10 July 2002 -- After the withdrawal from a second round of funding of its lead investor (which was to have contributed 50%), Richard Hill and Peter Rilett of accountants KPMG in Bristol, UK have been appointed joint administrators of the UK's Optical Micro Devices Ltd, which is based in Wootton Bassett near Swindon. The administrators aim to sell the business and assets by 31 July.
Formed in September 1999, OMD was the first 8" wafer fabrication foundry dedicated to the optoelectronics industry. Its £15m facility was officially opened in May 2001 and has 1,000m2 of class 100 cleanroom (plus space to double this, if required). Products (in either wafer or chip form) include both silica-on-silicon based planar lightwave circuits (such as arrayed waveguide gratings) and silicon microbenches (such as V-grooves for fibre alignment).
OMD was preparing to ship first samples in August. However, "Sales have been slower than expected, resulting in a higher than anticipated cash burn-rate," said Hill. President and CEO Kevin Ford, left the company several weeks ago, but none of its 40 staff have yet been laid off.
For a sales pack, contact KPMG on +44 (0)1793 841532.