Simon Fried
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Ever since its introduction in the s, additive manufacturing has steadily become a more prominent method for producing a variety of increasingly complex and demanding prototypes, as well as finished components and products. All it takes is a CAD model and a modest investment in equipment, and even college students can start prototyping from their dorm rooms.
Product designers and engineers can realize several benefits of using an in-house additive manufacturing system. There are some important points to consider, however, and key decision makers will need to weigh additive manufacturing's advantages and disadvantages before implementing it in their R&D cycles.
In several industries, additive manufacturing has steadily become a more prominent prototyping and production method.
In-house additive manufacturing offers some significant advantages over working with a contract manufacturer to produce your prototype. Key benefits include:
If you're looking to print a prototype of a new PCB or another electronic circuit, working with a traditional manufacturer will carry significant lead times. You'll have to spend time preparing standard deliverables for your manufacturer and wait for them to fine-tune their manufacturing process for your particular prototype. Lead times only increase if you leave all of the component sourcing and assembly up to an external manufacturer.
Keeping the electronics prototyping process in-house with an additive manufacturing system can similarly eliminate the lead times associated with using an external manufacturer. You don't need to spend time with the purchase order process, or wait for finished boards to be shipped from an external facility. As soon as your board is finished printing, it is ready to assemble and test. You'll be able to spend more time testing and revising your designs.
If you're familiar with PCB manufacturing, you know that an external manufacturer may need to change your design to accommodate their processes or materials. This means you lose control over your design and risk receiving a prototype that does not fully reflect your design intent. Producing your prototyping in-house allows you greater timeline control and process visibility, allowing you to maintain complete control over your design.
You'll also have the freedom to manufacture one-off designs with complex shapes and geometries. Traditional electronics manufacturers simply cannot produce these devices without a significant investment in tooling, and they will require very high-volume runs to recoup their investment. Complex non-planar design may not be possible to manufacture by traditional means.
The compressed prototype production and testing schedules associated with additive manufacturing also compress the redesign schedule. Once you've decided on proposed design changes, you can immediately build a new prototype and test your modified device. You don't have to send your modified design back to an external manufacturer and wait for them to fine-tune their fabrication and tooling process.
Keeping additive manufacturing in-house also allows you to implement an iterative, agile manufacturing methodology that doesn't require approval for each redesign and production run. Design teams are freed from the bureaucratic constraints that are imposed in a traditional R&D environment, giving them more freedom to implement creative solutions to complex design problems.
Nano Dimension's DragonFly Pro 3D printing a PCB.
Of course, additive manufacturing is not a cure-all for your production woes. If you are looking to complement your capabilities with an additive manufacturing system, here are some points to consider:
Currently, additively manufactured parts may require a low-temperature assembly process, due to the range of materials currently available. The goal with prototyping is to try to closely approximate the various aspects of your end product, so you'll need to carefully consider which available materials will best represent the mechanical and electrical properties in your final product.
With additive manufacturing of PCBs, depending on how niche of an application you are working on, the materials you can use to build your prototype may not accurately reflect the materials used in a highly specialized finished product. However, the electrical properties of widely used materials, such as the FR4 used in standard PCB circuits, can be reliably replicated and deposited by today's 3D printers, meaning that you can approximate the electrical properties of a standard substrate.
Although polymer substrates do not have the exact same mechanical characteristics as standard FR4, additive manufacturing of PCBs using polymer substrate materials allows easy printing of multilayer boards with fewer fabrication and assembly steps. In addition, dialectric ink does simulate FR4 and has similar properties. As time goes on and additive manufacturing continues to advance, the range of usable materials can be expected to expand, opening the door to printing PCBs that can compete with standard PCB substrate materials in every regard.
Conventional PCB manufacturing processes involve depositing conductive copper from an electrolytic solution or etching a copper plane on a substrate. This leaves behind solid copper traces with high conductivity. These traces can withstand relatively high soldering temperatures and have the mechanical properties of copper.
Printing conductors with conductive inks, followed by sintering under a near-IR lamp, is a great way to digitally fabricate PCBs with a wide range of form factors on polymer substrates. These sintered conductors have mechanical and thermodynamic properties that differ from their electrodeposited counterparts. However, the electrical characteristics of sintered conductors are sufficient to prototype boards that will be produced with bulk and electrodeposited materials.
Compared to electrodeposited conductive traces, sintered conductive traces have lower mechanical strength and can deform or fracture at high temperatures. This requires using a low temperature solder when attaching components on larger sintered printed circuits. If you are designing multilayer PCBs, sintered conductors on a PCB will also have lower fatigue life than a traditionally manufactured product, thus your prototype may not fully reflect the mechanical properties of a mass manufactured FR4 device.
Although simple 3D printers for additive manufacturing of solid plastic parts are cheap, and open-source software is readily available, purchasing a 3D printer for prototyping precision electronics is a significant investment. In addition, while the materials involved can be expensive, you do save significant amounts of time, keep your designs in-house and there are no setup costs. As with any capital equipment purchase, you will need to weigh the costs and benefits involved in purchasing and maintaining this equipment. If you do decide to purchase such a system, you'll need to have staff on hand to operate the system throughout its lifecycle.
Despite the required initial investment and material limitations, you can cut your prototyping time from days to hours with the right additive manufacturing system. You can also fabricate devices that traditional manufacturers simply cannot work with. You'll have greater design freedom and productivity with these systems.
If you can reliably estimate that the money-value of time, the reduced prototyping costs, and more flexible R&D workflows offset your investment, purchasing an additive manufacturing system can provide significant advantages to your product, team, and company.
If you're interested in streamlining the prototyping process for advanced electronics, you can watch your productivity skyrocket when you use the DragonFly Pro additive manufacturing system. Read a case study or contact us today if you're interested in learning more about the DragonFly Pro system.
A co-founder of Nano Dimension, Simon Fried leads Nano Dimension's USA activities and marketing for this revolutionary additive technology. With experience working in the US, Israel, and throughout Europe, he has held senior and advisory roles in start-ups in the solar power, medical device, and marketing sectors. Previously, Simon worked as a consultant on projects covering sales, marketing, and strategy across the automotive, financial, retail, FMCG, pharmaceutical, and telecom industries. He also worked at Oxford University researching investor and consumer risk and decision making.
Electronic Chemicals Market Overview
Electronic Chemicals Market size is forecast to reach $10.749 billion by , after growing at a CAGR of 7% during - . Increasing demand of solar photovoltaic cells for electricity generation is fueling the growth of electronic materials & chemicals market. Increasing demand for semiconductor materials from other end-user industries including photolithography printing is expected to grow potentially during the forecast period. On the other hand, increasing demand for electronic chemicals like gaseous chemicals for manufacturing LEDs, solar photovoltaic, semiconductors, and flat panel displays are expected to drive the electronic Chemicals industry growth. Improving standards of living and decreasing price of equipment are the major factors for positively impacting on industry growth.
The demand for smaller, faster, and more powerful electronic devices continues to drive innovations in semiconductor manufacturing. This trend requires advanced electronic Chemicals that enable the fabrication of smaller components with higher performance and energy efficiency. Key materials include high-purity chemicals for semiconductor manufacturing processes such as photolithography, etching, deposition, and packaging.
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With the rapid evolution of display technologies, such as OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) and Micro LED, there's a growing need for specialized Chemicals to support their production. These advanced display technologies offer advantages like better image quality, flexibility, and energy efficiency compared to traditional LCD displays. Electronic Chemicals play a crucial role in the fabrication of OLED and Micro LED displays, including organic and inorganic materials for light-emitting layers, conductive materials for electrodes, and encapsulation materials for protection against moisture and oxygen.
Market Snapshot:
COVID-19 Impact
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the Electronic Chemicals Market. Initially, supply chain disruptions, factory closures, and logistical challenges led to a slowdown in production and distribution. Many manufacturers faced difficulties in sourcing raw materials and delivering finished products. Moreover, reduced consumer demand and uncertainty in the global economy further dampened market growth. The restrictions on movement and social distancing measures also hindered research and development activities, delaying innovation and product launches.
However, the pandemic also spurred innovation and adaptation within the industry. Companies focused on developing solutions to address emerging needs, such as antimicrobial coatings for electronic devices and materials for remote work infrastructure. As the world adapted to the new normal, the Electronic Chemicals Market gradually recovered, driven by increased demand for electronic devices and technologies supporting remote work, online education, and digital communication. Additionally, the growing emphasis on sustainability and environmental consciousness influenced product development, leading to the rise of eco-friendly materials and processes in the market.
Report Coverage
The report: 'Electronic Chemicals Market ' Forecast ( - )', by IndustryARC, covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of the electronic Chemicals industry.
By Type: Materials {Metals (Silver, Copper, Aluminum, Steel, Brass, others), Semiconductor Materials (Germanium, Silicon, Cadmium Sulphide, Lead Sulphide, others), Isolators, Magnetic Materials (Silicon-iron, Nickel-iron, Cobalt-iron, others)}, Chemicals (Solid, Liquid, Gaseous).
By Application: Photolithographic Printing, Integrated Circuits, Device Monitoring, Circuit Boards, Device Packaging, Flat Panel Displays (Light Emitting Diode, LCD Screens, others), Solar Photovoltaic Cells, Communication Cables, Printed Circuit Board, and Others.
By Geography: North America (USA, Canada, and Mexico), Europe (UK, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Russia, Belgium, and Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand, Indonesia, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Rest of APAC), South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Rest of South America), and Rest of the World (Middle East, and Africa)
Key Takeaways
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Electronic Chemicals Market Segment Analysis ' By Type
Electronic materials are the largest type segment in due to increasing material demand for manufacturing of various electronic products like LCDs, LEDs, solar photovoltaic and rising penetration in semiconductors manufacturing is expected to drive demand for electronic materials over the forecast period. Apart from this, growing demand for electronic chemicals like liquid chemicals for cleaning and polishing the internal parts of the semiconductor devices is expected to be a key driver for electronic Chemicals industry growth.
Electronic Chemicals Market Segment Analysis - By Application
Printed circuit boards segment held the largest electronic material and chemicals market share and growing at a CAGR of more than 7.8% in . The growing uses of electronic Chemicals to manufacturing of semiconductors and printed circuit board fabrication to flat-panel displays, various stages of cleaning, chip packaging and product insulation will increase with the growth in electronics manufacturing. Apart from this, electronic Chemicals used in different types of solar photovoltaic cells use semiconductors to interact with incoming photons from the sun in order to generate electricity. Furthermore, photolithography printing tools used in manufacturing of semiconductor tools is driving the growth of electronic Chemicals market.
Electronic Chemicals Market Segment Analysis - By Geography
Asia Pacific dominated the electronic Chemicals market with a share of 33% in due to rapid industrialization and urbanization in developing nations. According to National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency (NIPF), India's share in global electronics manufacturing is anticipated to reach $400 billion by . Increasing consumption for photolithographic printing and use of solar photovoltaic panels has also augmented the growth of electronic Chemicals market. According to International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), almost half of all new capacity in was added in Asia, resulting in a total of 1.63 Terawatt (TW) of renewable capacity by . Hence, this expansion is steadily making India as a global hub of electronics system, which fueling the growth of electronic Chemicals market.
Electronic Chemicals Market Drivers
Improving Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology:
Internet of Things and artificial intelligence technologies are expected to drive semiconductor industry which in turn propels the growth of electronic Chemicals market. According to Indi-Asian News Service (IANS), the global Internet of Things semiconductor component market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 19% to $80 billion in . The use of AI-related, rising demand for autonomous vehicles has opened a new revenue application for the electronics materials market. The digital display industry is also set out for better standards by introducing flat panel displays like LED and LCD television sets, requiring high-quality electronic materials for production.
Growing Consumption of Semiconductors:
Semiconductors are widely used in photo resistors and solar photovoltaic cells. According to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) the worldwide sales of semiconductors reached $526.8 billion in . The SIA projects that sales will increase by 13.1% in . Thus, the high sales of semiconductors will be creating a growth in the market of electronic Chemicals.
Electronic Chemicals Market Challenges
Stringent Health Regulations:
Stringent health regulations towards electronic Chemicals may hamper the market growth. According to the Occupational Safety and Hazard Administration (OSHA), employers must protect workers from crystalline silica in the US. Silica alloy can cause serious lung disease and lung cancer. High exposure to silica can cause of illness with headache, fever, chills, aches, chest tightness and cough. Silica alloy exposure has been linked to other illnesses including renal disease and other cancers. Thus, the harmful effects of silica may hamper the market growth.
Electronic Chemicals Industry Outlook
Technology launches, acquisitions and R&D activities are key strategies adopted by players in the Electronic Chemicals Market. The key companies in the Electronic Chemicals Market are:
Recent Developments
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