Asyst Technologies, Inc. Receives Intel’s Preferred Quality Supplier Award

Asyst Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASYT) has received Intel Corporation’s Preferred Quality Supplier (PQS) award recognizing their significant contributions to Intel in 2008. Asyst supplies Intel with automated material handling systems, deemed essential to Intel’s success. Asyst and 25 additional suppliers are recognized as 2008 PQS award winners.

"Asyst Technologies is delighted to be recognized by Intel Corporation as a Preferred Quality Supplier, which we believe reflects our commitment to continuous quality improvement, system reliability, and productivity enhancement on behalf of our customers. We thank Intel for this honor and congratulate our team members around the world whose hard work contributed to this award,” said Steve Schwartz, president, chairman, and CEO, Asyst Technologies.

"Congratulations to Asyst for winning the PQS award for the second consecutive year. In 2008, Asyst continued to demonstrate excellence in customer support and project execution while maintaining outstanding safety performance and providing effective cost of ownership reduction programs in support of our product roadmap,” said David Bloss, Technology Manufacturing Engineering Automation director, Intel Corporation.

The PQS award is part of Intel’s Supplier Continuous Quality Improvement (SCQI) program that encourages suppliers to strive for excellence and continuous improvement. To qualify for PQS status, suppliers must score 80 percent on a report card that assesses performance and ability to meet cost, quality, availability, delivery, technology and responsiveness goals. Suppliers must also manage and deliver on a challenging improvement plan and a quality/business systems assessment. Furthermore, the 2008 awardees had to demonstrate basic compliance to the Electronic Industry Code of Conduct and Intel’s Green Sustainability Program. Additional information about the SCQI program is available at http://supplier.intel.com/quality/scqi.htm.

Celebrations will be held in Tokyo, Japan and Santa Clara, California during the month of March 2009 to honor the PQS award winners. In addition, there will be an online advertisement launch and acknowledgement on Intel’s website.

About Asyst

Asyst Technologies, Inc., founded in 1984, provides automation solutions optimized for the needs of our global customers in the semiconductor, flat panel display, and related industries. As the most experienced fab automation company, we are dedicated to helping our customers gain competitive advantage through the intelligent application of our wide range of productivity and yield-boosting technologies. Asyst solutions are used in every 300mm wafer fabrication facility in the world and in the vast majority of 200mm facilities that use the standard mechanical interface (SMIF) manufacturing protocol. The world’s top 20 chipmakers and top 20 equipment companies all use Asyst products.

Intel is a trademark or registered trademark of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.

Asyst is a registered trademark of Asyst Technologies, Inc.