If you own a smartphone or a smartwatch, drive an electric or hybrid car, have a solar panel on your rooftop or have LEDs in your home, the odds are good that you have come into contact with technology impacted by Sinmat. Sinmat, a leading global manufacturer, supplies chip companies with specialized polishing products called Chemical Mechanical Polishing Slurries — a mixture of chemicals and nanoparticles that enable ultra-precision manufacturing of faster, cheaper and better electronic devices.
Polishing technologies like the ones created by Sinmat represent a growing $20 billion global industry and play a vital role in advanced materials manufacturing sectors such as clean energy electronics, semiconductor manufacturing, consumer electronics and advanced defense optical and electronic systems. Sinmat products are used extensively in the USA and exported worldwide. The manufacturing operations are currently very profitable as it seeks to reach a target of $100 million in sales in the next 5 years. The company’s growth is expected to be fueled by use of new advanced materials such as sapphire, silicon carbide and diamond in the emerging electronics field which are expected to be superior in performance compared to traditional silicon-based electronics.
Sinmat was cofounded by Drs. Deepika and Rajiv Singh in Gainesville in 2000. Despite being among the largest global players in its field, holding 35 patents and four prestigious and coveted R&D 100 Awards, awarded to R&D pioneers for their revolutionary ideas in science and technology, Sinmat has maintained a relatively quiet local profile. Sinmat and its CEO, Dr. Deepika Singh was recognized by President Obama at a White House press conference as one of the fastest growing companies in the clean energy sector. When asked how a company with the massive global presence and impact of Sinmat came to call Gainesville home, Deepika Singh had a simple answer.
“Being longtime residents we decided to incorporate Sinmat in Gainesville. Why not make our own Silicon Valley right here?” Singh said.
Singh went on to say that Gainesville has provided an incredibly supportive environment for the company, which started as a tech startup at GTEC.
“With support from UF, GTEC and the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce, Sinmat has thrived and expanded its operations to a 22,000 square-foot, 3-acre manufacturing facility. GTEC and University of Florida provided us with business mentorship and support when we were getting started which helped the company immensely,” said Deepika Singh.
According to its founders, Sinmat is a company that thrives on innovation. When asked to describe what they do in terms that an interested layman could understand, Rajiv Singh explained, “Basically, a Chemical Mechanical Slurry, is a mixture of nanoparticles, chemicals and water which is used to polish a variety of extremely hard or soft materials. The end product is a flawless surface which can be used across the semiconductor and electronic device industry. It keeps the polishing machines humming and performing at their highest efficiency.”
Microchips made as a result of Sinmat’s patented slurries are widely used in various clean energy electronics applications such as LEDs, electric vehicles, high power and defense applications. Other Sinmat products are used globally to polish screens and parts for smartwatches and smartphones.
Sinmat distributes its products either directly to its customers or uses distributors in other countries. It uses freight companies through land, ocean and air to help in the distribution of tons of slurry worldwide. Sinmat is growing quickly and is currently engaged in business in the United States, Germany, China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Ireland, United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, France, Switzerland, and India.
“The clean energy electronics space and high-speed wireless/cellular communications are the fastest growing markets where Sinmat products are being widely used to make electronic devices, so we really see that as our future,” said Singh.
In the clean energy space, new power electronic devices are being used for transmission of solar and wind energy. These devices are also largely used in electric and hybrid electric vehicles to make them more efficient. In the high-speed communication space, high-speed 5G communication is being used for wireless data transmission.
Sinmat’s unique position in the industry has been noticed by several large global corporations in this space. “Sinmat has made several collaborations with large fortune 100 companies. In the last three years several large corporations have expressed a high level of interest to purchase and invest in the company, however, we have decided to maintain our independence in this growth cycle,” said Rajiv Singh.
The Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce and Council for Economic Outreach is working closely with Sinmat and will recognize Sinmat with a mid-summer Expansion Announcement event to celebrate the company as one of the area’s most impressive manufacturing success stories.
By Rebecca Wentworth
