Chapter 9 - Quality and Reliability

Abstract

This chapter explains the quality and reliability (Q&R) management in the fabless environment. The lack of direct control of supply chain resources by fabless companies requires that they develop a sense of trust in their suppliers while keeping sufficient controls in place to ensure Q&R. The chapter provides outline of front-end Q&R, which is defined as activities and systems intended to ensure and improve Q&R of the semiconductor products. A brief overview of back-end Q&R is also given, which is defined as those activities and systems which deal with Q&R issues after products have been shipped to the customer. In fabless companies, environment, health, and safety (EHS) systems are typically much more limited in scope than those at integrated device manufacturers (IDMs). The ISO14001 environmental management system, as part of the overall EHS system, is meant to develop and maintain a systematic management approach to the environmental concerns of an organization. The goal of this approach is continual improvement in environmental management. Environmental management at fabless companies is usually somewhat limited, but can cover important issues such as recycling of paper, glass, and plastic and reduction of energy usage.