{"id":1819,"date":"2026-09-18T17:06:21","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T08:06:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/india-marketing.jp\/india-news\/hirata-ats-semiconductor\/"},"modified":"2026-09-18T17:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T08:06:21","slug":"hirata-ats-semiconductor","status":"publish","type":"india-news","link":"https:\/\/india-marketing.jp\/en\/india-news\/hirata-ats-semiconductor\/","title":{"rendered":"Hirata Corporation makes a full-scale entry into India, partnering with ATS on semiconductor transport equipment"},"content":{"rendered":"
\nThis article is based on what we could verify As of September 18, 2026<\/strong> in public records and news reports from India. India revises its tax rules and regulations frequently, and the details here may have changed since. When making an actual business decision, please check the latest information with primary sources such as the ministries responsible and local experts.\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In September 2026, ahead of SEMICON India, Hirata Corporation, a maker of semiconductor and automation equipment, launched properly in the Indian market. It has made local firm ATS India its exclusive sales partner, supplying EFEMs (equipment front-end modules), wafer transport robots, and more. A company executive said, \"Within two to three years, this could change how Indian manufacturers procure equipment.\" It is an early case of Japanese equipment and automation players gaining a foothold in the base layer, transport and back-end processes, of India's semiconductor industry.<\/p>\n\n

The originating news: supplying equipment through ATS India as an exclusive sales partner<\/h2>\n

Hirata Corporation has named ATS India its exclusive sales partner in India, starting with the supply of standard semiconductor automation and transport equipment. As the market matures, it plans to expand into equipment customized for individual applications. What it will supply includes EFEMs, load ports for FOPLP (fan-out panel-level packaging), panel transport robots for PLP (panel-level packaging), and high-performance wafer transport robots. John Dargie, an executive at the US entity, said the partnership \"could fundamentally change how Indian manufacturers access advanced semiconductor equipment technology within two to three years.\"<\/p>\n\n

Background: equipment and materials players lay groundwork ahead of SEMICON India<\/h2>\n

Hirata's entry is part of a broader trend of equipment and materials makers securing a foothold in India ahead of SEMICON India. The same reporting also covered Lam Research's plan to invest 100 billion rupees (\u20b910,000 crore = 100 billion rupees; as of September 2026, at roughly \u00a51.66 per rupee, about \u00a5166 billion) in manufacturing silicon components, and Teradyne's move to open India's first semiconductor test site in Bengaluru. Companies are simultaneously staking claims not only in front-end manufacturing but across the base layer of transport, testing, and back-end processes.<\/p>\n\n

Why the opportunity lies in transport and back-end processes rather than the equipment itself<\/h2>\n

Talk of localizing semiconductors tends to draw attention to massive fabs (front-end plants), but the processes with the greatest number and breadth are actually the surrounding ones: transport, packaging, and testing. EFEMs and wafer transport robots are highly versatile equipment needed on any line, making it easy to start with a standard product and then expand to meet local requirements. Hirata's approach of starting with standard equipment through a sales agent makes it easier to put down roots locally than suddenly selling large-scale facilities. The transport and automation expertise Japanese players hold happens to fit exactly into an area where India is thin.<\/p>\n\n

How it is being received locally and in the industry<\/h2>\n

The reporting treats Hirata's entry as one piece of the equipment sector's groundwork ahead of SEMICON, presenting it alongside the moves by Lam Research and Teradyne. Hirata's deal centers on a sales partnership, and no large investment figure comparable to building a new plant has been disclosed. This account stays within the confirmed scope, the framework of the partnership and the type of equipment to be supplied, and does not speculate on investment size.<\/p>\n\n

Implications for Japanese companies: enter through \"process equipment and materials,\" not finished products<\/h2>\n

What Hirata's approach shows is that a massive fab is not the only foothold for engaging with semiconductors in India. Japanese players' strength lies precisely in transport and back-end equipment, and in materials, upstream components like photoresist. In EMS, Kaga Electronics' move to partner with India's Syrma<\/a> and, conversely, Indian companies winning contracts to assemble Japanese automotive chips<\/a> when read alongside that, Japan-India semiconductor division of labor is beginning to mesh in detail process by process. For equipment and materials makers, moving in early with process equipment and materials makes it easier to create points of contact than waiting for finished-product localization.<\/p>\n\n

Market ripple effects: room for materials and chemical players to enter upstream too<\/h2>\n

Following equipment, materials are growing in importance. Upstream components such as photoresist and CMP slurry are the move by Japanese chemical manufacturers to shift investment from China to India<\/a> continuous with that. The more semiconductor base industries grow locally, the more room opens up for Japanese players in equipment, materials, and automation to enter the supply chain.<\/p>\n\n

Practical information and related links<\/h2>\n