Patent Covers Capacity Analysis with Hierarchal Control

July 17, 2007 (Pleasanton, CA) – Wright Williams & Kelly, Inc. (WWK), a cost & productivity management software and consulting services company, announced today that the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office has granted it a software patent titled “Method and Apparatus for Calculation of Production Quantities.” The patent covers the company’s novel research into equipment capacity analysis where there is hierarchal control of subsystems as in test cells and cluster tools. The company has embedded this intellectual property (IP) in its software product PRO COOL® for Wafer Sort & Final Test, a cost and capacity analysis tool for semiconductor test systems. PRO COOL® was recently used for a major evaluation of test system open architecture by the Semiconductor Test Consortium (STC).

“The software patent process has become extremely complex since the Internet bubble of the late 90s,” stated David Jimenez, President of WWK. “Our IP attorneys have stated that the U.S. government wants to greatly reduce or stop the granting of software patents. The fact that we were granted this patent in such a well-established area speaks to the novelty and importance of our research and development. By embedding this IP in PRO COOL® for Wafer Sort & Final Test we are ready to address the critical concern of semiconductor cost of test (COT).”

“Testing semiconductor devices has not benefited from the same productivity gains that wafer manufacturing has enjoyed,” stated Daren Dance, Vice President of Technology for WWK and lead inventor. “WWK has extensively studied test productivity. With this patent, we have demonstrated our commitment to help improve test productivity through our cost simulation and analysis tools.”

With more than 3,000 users worldwide, Wright Williams & Kelly, Inc. is the largest privately held operational cost management software and consulting company serving technology-dependent and technology-driven organizations. WWK maintains long-term relationships with prominent industry resources including SEMATECH, SELETE, Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI), and national labs and universities. Its client base includes nearly all of the top 20 semiconductor manufacturers and equipment and materials suppliers as well as leaders in nanotechnology, micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS), thin film record heads, magnetic media, flat panel displays, and solar panels.

WWK’s product line includes TWO COOL® for detailed process step level cost of ownership (COO) and overall equipment efficiency (OEE), PRO COOL® for process flow and test cell costing, Factory Commander® for full factory capacity analysis and activity based costing, and Factory Explorer® for cycle time reduction and WIP planning. Additionally, WWK offers a highly flexible product management software package that helps sales forces eliminate errors in product configuration and quotation processes.

Call today for more information from Wright Williams & Kelly, Inc. Providing software solutions for productivity measurement and enhancement since 1991.