Brian Halla

Jun 19, 2020

The semiconductor industry has been all about weathering crises – as now. One of the worst was 2001 and this is how Brian Halla, CEO of National Semiconductor at that time, weathered it: “The difference between this recession and the last, is that we’ve all got plenty of cash,” Halla told Electronics Weekly, “we’re all hunkered down in cash preservation mode,but every CEO knows that the more productive you can make your employees, the more competitive you are.” “So we’re all going to buy the next router,and the next switch, and we’re going to keep buying servers because they make our people more  competitive and productive.” “In fact, as we speak, I’m buying 100 servers,” added Halla National has ＄850m cash and insignificant debt, he said.Halla does not think the three recent downturns in the industry – 1996, 1998,and 2001-when set against only two previous downturns (1975 and 1985) means the semi-conductor industry’s fundamental economics have changed. “I think the 17 per cent model (the traditional 17 per cent yearly industry revenue growth)is still in effect,” said Halla,“I think most semiconductor guys would say it’s been 17 per cent since the beginning of time and it will always be 17 per cent.” The downturn is forcing lean manufacturing techniques. “We’re only 40 per cent utilised in our fabs and only 37 per cent utilised in our eight inch fab in Port- land, Maine but, at that low level of utilisation, we still have 41 per cent growth margin in our earnings report a few weeks ago. So imagine the upside leverage when we start filling those fabs up,” said Halla. He sees 2001 as “a year of transition into a new period of explosive growth”－ coming from information appliances, thin clients,set-top boxes, DVDs and PDAs. Recommended Articles