Amid the surging demand for touch panels from handset and tablet PC markets, a complete supply chain is forming at the Southern Taiwan Science Park (STSP) as more and more Taiwan-based players are joining the market.

STSP already has a complete supply chain for the LCD industry, including panel makers Chimei Innolux (CMI), HannStar Display, glass substrate supplier Corning, polarizer manufacturers Sumika Technology and BenQ Materials, backlight unit (BLU) makers Coretronic and Kenmos Technology, photomask supplier Finex and liquid crystal supplier Chisso.

With demand surging for capacitive touch panels, panel makers and related players in STSP have geared up for the segment. CMI is involved through G-Tech Optoelectronics, an optical glass processing service affiliate of the Foxconn Group, and is building a front- to back-end touch panel production line. HannStar Display is cooperating with Sintek Photronics.

Furthermore, the National Science Council (NSC) has recently approved two touch panel-related players to settle in STSP.