News: Optoelectronics
5 April 2023
Coherent cutting over 100 jobs at Newton Aycliffe UK plant by end-May
Materials, networking and laser technology firm Coherent Corp of Saxonburg, PA, USA (formerly II-VI Inc before it acquired Coherent in July 2022) has announced job losses at its plant in Aycliffe Business Park in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, UK, according to a report in The Northern Echo newspaper.
Covering 310,000ft2 of space (comprising a 100,000ft2 manufacturing area, including 50,000ft2 of Class 100 cleanroom), the semiconductor fabrication plant was opened by Fujitsu in 1991, then bought by Filtronic Compound Semiconductors in 1999 then RF Micro Devices in 2008 then Compound Photonics in 2013, before being acquired by Kaiam Corp in 2017 and sold within months to II-VI. What is now Coherent uses the facility to make III-V compound semiconductor RF microelectronic and optoelectronic devices for communications and aerospace & defence customers.
“A fall in business demand is prompting a restructuring of operations with a focus on reducing costs. As a result, the company expects to reduce its Newton Aycliffe workforce by more than 100 employees by 31 May,” stated Coherent in a letter to staff on 23 February. “The company will also conduct a strategic assessment to determine the future of the facility,” it added. “We are open-minded about alternatives to redundancy and will consider all feasible options. But these are difficult circumstances and the options are likely to be limited.”
