Fremont, CA, September 8, 1999 - Asyst Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq NM: ASYT), a leading supplier of advanced manufacturing solutions for the semiconductor industry, today announced that it has received multiple new orders for its recently introduced Plus™ Portal. Valued at more than $1.5 million, the orders were received from four leading semiconductor equipment manufacturers and will be used in products for etch, inspection, metrology and test applications. Since the Plus Portal was introduced in June, Asyst has received orders in excess of $2 million from multiple original equipment manufacturer (OEM) customers. These early orders indicate a strong interest from OEMs in outsourcing front-end portal technology.

The Plus Portal acts as a doorway by which fabs can manage the transactions involved in safely moving wafers between the process tool and the factory floor. It incorporates Asyst's value assurance technologies, including multiple loadport (150 mm through 300 mm available), robotic and pre-aligner, auto ID, environmental control and software systems. In addition to offering a new level of connectivity between the process tool and factory floor, the Plus Portal represents a step forward in addressing chipmakers' vision of a standard front-end interface throughout the fab floor. Plus Portal also represents a move into non-SMIF fabs and back-end processing, further increasing Asyst's market opportunity.

"The strong industry interest in portal technology demonstrates the clear need for a viable equipment front-end solution," said Dennis Riccio, Asyst's senior vice president of global customer operations. "Asyst's portal technology, like the rest of our value assurance portfolio, secures the integrity of integrated circuit (IC) makers' wafers throughout the manufacturing cycle. By outsourcing their portal requirements, OEMs are able to concentrate on their process technology core competencies, while leveraging Asyst's expertise in the multiple technologies of equipment portals."

Asyst's Plus Portal technology ensures that automation, robotics, software and isolation capabilities are seamlessly integrated to meet the unique requirements of today's most advanced wafer process and metrology systems. This is achieved through a series of integrated building blocks that can be custom configured to meet the needs of each OEM and fab customer.

The complete Plus Portal system fully integrates its critical functions into a turnkey material handling and factory automation interface for the full range of wafer process and metrology tools. In tailoring Plus Portals to meet the stringent requirements of today's fabs, Asyst works in close partnership with both the OEM and IC makers to develop an optimized fab/process interface that complies with all SEMI and I300I standards and guidelines.

Except for statements of historical fact, the statements in this press release are forward-looking. Such statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. These factors include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions, semiconductor industry cycles, risks associated with the acceptance of new products and product capabilities and other factors more fully detailed in the Company's most recent Forms 10-K and 10-Q and annual report to shareholders.

About Asyst:
Asyst Technologies, Inc. is a leading provider of advanced technologies designed to protect and enhance customers' valued assets throughout all phases of the manufacturing process. The company's comprehensive solutions set includes 200 and 300 mm product families that deliver state-of-the-art isolation, material management, robotics and software needed to ensure seamless factory automation in the most advanced fabs worldwide. Leveraging its value assurance technologies, Asyst offers OEMs the ability to speed time to market and reduce development costs, and chipmakers the ability to achieve greater fab profitability and productivity.