Semitool Celebrates 30-Year Flathead Anniversary – Company rebounds from rough period

Driving along Birch Grove Road between his two Semitool locations in Kalispell, Ray Thompson points to his roots. He slows down to locate his grandparents’ old farm. Seconds later he passes the one-room schoolhouse his older siblings attended so many years ago.

These landmarks help explain why, in 1979, Thompson decided to move Semitool http://www.semitool.com/ , a small but cutting-edge company at the time, from bustling California to the Flathead. He had founded the firm in Santa Ana a year earlier.

With Semitool, a leading manufacturer of wafer processing equipment for the semiconductor industry, celebrating its 30-year anniversary in the valley, Thompson allows himself these moments of nostalgia. His decision to bring his business back to his hometown 30 years ago has paid dividends.

By Myers Reece

Full Story: http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/semitool_celebrates_30-year_flathead_anniversary/13818/