Apr. 23--Chipmaker Linear Technology Corp. continues to make adjustments this month to the sharp downturn in global demand for computer integrated circuits, although officials at the company's California headquarters say the worst may be over.

Linear cut 23 jobs at its Camas facility at 4200 N.W. Pacific Rim Blvd. last week. That leaves 245 full-time employees engaged in producing a variety of chips for products as diverse as cell phones, optical switches, notebook computers and MP3 players.

Of the 23 layoffs, 18 were voluntary separations, said Jim Lucey, controller at the Vancouver operation.

"We're happy that we had that many volunteers in this tough economy," he said. The job cuts were among 130 across the company's total operations here and in California.

Linear has been dealing with a downturn in global chip demand since late last year and previously had implemented four weeks of furlough through the first quarter ending March 29.

Lucey said senior managers realized that the amount of layoff time was having too great an impact on overall operations. Linear plans one week of shutdown in the current quarter ending June 30, he said.

Last week, Linear reported revenue of $200.9 million in its third quarter ending in March, down 19 percent from the previous quarter and a 33 percent drop from same period in 2008. Net income of $54.5 million was down 45 percent from 2008.

Linear CEO Lothar Maier said the quarter just ending was difficult for the company but that it had still generated pre-tax profits of 34 percent and maintained a positive cash flow.

Going forward, "we are encouraged ... as we expect some stability in customer bookings," Maier said. "Our book-to-bill ratio was slightly positive in the March quarter. We anticipate fourth-quarter revenues (ending June 30) to range from down 2 percent to up 4 percent over the third quarter. There is continued uncertainty in the marketplace and our customers continue to be cautious with their ordering patterns," he said.

By comparison, Lucey said that the industry's current downturn has not been as dramatic as the falloff in business during the dot-com crash earlier in the decade when the company saw revenues decline from $280 million to $120 million in just two quarters.

"This is not as deep, but it's certainly painful any time you have layoffs," he said.

Linear, whose shares trade on the Nasdaq exchange using the stock symbol LLTC, was established in 1981. The company operates facilities in Milpitas, Calif., and Camas.

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