Veeco's LED-making milestone in Shanghai

The Plainview-based industrial toolmaker Veeco Instruments Inc. says it has reached a milestone at its Shanghai, China, customer-training office. Veeco, which specializes in making machines to produce light-emitting diodes, said it has trained its 500th engineer in the use of its LED-making equipment.

The Veeco machines use a method called metal-organic chemical vapor deposition, or MOCVD, which involves building LEDs by adding nano-layers, at atomic or molecular thickness, of conductive particles to semiconductor wafers. The same machines and techniques can also be used to make solar cells and microprocessors.

Veeco opened its China Training Center in mid-2011 in Shanghai, mainly to help train workers for its two largest customers, Sanan Optoelectronics and Elec-Tech International.

“By having a strong presence in China and establishing this state-of-the-art center, Veeco has demonstrated industry leadership not just in MOCVD technology, but in customer support as well,” Lin Zhiqiang, Sanan's chief executive, said. He said Veeco's machines helped Sanan reach record revenues in 2001 making LEDs for TV backlighting, outdoor displays and general illumination.

John Peeler, Veeco’s chief executive, said the company shipped more than 400 of its MOCVD machines to China in 2010 and 2011. The company has said that each of its machines sells for several million dollars.

Veeco's stock Friday morning was up 32 cents to $29, on the low end of its 52-week range of $20.35-$57.67; the day's share price represented a 43-percent decline over the past year, amid lagging demand for the company's machines.

With 900 employees and a $1.12 billion market capitalization, Veeco during the past four quarters earned $190.5 million on $979.1 million in revenue.