LED players in Japan have been spared major impacts from the March 11 massive earthquake and tsunami that hit the country, as their plants are mostly far away from the stricken areas. With Japan not having a high market share in the LED industry, the global LED supply chain is not expected to be much affected, according to Digitimes Research.
Japan-based players whose plants did feel some impact from the quake include Taiyo Nippon Sanso, Namiki Precision Jewel, Showa Denko and Citizen Electronics.
Taiyo Nippon Sanso, which produces MOCVD machinery, only had a 2.5% share of the global market in 2010, and therefore any possible impact on its production would have little effect on the global MOCVD supply, Digitimes Research said.
Sapphire suppliers Kyocera and Namiki are expected to have a combined global market share of 15.4% in 2011. Kyocera's plants were only rocked mildly by the quake, while Namiki was only affected by power outages with its facilities all remaining intact.
Global sapphire supply is unlikely to see major impacts, but prices may stop falling, Digitimes Research said.
| Japan LED supply chain | ||
| Sector | Company | Quake impact |
| MOCVD | Taiyo Nippon Sanso | Only had 2.5% of global market in 2010 |
| Sapphire | Kyocera | Sapphire facilities not affected; ranked 5th globally |
| Namiki | Affected by power outage; facilities intact; ranked 6th globally | |
| LED chip | Nichia | Facilities far from quake areas; supply unlikely to be affected |
| Toyoda Gosei | Facilities far from quake areas; supply unlikely to be affected | |
| Showa Denko | Facilities near quake areas, but not hit with power outage; it only supplies to specific clients | |
| Citizen Electronics | Facilities near quake areas; affected by power outage | |
Source: Digitimes Research, March 11
Source: Digitimes Research, March 2011
Source: Digitimes Research, March 2011
Source: Digitimes Research, March 2011