LCD panel makers hit by quality issues, departures of R&D staff, say sources

Some of Taiwan's LCD panel makers, already mired in weak demand in the market, have been further hit by a wave of departures of R&D employees and issues with product quality, said industry sources.

The panel makers heavy losses have resulted in reduced benefits for their staff, which has prompted many of their R&D engineers to quit, the sources said. Replacements have been recruited, but it will still take some time for these newcomers to settle in, the sources said.

Meanwhile, some first-tier makers experienced quality issues with the production of monitor panels, resulting in a high rate of rejection of their shipments by clients, the sources said.

The sources noted that panel makers' reduced output has disrupted the pace of production at its assembly lines, which is one of the reasons behind the quality issues.