Semiconductor equipment developer Suss Microtec AG has appointed Franz Richter as its president and CEO. "We are delighted that in Dr. Richter we could win a proven expert familiar with the company as well as the industry and an internationally experienced manager for the position as CEO, who stands for continuity and at the same time for innovative solutions,” said Stefan Reineck, chairman of the supervisory board of Suss Microtec. Following his professional activities as a scientist at the Carl Zeiss Group and the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology, Richter worked at Suss Microtec for 14 years, spending six of those years as its CEO, until 2004. After serving as president of semiconductor equipment division at Unaxis Optics, he set up Thin Materials AG and became its CEO in 2007. The company is engaged in the process development for the 3D chip integration and was successfully sold to Nissan Chemical Industries Ltd. Tokyo, in 2013. Today, Richter serves as a member of the supervisory board of Siltronic AG, as well as the administrative boards of Meyer Burger Technology AG and Comet Holding AG. "I look forward to the exciting challenge as CEO in this high-technology company. Suss Microtec has an enormous potential in rapidly changing markets. I am convinced that the management board and the supervisory board together will shape the successful future of the company,” Richter said. Suss Microtec is a supplier of equipment and process solutions for the semiconductor industry and other markets.