Exhibit 99.1
[LETTERHEAD OF KULICKE & SOFFA]
NEWS for Immediate Release
Kulicke & Soffa Announces Organizational Change
Willow Grove, PA--September 3, 2002--Kulicke & Soffa Industries Inc. today
announced that due to the continued weakness in the semiconductor industry, it
is eliminating the position of President.
Alexander A. Oscilowski who currently serves in that role, joined K&S in June
1999 as vice president of strategic marketing. Prior to joining the Company, he
was chief operating officer of SEMATECH, a semiconductor research and
development consortium.
C. Scott Kulicke, chairman and chief executive officer commented, "As part of
our ongoing cost reduction actions, we are reviewing our entire management
structure and have concluded that we can no longer retain certain positions.
Alex has made fine contributions to K&S in a difficult industry environment and
we wish him well in his future endeavors."
Effective immediately, Mr. Kulicke will assume the responsibilities of president
in addition to his role as chairman and chief executive officer.
Kulicke & Soffa (Nasdaq: KLIC) is the world's leading supplier of semiconductor
interconnect equipment, materials and technology. Chip and wire solutions
combine wafer dicing and wire bonding equipment with saw blades, die collets,
wire and capillaries. Flip chip solutions include wafer bumping technology. Chip
scale and wafer level packaging solutions include Ultra CSP(R) technology. Test
interconnect solutions include standard and vertical probe cards, ATE interface
assemblies and ATE boards for wafer testing, and test sockets and contactors for
all types of packages. Kulicke & Soffa's web site address is www.kns.com.
Caution Concerning Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements which are found in
various places throughout the press release. While these forward-looking
statements represent our judgments and future expectations concerning the
development of our business, a number of risks, uncertainties and other
important factors could cause actual developments and results to differ
materially from our expectations. These factors include, but are not limited to,
those listed or discussed in Kulicke & Soffa Industries' 2001 Annual Report on
Form 10-K and: the risk that anticipated orders may not materialize or that
orders received may be postponed or canceled, generally without charges; the
risk that anticipated cost savings will not be achieved; the volatility in the
demand for semiconductors and our products and services; acts of terrorism and
violence; overall global economic conditions; risks, such as changes in trade
regulations, currency fluctuations, political instability and war, associated
with a substantial foreign customer and supplier base and substantial foreign
manufacturing
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operations; potential instability in foreign capital markets; the risk of
failure to successfully manage our diverse operations; and other key factors
that could adversely affect our businesses and financial performance contained
in past and future filings and reports, including those with the SEC. Kulicke &
Soffa Industries is under no obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such
obligations to) update or alter its forward-looking statements whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Company Contact:
Investors & Financial Media: All Other Media:
Nancy R. Kyle Henri Van Parys
215-784-6436 215-784-6818
nkyle@kns.com parys@kns.com
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