Finnish-Swiss Micro-Optics Expert Settles in Singapore

A Finnish-Swiss micro-optics manufacturer, Heptagon, announced on June 12 that it is building a 20,000 square-feet manufacturing facility and regional headquarters in Singapore with support from the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB). The facility, due to be operational in July 2007, will be part of the wholly-owned subsidiary Heptagon Micro Optics (Singapore) Pte Ltd.
“Heptagon has a truly unique value proposition: glass-based wafer-scale optics which are lead-free reflow and Telcordia compatible, yet ideal for high-volume applications which have until now only been addressable via much less robust injection-molded plastic,” claimed Chuck Milligan, Heptagon’s CEO, in a statement. “This is leading to exponential growth in the demand for our products which can only be met with the opening of an additional, dedicated high-volume manufacturing facility.”
To lead Heptagon Micro Optics Singapore, the company announced it has named Heng Hoon Cheng, whose experience of engineering and operations management in the electronics and semiconductor industries exceeds 20 years. He has joined Heptagon from Epcos Pte Ltd., a German company manufacturing Surface Acoustic Wave filters in Singapore.
Established in 1993, Heptagon is a Finnish-Swiss company that develops, designs and manufactures diffractive and refractive micro-optical elements and sub-systems. In 2000, Heptagon acquired the replicated micro-optical elements manufacturing division of CSEM SA (Centre Suisse d’Electronique et de Microtechnique) in Zurich. The company’s R&D expertise originates from the Helsinki University of Technology and the University of Joensuu.