The Road to Fab Autonomy: Building on Automation, Optimisation, and Visibility

Industry leaders Intel, KUKA and Flexciton use the SEMI Automation & Autonomy Maturity Framework to plan a practical path to fab autonomy.

December 5, 2025

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The Road to Fab Autonomy: Building on Automation, Optimisation, and Visibility

Industry leaders Intel, KUKA and Flexciton use the SEMI Automation & Autonomy Maturity Framework to plan a practical path to fab autonomy.

December 5, 2025

As fabs strive for higher efficiency and resilience, the journey toward autonomy is accelerating. This joint webinar - hosted by Flexciton in collaboration with Intel AFS and KUKA - explores how interoperable, real-world solutions are helping fabs progress along the SEMI Smart Manufacturing “Automation & Autonomy Maturity Framework.”

Through real-world examples, participants will learn how fabs can advance along the framework’s stages (M0–M4) by improving three key capability areas: material handling automation, smart scheduling and planning, and operational visibility. You’ll also hear how interoperable technologies demonstrate that autonomy is achievable through incremental, data-driven steps rather than major rebuilds.

Download the recording to see how this framework is shaping a new era of intelligent manufacturing - one where fabs gain flow, throughput, and resilience through collaboration, standardisation, and smarter use of automation.

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Meet Flexciton at the Smart Manufacturing Pavilion in Munich and Upcoming Webinars

Flexciton’s schedule for the next month features multiple opportunities to engage with our team and gather insights on manufacturing efficiency, both in-person and online.

Intel and Flexciton Announce Partnership

Intel and Flexciton announce partnership to provide semiconductor manufacturers with a comprehensive Factory Automation and Optimisation Software Solution

UK Tech Network – London-based Flexciton picks up £15M funding in the times of global chip shortage

Wrestling with Recipes

Insightful experiments expose the weakness of limiting the number of recipes enabled on a tool. The key findings are that this limitation can lead to an increase in fab cycle times by more than 40 percent.

Why Optimized Scheduling is the Answer to Balancing Reticle Moves and Cycle Time

The scarcity and fragility of reticles presents fab operators with a tradeoff that we have assessed by investigating three case studies where Flexciton's intelligent scheduler has been used to explore the different outcomes.

To Batch or Not to Batch?

Batch tools are purposefully built to process two or more lots in parallel. However, due to the complexity and volatility of the wafer fabrication environment, each day wafer fabs are challenged to make complicated batching decisions.

Understanding the Trade-offs in Preventative Maintenance for an Optimized Fab Performance

The tools used in a fabrication process are extremely sophisticated; requiring an extensive preventive maintenance regime to ensure reliable production. A big challenge faced by fab managers is getting in place optimal scheduling of preventative maintenance whilst still meeting their production KPIs.

Yahoo Finance – The global chip shortage is driving demand for this London startup's software

User-focused Digitalisation: Empowering Wafer Fab Operators with Intelligent Software

In the challenge of digitising semiconductor wafer fabs, Flexciton aspires to play a pivotal role in cultivating highly skilled operators and managers—individuals who are empowered by our technology rather than being replaced by it. Learn more about our customer-centric approach in this blog from Valentina.

WIRED – What Does the Future Hold for London’s Scale-up Scene

The Wall Street Journal – What’s Harder to Find Than Microchips? The Equipment That Makes Them

The Reticle Allocation Problem and How to Approach it [Tech Paper Review]

This week, Daniel Cifuentes Daza, one of the Optimization Engineers here at Flexciton, explores the problem of reticle allocation in the photo area by reviewing a technical paper by Benzoni, A. et. al

The Theory of Constraints

Any manageable system is limited by at least one constraint. So, what happens if the system in question is the most complex manufacturing process in existence?

The Flex Factor with... Will

Introducing Will, Lead Backend Engineer at Flexciton. Explore his daily tasks, ranging from crafting backend architecture to overseeing the codebase and managing technical debt in this month's edition of The Flex Factor.

The Pareto Principle of Wait Time

Because of bottlenecked toolsets, wafers will spend a great proportion of their cycle time queuing rather than processing. The longer or more uncertain the wait time, the higher risk of variability in the cycle time. This ultimately impacts the overall productivity of a fab.

The Pathway to the Autonomous Wafer Fab

The semiconductor industry is set to receive $1tn in investment over the next six years, driven by AI and advanced technologies, with over 100 new wafer fabs expected. However, labor shortages continue to pose a challenge, pushing the need for autonomous wafer fabs to ensure continued growth.

The Flex Factor with... Yichen

In this month’s edition of The Flex Factor, we introduce one of our QA Engineers: Yichen Tian. Have a read to find out what this serial multitasker does during her day-to-day.

The Flex Factor with... Sudesh

Say hello to Sudesh Lutchman; senior back end engineer, delivery manager for the Taiichi team here at Flexciton and aspiring jet pilot.

The Flex Factor with... Seb

Introducing Seb Steele; self-proclaimed 'colossal nerd', John Boyd super fan and all-round product person.

The Flex Factor with... Jamie

Say hello to Jamie, one of Flexciton's frontend developers. From watering his cactus to perfecting the user experience of our application, find out what he does during his day-to-day in this month's edition of The Flex Factor.

The Flex Factor with... Sully

Meet Sully, the Bucket Brigade team's backend wizard, as he shines in the spotlight for July's edition of The Flex Factor. Discover more about the diverse challenges he tackles during his day-to-day and the valuable career advice he wishes he had known earlier.

The Flex Factor with... Jannik

Please give a warm welcome to Jannik, our next team member to sit in the hot seat. In this edition of The Flex Factor, find out how Jannik juggles being both an optimization engineer and customer lead, as well as what get's him excited in the world of tech.

The Flex Factor with... Nitin

Meet Nitin, our Senior DevOps engineer and security guru. Keep reading to learn a bit more about him and what it's like work in DevOps at Flexciton.

The Flex Factor with... Lio

Meet Lio, a driving force behind client success as Flexciton's Technical Customer Lead. Discover more about her keen eye for collaboration and passion for innovation in this edition of The Flex Factor.

The Flex Factor with... Charlotte

This month on The Flex Factor, we get to know our Senior People & Talent Partner, Charlotte Conway! Find out a little more about her and how she creates a supportive environment that helps our whole team to thrive.

The Flex Factor with... James

Meet James Adamson, one of our senior optimization engineers here at Flexciton. Many, many moons ago he was an aspirant farmer, now he’s designing and improving our scheduling algorithms.

The Flex Factor with... Felipe

Join Felipe as he shares his typical day at Flexciton, highlights the most rewarding aspects of his role and offers valuable career advice in this month’s edition of The Flex Factor.

Multi-objective Fab Scheduling: Exploring Scenarios and Tradeoffs for Better Decision Making

Building and maintaining any form of scheduling solution to be flexible yet robust is not an easy undertaking. Commonly, fab managers have resorted to rule-based dispatch systems or other discrete-event simulation software that asks a simple question: do I care more about getting wafers out the door, or reducing the cycle time of those wafers?

The Flex Factor with... Amar

On this month's edition of The Flex Factor, we're introducing Amar. Solutions engineer by day and the front man of Flexciton's band by night, find out a bit more about him and what he does for the team.

Switching to Autonomous Scheduling: What is the Impact on Your Fab?

From guaranteed KPI improvements to reducing fab workload by 50%, this blog introduces some of the benefits of Autonomous Scheduling Technology (AST) and how it contrasts with the scheduling status quo.

Scheduling as a Cornerstone of the Smart Factory [Part 1]

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Security and the Cloud: Should We Really Keep Everything On-prem?

Ray Cooke delves into the pivotal considerations surrounding cloud adoption in the context of wafer fabrication. For those reading sceptically, uncertain about the merits of cloud integration, or perhaps prompted by concerns about lagging behind competitors—this blog endeavours to shed light on key areas of relevance.

EETimes – Tapping AI for Leaner, Greener Semiconductor Fab Operations

Scheduling Time Constraints in Wafer Fabrication

In a highly complex wafer fabrication environment, even the most advanced fabs struggle with scheduling time constraints. Begun Efeoglu Sanli, one of our Optimization Engineers, reviews a recently published technical paper on this particular subject.

Silicon Semiconductor – Fab Scheduling is Now So Complex That it Needs Next-gen Intelligent Software

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Scheduling as a Cornerstone of the Smart Factory [Part 2]

In Part 2 of this blog, Ben Van Damme delves further into the potential of advanced optimization-based scheduling for wafer fabs in the not too distant future.

Scheduling Innovations: Academic Research and its Adoption in the Semiconductor Industry

This article focuses on innovations in scheduling: algorithms which assign lots to machines, decide in which order they should run, and ensure any required secondary resources are available.

Position Vacant: Are Chip Companies Really Running Out Of People?

The semiconductor industry worries that it won’t have enough workers to run its new fabs. But there’s a labour problem right now at legacy facilities. Could disruptive technologies help to solve this problem?

£11.5m to Improve Semiconductor Manufacturing and Supply Chains

Maximising Wafer Fab Performance: Harnessing the Cloud's Competitive Edge

To cloud, or not cloud, that is the question. As other industries make the leap towards cloud technology, uptake with chipmakers continues to lag behind. In this article, Laurence explores the potential benefits of cloud adoption to equip Fab Managers with the motivation to reconsider the question.

New Electronics – Delivering More Efficient Fabs

Managing The Human Side Of Smart Manufacturing

Change management is just as important as new technology in a successful implementation. Jamie Potter has his say on what he thinks service providers can do differently to help fabs adopt new technologies.

Looking Into The Future: How Advanced Optimization Can Manage Timelink Constraints (Part 1)

Timelinks are one of the most challenging aspects of a wafer fab to navigate and significantly increase the complexity of scheduling it. We take a dive into a case study that shows how optimization can be used to manage timelinks to alleviate pressure on bottleneck tools.

PitchBook – London's Flexciton pulls in £15m Series A

Machine Says No – Is There A Way Around The Legacy Equipment Shortage?

Manufacturing equipment makers are under pressure to meet new fabs’ demands, with a serious knock-on effect for legacy chip makers. But can they increase capacity without increasing their number of tools?

Looking Into The Future: How Advanced Optimization Can Manage Timelink Constraints (Part 2)

In our second case study, we consider a more complex problem where a trade-off must be made between the cycle time of high priority lots and violating certain timelinks.

Is It Time to Redefine the UK's Role Within the Semiconductor Industry?

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Has the EU Chips Act Failed Before it's Started? Industry Strategy Symposium 2023

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It’s Time For The Semiconductor Industry To Embrace Smart Manufacturing

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The semiconductor industry is at the cutting edge of technology – so why is it still so nervous about the cloud? Persisting with an outmoded security model means missing out on significant gains in manufacturing.

Is It Possible to Improve Performance and Be More Energy Efficient?

The semiconductor industry needs to become more sustainable in a world of increasing demand – optimization holds the key.

Goodhart’s Law and the Pitfalls of Targeting Load Port Utilisation on Photo Tools

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Investigating Operational Decisions and Their Impact on Energy Efficiency in Wafer Fabs

Chipmakers will encounter major challenges before the end of the decade in their quest to achieve stringent emissions goals. In light of this, we are working on an initiative to explore innovative approaches for reducing the carbon impact of the semiconductor sector.

Flexciton’s Software Trial at Renesas Tackles One of the Most Complex Aspects of Fab Scheduling

Timelinks are one of the most challenging scheduling problems found in a wafer fab and were causing a particular problem for Renesas Electronics' US fab. After seeing the potential performance gains with our software trial, they decided to go ahead with full implementation.

Heuristics or Mathematical Optimization: Which is the Best Method for Wafer Fab Scheduling?

Scheduling a wafer fab to run optimally is one of the most challenging mathematical problems that exists in modern-day manufacturing. Why?

Innovate UK invests in breakthrough technology developed by Flexciton and Seagate

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, has invested in Flexciton and Seagate Technology's production planning project to help improve UK semiconductor manufacturing.

Harnessing AI's Potential: Revolutionizing Semiconductor Manufacturing

AI has unquestionably stood out as the prevailing technological theme of the year. This wave of innovation begs the question: how can the semiconductor industry, which stands at the heart of technological progress, leverage AI to navigate its own intricate challenges?

Flexciton and Seagate Technology to Present at SEMI's Upcoming FutureFab Solutions Webinar

What will the future of wafer fabrication look like? With innovative AI-driven technologies paving the way for significant improvements in efficiency, quality and on-time delivery whilst also driving down costs – chip manufacturers need to be paying close attention.

Fab-Wide Scheduling of Semiconductor Plants: A Large-Scale Industrial Deployment Case Study

Decision-making in wafer fabs is a two-level problem. On one hand, fab-wide scheduling is tasked with the strategic management of factory assets. On the other hand, toolset-level scheduling focuses on the operation of individual work centres.

Silicon Semiconductor – Flexciton Trials Software at Renesas Fab

Fortune – The global chip shortage is driving demand for this London startup’s software

EU Chips Act Proposes €43 Billion Of Support – But How Will It Be Spent?

The European Commission has set out an ambitious plan to double the EU’s share of the semiconductor market to 20% by 2030. But is increasing production capacity the way forward? In this blog, we look at where they should and shouldn’t be spending their money to achieve this aim.

Flexciton Announces £15M Series A to Boost the Capability of the Global Semiconductor Industry

Since its inception, Flexciton has received over £21m in funding, with its recent Series A round raising a total of £15m. The Series A investment will be used for hiring across different areas of the team.

Webinar: Flexciton and Seagate Case Study

Jamie Potter, CEO & Co-founder of Flexciton and Tina O'Donnell, Systems Engineering Manager from Seagate discussed advanced scheduling technology and its impact on wafer fab production performance.

Flexciton Return to Present at FMF 2022 For This Year's SEMICON Europa

This year, Flexciton will be returning to Munich, Germany for SEMICON Europa and the 2022 Fab Management Forum and we're thrilled to announce that we'll be silver sponsors of the event!

Flexciton Cofounders Reflect on Their Five Year Journey

The past 12 months have been intensely positive, bringing new exciting projects and allowing the company to accelerate its growth. We took this opportunity and asked Flexciton's cofounders to reflect on their journey.

EU-Startups – London-based Flexciton secures about €17.8 million to boost the capability of the global semiconductor industry

Evening Standard – The London startups to watch in 2022

Eminetra – London-based Flexciton raises £15m in times of global chip shortage

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C is for Cycle Time [Part 1]

This two-part article aims to explain how we can improve cycle time in front-end semiconductor manufacturing through innovative solutions. In part 1, we discuss the importance of cycle time for manufacturers and introduce the operating curve to relate cycle time to factory utilization.

Electronics Weekly – AI Will Transform the Semiconductor Industry

C is for Cycle Time [Part 2]

In part 2, Dennis explores strategies to enhance cycle time through advanced scheduling solutions, contrasting them with traditional methods. He uses the operating curve, this time to demonstrate how AI scheduling and operational factors, such as product mix, can significantly impact cycle time.

EENews Europe – Time to Redefine the UK’s Role Within the Semiconductor Industry Says Flexciton CEO

B is for Batching

In the second instalment of the Flexciton Tech Glossary Series, we're taking you on an insightful journey through the world of batching. Find out about the many complexities of batching, the existing methods of solving the problem and the wider solution space.

EENews Europe – Renesas Looks To AI-enabled Fab Optimisation

EE Journal – Boosting Semiconductor Fab Productivity by up to 20 Percent

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EENews Europe – AI Optimisation Boost for Wafer Fab Sustainability

Come and Visit Our Booth at SEMICON West This July!

From 11–13 July 2023, Flexciton will be returning to San Francisco for this the latest edition of SEMICON West. And this time, we’ll be joining the Techworks / NMI members zone, where we will have our own stand – located at booth 945.

A is for AI

We are excited to introduce the Flexciton Tech Glossary Blog Series: A deep dive into the A-Z of semiconductor technology and innovation. In the first edition of the series, Ioannis Konstantelos and Dennis Xenos take a dive into AI and its applications in semiconductor manufacturing.

A Hot Topic: What Makes Scheduling the Diffusion Area so Challenging? [Tech Paper Review]

The diffusion area is particularly important to the smooth operation of a wafer fab. Not only does it receive raw wafers at the very beginning of the fabrication process but it also interacts with many other areas of the fab.

BusinessCloud – 'AI for chips' firm Flexciton lands £15m

A Fab Manager's Dilemma: Maintenance Scheduling vs Productivity KPIs

A typical approach is to plan maintenance activities ahead of time using simple rules-based models, where the maintenance is run on a particular day, at a particular time. The consequence of such approach, however, is optimising maintenance timing at the expense of production KPIs such as cycle time and throughput.

BDaily News – Optimisation technology company secures £15m Series A investment to boost semiconductor industry

Autonomous Scheduling: A Tale of Three Taxis

At Flexciton, we often talk about how autonomous scheduling allows wafer fabs to surpass the need for maintaining many rules to enable the behaviours they want at different toolsets. Seb Steele offers an analogy to show how significant the difference is.

Accelerating the Future Panel Discussion: Key Takeaways from Industry Leaders

Staying ahead in smart manufacturing technologies has become paramount for global competitiveness. This topic was the focal point of the recent panel discussion webinar hosted by Flexciton.

Five Reasons Why Your Wafer Fab Should Be Using Hybrid Optimization Scheduling

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0xzx – London-based Flexciton receives approximately €17.8 million to enhance global semiconductor industry capabilities

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Powering your autonomous factory transition.

The Road to Fab Autonomy: Building on Automation, Optimisation, and Visibility

The Road to Fab Autonomy: Building on Automation, Optimisation, and Visibility

The Road to Fab Autonomy: Building on Automation, Optimisation, and Visibility

Useful resources

Meet Flexciton at the Smart Manufacturing Pavilion in Munich and Upcoming Webinars

Intel and Flexciton Announce Partnership

UK Tech Network – London-based Flexciton picks up £15M funding in the times of global chip shortage

Wrestling with Recipes

Why Optimized Scheduling is the Answer to Balancing Reticle Moves and Cycle Time

To Batch or Not to Batch?

Understanding the Trade-offs in Preventative Maintenance for an Optimized Fab Performance

Yahoo Finance – The global chip shortage is driving demand for this London startup's software

User-focused Digitalisation: Empowering Wafer Fab Operators with Intelligent Software

WIRED – What Does the Future Hold for London’s Scale-up Scene

We Need To Embrace Complexity, Not Run Away From It

Two Factors That Can Make Or Break Wafer Fab Throughput

A Review of the Two-phase Approach to Photolithography Production Scheduling

The Wall Street Journal – What’s Harder to Find Than Microchips? The Equipment That Makes Them

The Reticle Allocation Problem and How to Approach it [Tech Paper Review]

The Theory of Constraints

The Flex Factor with... Will

The Pareto Principle of Wait Time

The Pathway to the Autonomous Wafer Fab

The Flex Factor with... Yichen

The Flex Factor with... Sudesh

The Flex Factor with... Seb

The Flex Factor with... Jamie

The Flex Factor with... Sully

The Flex Factor with... Jannik

The Flex Factor with... Nitin

The Flex Factor with... Lio

The Flex Factor with... Charlotte

The Flex Factor with... James

The Flex Factor with... Felipe

Multi-objective Fab Scheduling: Exploring Scenarios and Tradeoffs for Better Decision Making

The Flex Factor with... Amar

Switching to Autonomous Scheduling: What is the Impact on Your Fab?

Scheduling as a Cornerstone of the Smart Factory [Part 1]

Security and the Cloud: Should We Really Keep Everything On-prem?

EETimes – Tapping AI for Leaner, Greener Semiconductor Fab Operations

Scheduling Time Constraints in Wafer Fabrication

Silicon Semiconductor – Fab Scheduling is Now So Complex That it Needs Next-gen Intelligent Software

Semiconductor Engineering – Using ML For Improved Fab Scheduling

Scheduling as a Cornerstone of the Smart Factory [Part 2]

Scheduling Innovations: Academic Research and its Adoption in the Semiconductor Industry

Position Vacant: Are Chip Companies Really Running Out Of People?

£11.5m to Improve Semiconductor Manufacturing and Supply Chains

Maximising Wafer Fab Performance: Harnessing the Cloud's Competitive Edge

New Electronics – Delivering More Efficient Fabs

Managing The Human Side Of Smart Manufacturing

Looking Into The Future: How Advanced Optimization Can Manage Timelink Constraints (Part 1)

PitchBook – London's Flexciton pulls in £15m Series A

Machine Says No – Is There A Way Around The Legacy Equipment Shortage?

Looking Into The Future: How Advanced Optimization Can Manage Timelink Constraints (Part 2)

Is It Time to Redefine the UK's Role Within the Semiconductor Industry?

Has the EU Chips Act Failed Before it's Started? Industry Strategy Symposium 2023

It’s Time For The Semiconductor Industry To Embrace Smart Manufacturing

Is Fear Holding Back The Chip Industry’s Future In The Cloud?

Is It Possible to Improve Performance and Be More Energy Efficient?

Goodhart’s Law and the Pitfalls of Targeting Load Port Utilisation on Photo Tools

Investigating Operational Decisions and Their Impact on Energy Efficiency in Wafer Fabs

Flexciton’s Software Trial at Renesas Tackles One of the Most Complex Aspects of Fab Scheduling

Heuristics or Mathematical Optimization: Which is the Best Method for Wafer Fab Scheduling?

Innovate UK invests in breakthrough technology developed by Flexciton and Seagate

Harnessing AI's Potential: Revolutionizing Semiconductor Manufacturing

Flexciton and Seagate Technology to Present at SEMI's Upcoming FutureFab Solutions Webinar

Fab-Wide Scheduling of Semiconductor Plants: A Large-Scale Industrial Deployment Case Study

Silicon Semiconductor – Flexciton Trials Software at Renesas Fab

Fortune – The global chip shortage is driving demand for this London startup’s software

EU Chips Act Proposes €43 Billion Of Support – But How Will It Be Spent?

Flexciton Announces £15M Series A to Boost the Capability of the Global Semiconductor Industry

Webinar: Flexciton and Seagate Case Study

Flexciton Return to Present at FMF 2022 For This Year's SEMICON Europa

Flexciton Cofounders Reflect on Their Five Year Journey

EU-Startups – London-based Flexciton secures about €17.8 million to boost the capability of the global semiconductor industry

Evening Standard – The London startups to watch in 2022

Eminetra – London-based Flexciton raises £15m in times of global chip shortage

Emerging Startups 2023: Top Manufacturing Tech Startups

C is for Cycle Time [Part 1]

Electronics Weekly – AI Will Transform the Semiconductor Industry