Beneq, a prominent operator in the ALD sector, is seeing its business grow as a result of increased demand. The company expects its order volume to double this year and is hiring more people as a result. There is strong ALD expertise in Finland, however Beneq recruitment efforts are complicated by the overall shortage of skilled labor in the technology industry.  

Electronics are becoming more ubiquitous, increasing the need for semiconductor devices. As a result, the demand for Finnish-developed Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) – a vital part of manufacturing semiconductor devices – is growing rapidly.   

As a leading ALD equipment manufacturer, Beneq has experienced strong development over the past years. As a result, the company has announced it is growing its workforce by nearly 40 per cent by early 2023. However, the shortage of skilled labor, especially in the Finnish technology industry, has in part slowed down recruitment.  

One reason for the shortage is that currently, not enough semiconductor experts are graduating from Finnish universities to meet demand. Beneq is working closely with major Finnish semiconductor manufacturers to develop this field of study and to increase student numbers.  

“We want to encourage more students to choose this sector. We’d like to show them that this is a field where you can leave your mark and pioneer new solutions for the future. As an organisation, we provide a place where you get to work with unique technology in Finland, together with an open and curious working community that is eager to develop its expertise and ability to better serve customers,” says Milla Sihvonen, HR Business Partner at Beneq.   

Beneq expects order volume to double 

Atomic layer deposition is a thin film deposition technique capable of creating layers less than one nanometre in thickness. The technology is used in creating components for electric cars, LED and OLED displays, and cameras, for example. Beneq operates internationally in Europe, the United States, China, Japan, and Taiwan. The company’s turnover in 2021 was EUR 35.1 million.  

Beneq expects to double its order volume for ALD equipment in 2022. The growth is in part the result of increased demand for ALD solutions, as new technologies utilizing it, such as 5G, electric vehicles, and smart home devices, become more common. Furthermore, the company is planning to extend the use of ALD technology into new areas.  

“Continuous ALD, for instance, is now at a point where after 15 years of development the devices and applications are starting to gain a foothold. This technology can be used to manufacture better-lasting batteries with increased performance, which will be beneficial especially in the electric car industry. On the other hand, optical coating can be utilized for example in laser optics.”   

Tommi Vainio, President of Beneq

Learn more about  Beneq Career Opportunities.

Further information: 
Lie Luo, Head of Marketing, Beneq, lie.luo@beneq.com

Media features: 

Kauppalehti: Article link (in Finnish) 

Tekniikka & Talous: Article link (in Finnish) 

About Beneq  

Beneq is the home of atomic layer deposition. In 1984, we established the world’s first industrial production using ALD. Today, we lead the market with products for R&D (TFS 200, TFS 500, R2), semiconductor device fabrication (Transform®), 3D and batch production (P400A, P800, P1500), ultra-fast spatial ALD (C2R), and roll-to-roll ALD (Genesis).  

Beneq’s unique Development Service simplifies customer adoption and proof-of-concept for new ALD processes, while our Coating Service cuts down time to market by outsourcing state of the art ALD production. Our team of engineers and experts is dedicated to making ALD tools accessible for researchers.