Strategic Expansion of International Business – Malaysia Becomes a Regional Hub for Production, Sales, and Service

The three managing directors of AP&S (from left: Tobias Bausch, Sophie Hall, Tobias Drixler)

The semiconductor industry is a key sector for future technologies such as artificial intelligence, electromobility, and digitalization. As demand for microchips grows, so do the requirements for high-performance manufacturing equipment and internationally competitive production structures.

The AP&S Group acquired QiDE Tech on October 14, 2026, thereby further expanding its international presence and production expertise in Southeast Asia. With this acquisition, the company is taking an important step in implementing its global production strategy. The goal is to strengthen its market position in Southeast Asia, serve customers in the region even more effectively, and build additional production capacity for international markets.

“With the acquisition of QiDE Tech, we are strengthening our global production strategy and laying an important foundation for further growth in Southeast Asia,” explains Tobias Drixler, COO of AP&S International GmbH. “Our goal is to provide even more targeted support to our customers worldwide, better meet regional market requirements, and utilize our production capacities more flexibly on an international scale. The explicit aim is to tap into additional market potential and mutually strengthen our locations in Germany and Malaysia. We want to grow internationally – together and based on our respective strengths.”

A Long-Standing Partnership as a Foundation

The foundations of the partnership were established in 2010, when AP&S launched its service operations in Malaysia with Lalitheswaran Nahaswaran and opened its service office in Kulim. The relationship continued following the co-founding of QiDE in 2016 and subsequently expanded into manufacturing through QiDE Tech.

Over the years, the range of services and the customer base have been continuously expanded. With the establishment of production operations in Batu Kawan in 2023, the partnership was expanded to include a key manufacturing division.

Lalitheswaran Nahaswaran, Co-Founder and Operations Director of QiDE Tech, emphasizes the significance of this long-standing partnership: “I have been working with AP&S for many years. What began in 2010 with the establishment of service operations in Malaysia has gradually evolved into a close partnership with joint sales, service, and production activities. With the acquisition of QiDE Tech, we are now taking the next step. I look forward to further expanding our capabilities, being even closer to our customers in Southeast Asia, and tapping into new growth opportunities together with our colleagues in Germany.”

Malaysia as a Strategic Location

With its established semiconductor and electronics ecosystem, skilled workforce, and well-developed industrial infrastructure, Malaysia offers attractive conditions for further business expansion. AP&S plans to develop the country as a regional hub for Southeast Asia and, from there, serve the markets of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and India in particular.

While the Kulim location will focus on sales, customer support, and service in the future, Batu Kawan on the Malaysian Peninsula is to be further expanded as a site for development and production. The establishment of a local sales organization is already underway.

Global Production, Regional Support

At the heart of the strategy is a product offering tailored to the respective markets. Local customer requirements, technical standards, and economic conditions are to be taken into account more closely during development and manufacturing. At the same time, the entire AP&S product portfolio is to be offered in the long term. High-end systems manufactured in Germany will remain an important option, especially when customers specifically request them.

Furthermore, products manufactured in Malaysia are also expected to be marketed in Germany, Europe, and the U.S. in the future. The international production setup opens up additional opportunities to allocate capacity more flexibly across locations and better accommodate order spikes.

China remains separate from this regional strategy and will continue to be managed independently through AP&S Shanghai. In doing so, AP&S is pursuing a regionally oriented approach with structures tailored to the respective markets.

Joint Growth Instead of Relocation

The international expansion is explicitly designed to complement the existing business in Germany. The goal is to expand AP&S in Southeast Asia in parallel with the German business and to strengthen the locations reciprocally. The planned exchange of employees, know-how, and expertise is intended to help build international teams and further develop collaboration across national borders.

QiDE Tech and AP&S Malaysia will initially continue to operate as separate legal entities within the AP&S Group.

With this acquisition, AP&S combines its many years of experience in plant engineering and customer service with production expertise and a regional presence in Malaysia. In doing so, the company is laying the foundation for further international growth and even closer support for its customers in Southeast Asia.