What Owens Design does

Owens Design (now operating as AIR Silicon Valley, a business unit of Automated Industrial Robotics, Inc.) is a custom automation equipment design and manufacturing firm founded in 1983 and headquartered in Fremont, California. The company develops and builds custom manufacturing equipment for high-technology industries including semiconductors, medical devices, EV batteries, renewable energy, data storage, and emerging technologies. Its customer base spans startups to tier-1 OEMs, with named relationships including Applied Materials, KLA, Lam Research, Veeco, Teradyne, Boston Scientific, Abbott, Intuitive Surgical, Tesla, and Seagate. The company operates from two Fremont facilities totaling 60,000 sqft with 100+ full-time employees, including 35+ experienced engineers averaging 15+ years of industry experience.

Owens Design's product portfolio centers on custom automation systems integrating precision mechanisms, robotics, laser processing, metrology, and factory automation software. Its flagship product is the PR:IME Pre-Engineered Platform, an industry-first modular architecture for semiconductor inspection and metrology launched in April 2025, which standardizes mechanical, electrical, and software interfaces to accelerate the lab-to-fab transition for 200mm and 300mm wafers. Other differentiating capabilities include a patent-pending lyophilized bead singulation and dispensing system with vision-based inspection, custom PLC/PC control systems supporting OPC-UA, SQL, and SECS/GEM protocols for fab integration, and configurable automated laser wafer platforms. The company holds ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 certifications and operates strategic technology partnerships with Turner Laser Systems (co-located in its building) for laser process expertise and CTS for material flow and automated bagging solutions.

The business operates a project-based professional services model complemented by volume manufacturing revenue. Pricing is fully quote-based and project-specific, structured around a four-phase development process starting with Phase 0 mutual qualification, Phase 1 concept/cost/schedule development, and subsequent prototype and production phases. Revenue is generated through custom equipment design and build services (Phase 1-3 development) plus ongoing volume manufacturing runs, with reorder volumes per product line ranging from 4 to 234 units. Distribution is exclusively direct enterprise sales with no channel partners or resellers, and senior engineers are engaged from initial qualification through delivery. The company ships globally to customers in the U.S., Korea, Taiwan, Europe, and China, with 3,000+ systems delivered since 1983.

Name

Owens Design

Legal name

Owens Design

Website

https://owensdesign.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Owens Design (now AIR Silicon Valley) is a Fremont, California-based custom automation equipment designer and manufacturer founded in 1983, serving semiconductor, medical device, EV battery, renewable energy, and data storage OEMs with end-to-end prototype-to-volume manufacturing capabilities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Industrial Automation Equipment

NAICS

Instruments and Related Products Manufacturing for Measuring, Displaying, and Controlling Industrial Process Variables (334513), Semiconductor Machinery Manufacturing (333242), Industrial Machinery Manufacturing (3332)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

Control System Integration & Engineering Services (Design, Commissioning, Retrofits) (IMAGABAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) (IMAGAGAA), Sensors & Instrumentation Electronics Manufacturing Services (Transmitters, analyzers, industrial sensors) (IMAGAGAL)

Keywords

• Custom automation equipment
• Semiconductor inspection systems
• Factory automation services
• Medical device manufacturing automation
• Precision engineering services

Headquarters

HQ city

Fremont

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Custom Equipment Design & Build Services: Project-based professional services for designing and building custom automation equipment. Revenue generated through phased engagements from concept through prototype to volume manufacturing. Customers pay for engineering development, prototyping, and production runs.
2. Volume Manufacturing: Repeat builds of custom automation systems with continuous improvement over time. Includes supply chain management, BOM cost optimization, and production scaling. Revenue derived from ongoing production orders after initial prototype development.
3. Difficult-to-Outsource Manufacturing: Specialized manufacturing services for complex equipment builds requiring engineering expertise beyond standard contract manufacturing. Addresses scenarios with incomplete documentation, design reliability issues, or complicated assembly procedures.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Owens Design (now AIR Silicon Valley) designs, engineers, and manufactures custom automation equipment and factory automation systems for high-technology industries including semiconductors, medical devices, EV batteries, renewable energy, data storage, and emerging technologies. The company delivers end-to-end capabilities from concept development and prototyping through volume manufacturing, anchored by the PR:IME pre-engineered platform for semiconductor inspection and metrology. Services include product design and build for OEMs, difficult-to-outsource manufacturing, laser process automation, lyophilized bead handling, materials handling, process technology integration, and custom control systems and software.

Product overview

Owens Design (now AIR Silicon Valley, a business unit of Automated Industrial Robotics, Inc.) is a custom equipment and factory automation company offering a comprehensive portfolio of design, engineering, and manufacturing services. The core offering centers on the PR:IME Pre-Engineered Platform—a modular semiconductor inspection and metrology platform—alongside product design and build services for OEMs, factory automation equipment, difficult-to-out-source manufacturing, and specialized capabilities including laser process development, medical device automation, battery manufacturing automation, lyophilized bead handling, materials handling, process technology integration, and control systems and software. Services span from prototype design and build through volume manufacturing, targeting industries including semiconductors, medical devices, EV batteries, renewable energy, data storage, and emerging technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PR:IME: Pre-Engineered Platform for semiconductor inspection and metrology technologies. A modular system architecture designed to accelerate commercialization from R&D to high-volume manufacturing, featuring standardized mechanical, electrical, and software interfaces.

Products and services

• PR:IME Pre-Engineered Platform A modular, pre-engineered semiconductor inspection and metrology platform featuring standardized mechanical, electrical, and software interfaces that accelerates lab-to-fab transition with reduced development overhead for semiconductor OEMs.
• Product Design & Build for OEMs Custom equipment design, development, and manufacturing service for original equipment manufacturers, transforming IP into production-ready prototypes on accelerated schedules.
• Factory Automation Equipment Design & Build Custom factory automation equipment from prototype design and build to volume manufacturing, including turnkey high-volume and fully automated manufacturing equipment for factory operations.
• Difficult-to-Outsource Manufacturing Manufacturing services for highly complex, unique, and specialized equipment builds where significant engineering and manufacturing challenges remain, unlike standard contract manufacturers.
• Laser Process Development & Automation Custom automated laser solutions including turnkey laser platforms, configurable laser automation, and custom laser processing tools for ablation, cutting, dicing, drilling, etching, micro-machining, scribing, welding, and glass filimentation.
• Semiconductor Equipment Automation Custom semiconductor equipment development including metrology and inspection equipment, wafer handling, processing systems, and volume manufacturing for semiconductor OEMs.
• Semiconductor Metrology & Inspection Development Design and manufacture of fab-ready metrology and inspection equipment integrating proprietary customer technology into semi-custom platforms with wafer handling, staging, and environmental controls.
• Automated Laser Wafer Platform Configurable laser processing platform with wafer handling automation supporting 150-300mm wafers and solar M6-M12 form factors, with standard EFEM options and SECS/GEM factory integration.
• Medical Device Equipment Automation Custom automation equipment for assembly and manufacturing of medical devices with emphasis on organic contamination control, including precision dispense, aseptic environments, and high-throughput robotic pick and place.
• Battery Manufacturing Automation Custom automation solutions for battery manufacturing covering calendaring, cell assembly, electrode processing, and quality inspection for EV batteries and home energy storage applications.
• Lyophilized Bead Handling Automation Custom manufacturing equipment for handling and dispensing lyophilized beads including patent-pending singulation systems that dispense beads at 30-60 PPM without damage or contamination.
• Materials Handling Specialized materials handling for semiconductor wafers, display glass, solar cells, and medical devices with precision alignment and placement repeatability to less than 5 micrometers.
• Process Technology Integration Integration of various process technologies including precision mechanisms, machine vision, robotics, laser processing, fluid dispense, vacuum systems, and metrology inspection into custom equipment.
• Control Systems & Software Custom control systems and software including servo motion control, PLC and PC-based programming, HMI development, and factory MES interface using OPC UA, SQL databases, and SCADA platforms.
• Flexible Turnkey Manufacturing Flexible manufacturing operations for low to medium volume advanced complex equipment with supply chain management, electronics assembly, and documentation for production transfer.
• Semiconductor Storage & Buffer Automation Material flow and automated bagging solutions for semiconductor factories including Smart Warehouse, Mini Smart Warehouse, AMR systems, and AutoBagging systems developed in partnership with CTS.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% delivery record since founding in 1983
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, core and flagship.

• CTS (Clean Transport Systems)supportingTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2019Partnership with CTS for material flow and automated bagging solutions in semiconductor manufacturing. CTS provides Smart Warehouse and Mini Smart Warehouse storage solutions, AMR (autonomous mobile robots) for production line supply, transfer stations, and AutoBagging systems for wafer box packing. Owens Design integrates these solutions into custom semiconductor equipment for factories and OEMs.
• Turner Laser Systems (TLS)coreTechnology or IntegrationStrategic partnership with laser systems provider headquartered in Owens Design's building. TLS provides state-of-the-art laser process expertise while Owens Design delivers automation and scaling capabilities. Together they offer turnkey laser automation platforms, configurable laser automation modules, and fully custom laser processing tools. TLS brings 360-Mastery Methodology for production-ready process development.
• Automated Industrial Robotics, Inc. (AIR)flagshipOthersOwens Design is now AIR Silicon Valley, a business unit of Automated Industrial Robotics, Inc. This acquisition expands AIR's U.S. presence and adds a leading developer of custom automation solutions for high-technology industries. Owens Design brings deep Silicon Valley engineering expertise, 40+ years of domain knowledge, and established customer relationships in semiconductors, medical devices, and battery manufacturing.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ATS Corporation: ATS Corporation is a direct peer — a publicly-traded Canadian custom automation design and build company serving medical, semiconductor, energy, and consumer products. Both firms operate under a project-based professional services model with phased development processes, custom equipment design, and volume manufacturing follow-on. ATS is Owens Design's closest scaled comparable.
• FormFactor: FormFactor is a direct peer in semiconductor test and metrology automation. Both companies design wafer-level inspection and metrology equipment integrated into tier-1 fabs, and both supply to the same KLA, Applied Materials, and Lam Research customer set. FormFactor is Owens Design's largest semi metrology automation competitor.
• Onto Innovation: Onto Innovation is a direct peer in semiconductor inspection and metrology equipment. Both companies target the same 200mm/300mm wafer inspection market with automated handling, and Onto's recent acquisitions have extended it into adjacent process control segments where Owens Design's PR:IME platform competes.
• Brooks Automation: Brooks Automation is a direct peer in semiconductor wafer handling, vacuum, and automation subsystems. Both companies serve major fabs globally with integrated automation modules — though Brooks is significantly larger and more productized, while Owens Design offers custom variants.
• Hine Automation: Hine Automation is a direct peer in custom automation design and build for semiconductor, medical, and energy applications. Both firms are mid-sized US-based automation houses competing for the same overflow engineering work from large OEMs and startup founders in semi cap equipment.
• JLS Automation: JLS Automation is a direct peer in custom packaging and assembly automation with a focus on medical device, food, and consumer products. Like Owens Design, JLS provides turnkey custom equipment from prototype through volume manufacturing for high-mix regulated production environments.
• ESS Technologies: ESS Technologies is a direct peer in custom packaging automation, end-of-line systems, and robotic integration. Both firms target medical device and consumer products manufacturers with similar phased development approaches and project-based revenue models.
• Quantum Automation: Quantum Automation is a direct peer in custom automation systems integration and turnkey equipment design. Both companies serve similar mid-market OEMs across electronics assembly, medical, and emerging technology applications with project-based delivery models.

Broad incumbents

• MKS Instruments: MKS Instruments is a broad incumbent in semi process equipment, instrumentation, and control. While significantly larger and more diversified, MKS competes with Owens Design in the integrated semi process control and metrology module space through its Equipment Solutions and Atotech businesses.

Emerging players

• Edge Automation: Edge Automation is an emerging player in custom industrial automation, robotics integration, and machine vision. Comparable to Owens Design as a smaller, agile alternative for custom automation projects in semiconductor-adjacent and life science applications.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/149456475082013
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/owens-design

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Owens Design