Test Research upbeat about 1H20

Test Research (TRI), which provides automatic test and inspection tool solutions, has landed a pull-in of orders for networking and server applications since the fourth quarter of 2019. The order pull-in momentum is expected to persist throughout the first half of 2020, according to the Taiwan-based company.

TRI has enjoyed robust demand for networking, server and datacenter applications this year despite the coronavirus outbreak, said the inspection equipment specialist with its target segments including electrical and optical products.

TRI indicated its shipments to the automotive sector slipped as a proportion of the company's total shipments to 16% in the first four months of 2020, down from 29% a year earlier, while shipments to the server segment climbed to 27% from 11% during the same period in 2019.

Despite the epidemic affecting negatively smartphone demand, TRI remains positive that the upcoming rollouts of 5G-capable devices will be driving the overall market demand this year. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen when the 5G smartphone market will actually take off, the company continued.

Meanwhile, TRI has seen an influx of short lead-time orders for notebooks and handset peripherals, and expect the order growth momentum to carry on through June, the inspection tool solutions provider noted.

In addition, TRI expressed optimism about demand coming from the mini LED sector. TRI has already kicked off volume shipments of AOI inspection tools for the production of mini LED products since 2019, and expects shipments to rise further this year.

TRI saw its gross margin reach 55.56% in the first quarter of 2020. The company reported revenue surged 21.9% from a year earlier to NT$1.64 billion (US$54.6 million) in the first four months of the year.

TRI has reportedly entered the supply chains of international vendors including Apple, Intel, Cisco and Google, according to market watchers. TRI's clients are mostly Taiwan-based EMS providers.