K&S CEO to Retire in 2011

Kulicke & Soffa Industries Inc. (K&S) has announced that Chairman and CEO Scott Kulicke plans to retire in June of 2011.

Kulicke, 60, has served as CEO since 1979 and as chairman since 1984. He is the son of Fred Kulicke, co-founder of the assembly equipment company that started in 1951.

The company said its board of directors will promptly begin a search for a new CEO and expects to include both internal and external candidates.

“We are starting the process well in advance of my actual retirement date so the board can ensure they get the best possible successor and to provide for an orderly transition period,” Kulicke said. “Until then we will conduct business as usual.”

In the company’s most recent fiscal quarter (fiscal Q4, reported on in mid November), K&S described the September quarter results as “quite good,” considering the economic turmoil of 2009. Revenue grew to $110 million, more than doubling since the June quarter. That growth, coupled with previous expense reductions, returned K&S to profitability in the quarter. K&S estimated December quarter revenue to improve to approximately $115 million to $120 million.

Kulicke & Soffa