Technology >> CEO Interviews >> October 26, 1998
ASURI 'RAGS' RAGHAVAN joined Gasonics International in April, 1998, as
President and Chief Executive Officer. He replaces Dave Toole, who was
appointed Chairman of the Board. Prior to joining GaSonics, Raghavan
served as equipment group President at Kulicke and Soffa Industries,
Inc., managing approximately two thirds of the company's business. With
proven skills in market development, strategic development, and general
management, he helped to dramatically increase global market share for
K&S with particular focus in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, and other
key areas in Asia. During that time, K&S' market share improved from 22%
to 55%, and Rags is widely acknowledged as being a key contributor to
that growth. His particular areas of strength included a product life
cycle acceleration, which returned lost market share, definition of
intellectual property policies, and participation in industry consortia.
Responsible for all equipment marketing activity, his group also
leveraged the company's core competencies to the extent that stock
prices rose from $5 in 1992 to its current price in the mid-50s. His
broad experience over sixteen years at K&S, combined with his tenure as
Director of Research & Technology for American Optical Corporation,
equips him well to marshall GaSonics' roadmaps for technology
development and global corporate growth. GaSonics International has
recently gone direct with most of its international sales operations,
and has redefined the technology segment of semiconductor manufacturing
where its core competencies are becoming increasingly critical.
'Integrated Clean,' Raghavan says, 'represents critical process steps
which have become more complex and application specific. As layers
increase and geometries decrease, GaSonics experience in both
photoresist and residue removal will help our customers improve
productivity, operate more cost-effectively, and reduce the
environmental impact of solvent use. I'm excited at the chance to work
with GaSonics management to take advantage of this opportunity. We have
a wonderful growth opportunity before us.' Raghavan holds a M.S. in
Computer Science from Temple University, and a B.S. in Electrical
Engineering from the University of Madras. Profile
Mr. Raghavan: GaSonics is a company that was founded in 1971. It is a
company today that manufactures, sells and
