RF Synertia® is the new patented power delivery platform from Comet. It is powered by the company’s own disruptive process technology and has undergone thorough testing.

“The third industrial revolution took the workers out of the factory, but the one we are living through now affects absolutely everyone.” Industry 4.0 continues to grip the imagination of Stephan Haferl, the new CEO of the Comet Group. Indeed, the pioneering Fribourg-based X-ray and radio frequency technology provider is ideally placed to embrace this paradigm shift. “The main challenge facing industry today is exploiting the full potential of digitalization so that it can proactively know when, how and why product maintenance or replacement is required. The Internet of Things, one of our core competencies, precisely enables that.”

The products manufactured at the Flamatt site allow customers to monitor and record all data related to the manufacturing process, which in turn “allows them to adapt their procedures as they go along, almost in real time.”

Avoiding a nightmare scenario

The radio frequency technologies developed by Comet PCT (Plasma Control Technologies) make it possible to control the plasma processing of silicon wafers, which are a key component of a variety of applications and products, such as integrated circuits. As the Comet CEO explains, “These are tiny technological miracles due to their microscopic size and high performance. Their manufacture is highly regulated and every step in the process must be carefully monitored, which is precisely what our products do.” The Comet Group works closely with most of the major international companies in the semiconductor industry. X-rays and computed tomography also have the advantage of providing valuable data to help avoid “supply chain disruptions, one of industry’s worst nightmare scenarios.”

Haferl is convinced that “Industry 4.0 is only the start of a new era.” Comet will continue to focus its technological and financial undertakings in that direction. To achieve its ambitious goals, the group plans to pursue its current investment strategy of allocating over 10% of its turnover back into its research and development activities.