Johnson Matthey will license to Kyocera its Plastic Land Grid Array (PLGA) technology, where it has developed leadership in packages for the latest generation of microprocessors. Kyocera will license to JM its technology for future generations of plastic laminate packages for semiconductors. The application of Kyocera's technology is referred to as C4, flip chip or direct chip attach.

JM's PLGA product was certified at its new plant in Chippewa Falls in December 1996. Since then production quantities have been shipped from this facility in steadily growing amounts. Good progress is being made in achieving the goal of full capacity production towards the end of JM's financial year. This will involve some 1.5 million units per month.

Johnson Matthey is a world leader in advanced materials technology and a leading supplier of materials to the semiconductor and microelectronics industries. It entered the multi-layer printed circuit board market with the successful acquisition of Advance Circuits Inc in 1995. Since then, Johnson Matthey has developed leading PLGA technology and has converted the recently acquired printed circuit board business of Cray Research Inc into a state of the art facility for these products. The agreement with Kyocera will help ensure that JM's leading position in plastic laminate technology will be extended well into the future.

Kyoto, Japan - based Kyocera, the world's leading manufacturer of ceramic packages for microprocessors, is now devoting considerable resources to developing new plastic laminate packaging technology. Kyocera is one of Japan's largest suppliers of components and finished products to the electronics industry.

In commenting on these agreements Chris Clark, Johnson Matthey's Chief Operating Officer, said:

"These agreements with Kyocera underline the quality of JM's electronic materials business in general and our rapidly growing PLGA business in particular."

Dr Michael Cleare, Managing Director, Electronic Materials, added: