It is no secret that recent economic weakness has taken a toll on all company’s top lines. Particularly in the chip sector, the business convention of cutting capital spendings to conserve cash and keep the balance sheet clean has translated into slower development in sales of chips to fuel the servers, computers, and small devices that power so many of the country’s companies. Thankfully, trends toward mobile connectivity has kept need for certain semiconductor components strong, and many manufacturers are in the somewhat hopeful position having to increase capacity to meet current and future demand for the chips that will unavoidably find their ways into yet more technological applications as innovation offers new paths to greater productivity and entertainment.

For numerous manufacturers who prefer old school fiscally conservative models, however, growing capacity through cap-ex can carry with it a higher risk profile, given the possible case of a slower-than-expected economic rebound. To mitigate the gamble of this decision, many manufacturers have found clever ways to reduce risk by trimming the cost of increasing capacity.

For instance, chip makers like Micron, AMD, and Applied Materials have found ways to trim the cost of adding gas delivery systems by buying lower-priced refurbished gas cabinet units and components. These refurbished units, which can account for a significant portion of equipment expenditures, sell for a fraction of the cost of newer units and are re-manufactured to the same specs of new units – all backed by a safety and reliability guarantee. While gas delivery systems containing any refurbished gas cabinets that aren’t likely to be the most cutting edge units, manufacturers can employ them as a stop-gap to increase capacity in procedures that require less than the cutting-edge technology necessary to manufacture the newest, smallest, and most complex chips.

Because the rate of innovation in the chip market is so rapid (Moore’s law), the procedures and machinery used in manufacturing can quickly become obsolete. A delivery system with gas cabinets is therefore subject to great depreciation – depreciation that is decreased by purchasing re-manufactured equipment that was purchased by the re-manufacturer at that already depreciated price. Lower depreciation frees up cash on the records and provides companies the strong financial power they need to make needed investments in cutting edge technology and capacity that will be in sizeable demand when the economy rebounds and movements in smart devices, mobile computing and connectivity, and solar energy actualize their potential.