Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1392944
JULY 2021 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 9 to the deadline to keep the content in this issue as fresh and accurate as possible. In this issue, copper market perspectives (along with commentary on glass fabric and resin supply shortages) come from Mark Goodwin at Ventec and Michael Coll at Den- kai America. IPC's Shawn Dubravac weighs in with a high-level market analysis. MacDer- mid Alpha's Joe D'Ambrisi discusses the sup- ply chain squeeze in chemistries. Greg Link from WUS and I-Connect007 columnist (and ASC president) Anaya Vardya discuss the pres- sures on fabricators to work through the cur- rent shortages. ere is no easy answer to these new dynam- ics but what we can conclude is that this will be our new norm for some time. PCB007 References 1. "Consumer prices jump 5% in May, fastest pace since the summer of 2008," CNBC, June 10, 2021. 2. "Prepare to pay the sticker price for a car," CNN Business, April 23, 2021. 3. "Copper is the New Oil," Goldman Sachs, May 18, 2021. 4. "New Semiconductor Fabs to Spur Surge in Equipment Spending," SEMI Reports, June 22, 2021. massive drivers. e "Exchanges at Goldman Sachs" podcast series released an episode in May 2021 titled "Copper Is the New Oil." Cop- per is now strategically the most important raw material on the planet. Mine supply investment is, at best, just be- ginning. Goldman Sachs suggests that the sup- ply gap for copper is approximately 8 million tons. But it takes at least five years to build out a copper mine, and there have been no new applications for copper mines in the last 18 months. [3] Meanwhile, SEMI reports that there are 19 new semiconductor fabs slated for build-out in 2021, and an additional 10 in 2022, a total build cost of about $140 billion. [4] Government and industry attention is on the chips; everyone pays attention to the semiconductors. No new copper, however, and no new PCB fabrica- tors to speak of. Just as the automobile indus- try comes to a screeching halt when the chips aren't available, the industry will also be forced to stand down should PCB fabrication be un- able to keep up. And that day is coming. All these market factors exert their pressure on our supply chain—especially the raw ma- terials. Copper is a common theme in this is- sue, what with a rapidly changing market sit- uation. In fact, while we were preparing this magazine, China released a series of industrial metals—as reported by Reuters—from its na- tional reserves to stabilize market prices. Au- thors and interviewees have worked right up Nolan Johnson is managing editor of PCB007 Magazine. Nolan brings 30 years of career experience focused almost entirely on electronics design and manufacturing. To contact Johnson, click here.