en.Wedoany.com Reported - Japanese bathroom fixtures manufacturer TOTO has announced plans to invest approximately 80 billion yen (about 3.35 billion yuan) in the semiconductor materials sector over the next five years, aiming to expand production capacity for AI-related products while accelerating the development of materials for 1-nanometer and more advanced process nodes.
In the fiscal year ending March 2026, semiconductor-related businesses accounted for only 11% of TOTO's total capital expenditure. This proportion is set to increase significantly in the coming years. TOTO Chief Technology Officer Ryosuke Hayashi stated that with the company's large-scale capacity expansion in the United States largely completed, semiconductor-related capital expenditure will account for over 50% of total capital spending, marking a fundamental shift in the investment ratio compared to the bathroom equipment business.
Over the past few years, TOTO has completed large-scale capacity expansions for bathroom products in the U.S. and Chinese markets, while leveraging its accumulated ceramic technology to transform into a semiconductor materials supplier. Its core advantage lies in the precision molding and inorganic material processing techniques developed through ceramic production, which meet the stringent requirements for material precision and purity in semiconductor manufacturing, making them suitable for producing ceramic components needed in processes such as packaging and lithography.
Electrostatic chucks are one of the main products in TOTO's semiconductor materials portfolio. The company applies the firing technology used for ceramic bathroom products to semiconductor material production. These components are used to secure silicon wafers during chip manufacturing, requiring extremely high resistance to contamination, corrosion, and high temperatures, making them critical parts in key processes such as lithography, etching, and deposition.
From bathroom products to wafer chucks, TOTO is transitioning toward becoming a key supplier of semiconductor materials. This transformation is based on the company's long-standing core ceramic technology, aligning with the growing demand for high-precision semiconductor materials driven by the rise in AI computing power needs.
According to data from relevant institutions, the global semiconductor equipment market is expected to exceed $150 billion by 2027. Core ceramic components such as electrostatic chucks account for approximately 5% to 8% of material costs, and with the surge in EUV lithography machine shipments, the compound annual growth rate is expected to exceed 15%. Furthermore, process nodes of 1 nanometer and below will give rise to entirely new material systems, and early movers are likely to define industry standards.
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