A global push to increase energy efficiency and cut consumption costs is boosting the prospects of CamSemi, a fabless semiconductor company targeting the power integrated circuit (IC) market.

Cambridge Semiconductor has developed innovative single chip ICs which improve off-line (mains) power conversion efficiency and offer performance enhancements.

They can reduce the size, weight and manufacturing costs for power-supply units used in a range of electronic consumer goods from laptops to mobile phones. The company is also working on ICs for incorporation into designs for environmentally friendly low-energy fluorescent lamps which would lower running costs and provide a more consistent light output.

CamSemi, founded in 2000 as a spinout from Cambridge University, has been recognised as a rising star in the power IC market. It was recently voted as the company most likely to join the ranks of ARM and Cambridge Silicon Radio, two celebrated successes from the technology hotspot of Cambridge.

Scottish Equity Partners first invested in CamSemi in 2003 as part of a £3.75 million funding round and the company has now raised a total of £7 million.

“CamSemi has a very strong competitive position and technology that addresses a significant range of applications over a number of major market opportunities,” said Andrew Davison, a Director in SEP’s Information Technology Group.

“They are on course to become a market leader in intelligent single chip ICs for energy-efficient power conversion.”

The company is led by chief executive David Baillie, who has a 20-year history in senior positions in the international semiconductor industry.

He has hired Trevor Gainey from LSI Logic to take charge of product quality and reliability, and has recruited Nigel Heather as Vice-President Engineering from SiGe Semiconductor, a leading supplier of single chip ICs for new wireless applications.

The company is working with leading manufacturers in the Far East and Europe to build demand for its planned products and expects first revenues in 2006.

“With the backing of supportive investors, we have continued to attract top class people as we gear up for our first product launch” Baillie said. “We’re providing superior solutions for off-line power conversion into a multi-billion dollar global market which is urgently seeking ways to crack current limitations in power IC performance and we have the solutions they need.”

CamSemi’s patented technology has numerous power applications although initially it will develop products for high-volume power supplies and lighting applications. The target power supply segment is estimated to be worth over $2 billion in power semiconductor content and the portion of this served by CamSemi’s products at $635 million. Products are manufactured in commercial foundries, offering significant advantages in terms of costs and scalability of production.

CamSemi is emerging as a leader in its field at a time when governments from Washington to Beijing are introducing measures aimed at conserving energy. President George Bush introduced a One-Watt Power Initiative which specifies that all federal government purchases must have a one-watt standby power while the state of California has introduced a
mandatory efficiency standard for all external power supplies.

The California move is significant as it is the largest market in the US for power supplies and will encourage wider compliance. Other US states are following suit and similar moves are being made in China under its Sustainable Energy Program and also in Australia.

Measures like these signpost a future where energy-efficiency is an increasingly significant market driver, and where companies like CamSemi are in a prime position to lead the way in helping to ensure that energy supply can keep up with ever increasing demand.