Philips has sold a chip factory for micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) to Dutch investors. The new company, Xiver, will be headed by former VDL Nedcar executive John van Soerland.
MEMS applications include airbag sensors, infrared detection, catheters and other medical diagnostic equipment. In addition, Xiver supplies ASML and the French defense company Lynred, Van Soerland confirmed in De Telegraaf. ASML relies heavily on a network of suppliers in and around Eindhoven to build its machines, which now includes Xiver.
New positioning
With the sale of the business unit, Philips is further committed to divesting non-core activities. The Eindhoven-based company wants to concentrate on its core activities in health technology. For that reason, ASML and, at a later stage, NXP also started earlier. These spin-offs from Philips now have their own success stories.
Van Soerland, who stepped down as CEO of VDL Nedcar last summer, had announced his retirement. Nevertheless, he decided to take on this new challenge. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. However, the intention is to retain the current team of 110 employees. Xiver wants to focus on innovation and further growth in the MEMS market.
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