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Advanced Energy Unveils New Multi-Gas, Multi-Range Digital MFCs That Reduce Spares Inventories, Tool Downtime and CoO

Aera^® Transformer™ MFCs offer new levels of process flexibility for all plasma process environments in today’s advanced fabs

FORT COLLINS, Colo., Apr. 8, 2004—Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq: AEIS) today announced its new Aera^® Transformer™ family of digital multi-gas, multi-range mass flow controllers (MGMR MFCs). These advanced, high-precision products provide original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and end users with optimal MFC flexibility and process efficiency for their semiconductor and industrial vacuum applications.

Building on the successful, field-proven Aera^® FC-D980 MFC technology, the new Transformer products enable customers to dramatically reduce their spares inventories. This reduced inventory can create a substantially lower total cost of ownership (CoO)—a significant advantage for today’s state-of-the-art 300 mm fabs.

In designing this next-generation MGMR family of products, AE developed an inherently flexible platform that provides unmatched field programmability to run any gas for any gas flow range—from 10 sccm to up to 30 slm. As few as eight different Transformer MFC models can be used to support a fab’s requirements. These MFCs allow unlimited gas selection without recalibration and they can be pulled directly from a customer’s inventory shelf and easily programmed to meet the application requirements. With its ability to reduce the valuable time it takes to calibrate other digital MFCs, the versatile Transformer platform reduces tool downtime and improves fab CoO.

“Chipmakers and OEMs alike are continually seeking to streamline their processes and reduce their overall CoO in order to offset the high costs of equipping these facilities, “ noted Chairman and CEO of Advanced Energy Douglas Schatz. “By working closely with our customers, we developed a multi-gas, multi-range digital MFC that helped them meet their advanced flow management requirements. We are very pleased both with the Transformer MFC’s excellent performance results and its ability to optimize our customers’ critical plasma processes, providing unmatched reliability and flexibility to help them achieve lower overall cost of ownership.”

According to Steve Rhoades, vice president and general manager of AE’s Control Systems and Instrumentation group, “The Aera name is well-known for world-class MFCs. This next-generation Transformer line of multi-gas, multi-range products continues that best-of-breed tradition.”

To provide world-class, after-market support, AE maintains a well-established global support infrastructure in all the major semiconductor manufacturing regions, including Asia, the United States and Europe, to provide fast turnaround on re-calibration services.

About Advanced Energy
Advanced Energy is a global leader in the development and support of technologies critical to high-technology manufacturing processes used in the production of semiconductors, flat panel displays, data storage products, compact discs, digital video discs, architectural glass, and other advanced product applications.

Leveraging a diverse product portfolio and technology leadership, AE creates solutions that maximize process impact, improve productivity and lower cost of ownership for its customers. This portfolio includes a comprehensive line of technology solutions in power, flow and thermal management, plasma and ion beam sources, and integrated process monitoring and control for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and end-users around the world.

AE operates in regional centers in North America, Asia and Europe and offers global sales and support through direct offices, representatives and distributors. Founded in 1981, AE is a publicly held company traded on Nasdaq National Market under the symbol AEIS. More information can be found at www.advanced-energy.com