The printed circuit board (PCB) industry is vital to manufacturers of computing components, automotive parts, cellular phones, flat-screen television displays and other devices considered essential to our modern lifestyles.
In addition to a large number of PCB enterprises in Taiwan, many PCB operations are located in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Guangdong provinces.
Among them are leading PCB makers earning hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenues and employing thousands of workers.
They also spend huge sums on environmental protection, including the disposal of manufacturing wastes from production processes and everyday operations.
The major pollution …

Paving Roads with Old Circuit Boards
With an eye to recycling, circuit boards are being used in asphalt
By Mark Fischetti
Millions of printed circuit boards from discarded electronics are tossed into landfills every year. In addition to the volume of waste, the material can leach chemicals into the soil. As an alternative, researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China are finding various ways to reuse the panels, including as an additive in asphalt.
Xu Zhenming and his colleagues stripped the boards of all components, pulverized the remains into a powder and …

Small, R&D focused, high technology companies are comprised more and more of individuals who have a much stronger grasp and reliance upon social media.

It’s  unfortunate how negative news often overshadows the positive trends which are occuring.  Every day I recieve an email newsletter from UP Media (subscribe to PCB Update here if you wish).  As an exercise in positive thinking, I have cut and pasted the most positive stories from the past week or so.  Hope you are encouraged!

PWB fabricator Eltek reported 2008 revenues rose 15% to $43.1 million. PCD&F >>>

Sanmina-SCI plans to expand its Ottawa assembly plant and add up to 90 workers by year-end. Circuits Assembly >>>
Phoenix Precision Technology and Nan …

Working in a business development role means that I spend a lot of time working my way into various communities and developing mutual beneficial relationships with potential customers and affiliates. One of the tools I use is LinkedIn – “facebook for professionals” is how I often describe it to those who have yet to hear of it. I find the ability to search for professionals worldwide very beneficial, although I spend a lot of time filtering out irrelevant content and have a fairly low reply rate to my personal messages that I send to fellow group members. Industry groups are a fantastic tool for any professional, but some are better that others. Below I outline a few groups that I am a member of that pertain to the industry.

Etsy.com is “your place to buy & sell things handmade.”
Whether you are a novice artist looking to make a little extra money on the side selling things you’ve made, or if you are a broker of handmade and unique products, Etsy.com is a great resource.
I came across some really cool looking products made from recycled circuit boards. From Earrings to desk organizers, there is a plethora of creative, useful, and artistic items that have been put up for sale.  I’m sure that I will be following the site as different …

Every day we read or hear about how a healthy life is about balance.  There are only two things my dad critiques me about when it comes to my health: “sit up straight and stretch more”.  I find that amusingly ironic.  The same desires my dad has for me have made their way into the PCB Industry.  As designers have sought to develop longer lasting and more complex electronics, circuit boards have been forced into a regimen of balancing traditional rigidity with the ability to bend, twist, and essentially be …