Hanmi Semiconductor cements 71% share in HBM TC bonder tools

Hanmi Semiconductor said Oct. 29, 2026 that its lead equipment developer received South Korea's Silver Tower medal, highlighting the firm's 71.2% control over the global thermal compression bonding market.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy conferred the honor on Managing Director Kim Byung-seok during the K-Tech Inside Show in Goyang on Oct. 28. Kim has directed machinery engineering at the company for 35 years.

The citation credited Kim with localizing high-precision thermal compression bonders used to build high-bandwidth memory. Independent industry tracking from TechInsights confirms Hanmi holds 71.2% of worldwide sales in the specialized tool segment.

Thermal compression bonders attach sliced dynamic random-access memory dies on top of logic bases using calibrated heat and physical force. The process serves as the primary assembly bottleneck for high-bandwidth memory stacks.

The manufacturing bottleneck has translated into record financial performance. Hanmi reported second-quarter consolidated revenue of 251.1 billion won ($182 million) on July 14, 2026, marking a 39.5% gain year-on-year.

Operating profit for the June quarter reached 130.3 billion won ($94.5 million), up 51% over the prior year. The operating profit margin settled at 51.9%, establishing the highest single-quarter profitability in the equipment builder's history.

The second-quarter rebound followed a brief pause earlier in the year. First-quarter revenue stood at 50.9 billion won when chipmakers delayed capital allocations during product generation changeovers.

SK hynix represents the company's primary domestic integration client. The memory maker relies on Hanmi bonding lines across its eight-layer and 12-layer HBM3E production operations in Cheongju and Icheon.

SK hynix has initiated secondary sourcing assessments with domestic rival Hanwha Semitech. The initiative seeks to diversify supplier exposure across upcoming product lines, preventing absolute tool dependency on a single vendor.

Hanmi responded by introducing next-generation hardware at the SEDEX 2026 exhibition in Seoul on Oct. 14. The company unveiled the TC Bonder 4, designed specifically for sixth-generation HBM4 packaging lines.

The toolmaker also presented blueprints for a Wide TC Bonder scheduled for commercial release in early 2027. That unit accommodates broader die dimensions in custom artificial intelligence processors.

Beyond thermal compression systems, the firm expanded deliveries of micro saw and vision placement equipment. The automated systems slice, inspect and orient processed silicon wafers before packaging stages.

Hanmi secured an equipment order worth 24.5 billion won ($17.7 million) from Samsung Electro-Mechanics on Oct. 6, 2026. The delivery covers precision saws for high-density semiconductor substrates.

The equipment maker is expanding beyond memory assembly into 2.5-dimensional packaging systems. These multi-die packaging tools bridge graphic processors and memory stacks on silicon interposer layers.

Hanmi displayed five dedicated packaging units at SEMICON West 2026 in San Francisco earlier this month. The catalog features three specialized 2.5D bonders alongside two high-speed flip-chip bonder platforms.

Customer outreach targets foundries and outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers across the United States and Taiwan. The expansion aims to decrease revenue concentration tied exclusively to Korean memory fabrication hubs.

The company plans to open a regional technical subsidiary named Hanmi USA in San Jose, California. The regional office will support local packaging facilities under construction by international chip manufacturers.

United States memory producer Micron Technology is expanding packaging operations across Boise, New York, Singapore and Hiroshima. Hanmi is pursuing purchase orders across Micron's global packaging upgrade pipeline.

Global memory fabricators will inaugurate commercial HBM4 assembly in the fourth quarter of 2026, initiating validation cycles for Hanmi's newest tools. Delivery schedules for wide-format bonders will commence during the first half of 2027.

The trade ministry notice does not state customer-specific order volumes, and SK hynix has not disclosed what portion of future tool procurement will shift to Hanwha Semitech.

Assembly bays across Hanmi's factories in Incheon remain committed to active production backlogs heading into the final months of 2026.