Hsinchu, Taiwan-based customer service engineers (CSEs) Alan Chen and Oscar Lu embody KLA’s core value of being indispensable to customers. Helping to make that high level of service a reality is Thomas Hsu, technical support engineer (TSE), who is a critical resource for CSEs and, ultimately, KLA’s customers.

Like other CSEs in Taiwan who maintain and troubleshoot KLA tools at fabs, Alan and Oscar often turn to Thomas – a product expert on eBeam wafer defect inspection systems – for quick guidance to keep semiconductor manufacturing lines running, especially as customers adopt new and increasingly complex equipment.

Thomas Hsu, TSE

Thomas, an engineer with three decades of experience, developed an appreciation for cultivating long-term partnerships with customers while working as a CSE at fabs. Delivering quick and effective support is at the core of these relationships.

“Customers are human beings with interests and priorities like everyone else, and during my five years as a CSE, I learned what is important to them and what they need from KLA,” Thomas says. “Getting the job done enhances relationships and builds trust and appreciation from customers.”

As customers adopt new technologies, Thomas often must collaborate with CSEs on products that he has only recently begun to train with – but has, in fact, already mastered.

“We rely upon Thomas’s knowledge and experience to help us solve difficult tool issues not only in Taiwan but also elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific region,” says Ralph Nyffenegger, head of eBeam engineering. “As tools become increasingly complex, we’re extremely lucky to have him on our team.”

Today, as a TSE for 18 years, Thomas maintains regular contact with working-level engineers at fabs to offer guidance and stays current on customer needs through close interaction with CSEs.

“Because I worked as a CSE, I can easily empathize with Alan, Oscar and other CSEs and help to reduce the pressure by talking through complex issues with them and keep customer equipment operating at specification,” Thomas says. “By working together, we’ve formed a very solid team and base of resource knowledge that offer strong service support for our CSEs’ work at fabs.”

Oscar Lu, CSE

Their teamwork, Oscar agrees, is crucial to delivering a high level of customer service.

“Thomas is a senior engineer who takes good care of us CSEs – and Thomas and I are also close personally,” Oscar says. “Whenever I face a complicated situation, he’s always there and never hesitates to share his technical experience. Whenever necessary, he’s willing to go onsite or try to find other resources to help.”

Oscar, who works with some of the world’s top semiconductor manufacturers, always approaches his work with confidence, driven in part by the company’s comprehensive training program for KLA Services employees. Most of KLA’s new CSEs have engineering degrees – Oscar started his career at KLA in 2021 shortly after graduating from National Taiwan University – meaning they begin their jobs with a solid engineering foundation.

“My education and KLA training have helped me make professional decisions proficiently and accurately, which minimizes tool downtime for customers while maintaining and servicing their KLA tools,” Oscar says. “Customers expect us to approach problem-solving logically and with a technical plan – and they expect us to communicate issues and the path forward with honestly, which builds mutual trust.”

Now assigned to support eBeam products, Oscar credits support from Thomas and other TSEs as key to delivering a high level of customer service. Once, after some quick collaboration with TSEs, he resolved an important staging issue on a fab production line. As the senior member of a 10-member team that has grown very quickly in the past two years, Oscar is now in a position to share his own experience with other CSEs joining the company.

“I try my best to share the knowledge I have gained with others so all of us can learn from each other,” he says. “This makes the entire team better and stronger and positions us to more effectively deliver the best-possible service to fabs.”

Alan Chen, CSE

Alan, who was a process engineer before joining KLA in 2021, regularly utilizes his product expertise, analytical, problem-solving and communication skills in his CSE role.

Like Thomas and Oscar, he believes in building trust through candid interaction with customers.

Alan recalls when a customer had a complex server communication issue. Working with Thomas, he brought in a specialized KLA software engineer to help troubleshoot and collaborate on a solution. The team was honest with the customer about the need for additional work with the equipment to explore the problem.

“Thanks to the trust we had built, the customer agreed, and we took the necessary time to implement a solution,” Alan says. “Our customers deserve integrity and transparency when we interact with them about their tools. Success in this field is about gradually building trust with every customer, brick by brick.”

Escalating an issue by contacting TSEs adds efficiency, according to Alan.

“When I discuss a challenging issue with Thomas, he quickly runs down a list of suspected scenarios – often combined with engineering theory – to complement a CSE’s practical knowledge and expertise, resulting in quick resolution,” he says. “Thomas was a CSE before becoming a TSE, so he understands our function and brings an in-depth understanding of e eBeam tools. We value his expertise and experience.”

Relationships that Matter

Employees like Thomas, Oscar and Alan, according to Jim Zeng, field manager, KLA Taiwan, have collaborated and shared technical knowledge and experiences to help fabs maximize their KLA tools.

“Through their great efforts, the Services organization has been able to help customers minimize eBeam tool-down situations and maintain a positive experience for users of KLA equipment,” Jim says.  

Read more about KLA Taiwan and the semiconductor business in East Asia in this interview with Rollin Kocher. See additional profiles on KLA Services organization employees at this link and here.