time Entitlement (Issue 4.03)
Quantifying Availability Variability (Issue 4.02)
Quality Moves: A Proposal for a New Performance Metric (Issue 3.10)
The Impact of Staffing on Cycle Time (Issue 3.09)
A Simple Rule of Thumb for Batching Decisions (Issue 3.08)
FabTime Newsletter Retrospective (Issue 3.07)
Cycle Time Management Styles (Issue 3.06)
The Bottom-Line Benefits of Cycle Time Management (Issue 3.05)
Cycle Time and the Core Conflict (Issue 3.04)
How Much Does Tool Dedication Inflate Cycle Time? (Issue 3.03)
Cycle Time and Hot Lots (Issue 3.02)
Explicitly Including Cycle Time in Capacity Planning (Issue 2.10)
Implicitly Including Cycle Time in Capacity Planning (Issue 2.09)
Setting Goals for Fab Performance (Issue 2.08)
Cycle Time Characteristic Curve Generator (Issue 2.07)
What is One Day of Cycle Time Reduction Worth? (Issue 2.06)
One-Year Anniversary Issue (Issue 2.05)
In-Depth Guide to OEE Resources (Issue 2.04)
Improving Cycle Time During a Downturn (Issue 2.03)
Should You Reduce Lot Sizes to Reduce Cycle Times? (Issue 2.02)
Impact of Batch Size Decision Rules on Cycle Time (Issue 2.01)
Understanding the Impact of Single-Path Tools (Issue 1.08)
Improving Factory Cycle Time Through Changes at Non-Bottleneck Tools (Issue 1.07)
Performance Measures Typically Used in Wafer Fabs (Issue 1.06)
Theory of Constraints and Just-in-Time Manufacturing (Issue 1.05)
A Short Introduction to the Theory of Constraints (Issue 1.04)
Reducing Variability in Observed Process Times (Issue 1.03)
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