Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1193979
DECEMBER 2019 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 43 factory. This way, it's easier to implement re- quirements of safety, special requirements for final quality checks, or general specifications from customers. If a customer has an idea, we can support it from the start. This already starts with choosing the right factory with the capability to produce the boards as required. Shaughnessy: They can talk to you instead of having to deal with the time difference in Chi- na. Anac: Yes. And we are PCB experts. What we see in Europe is that the global markets are shifting. If you compare it to 25 years ago, there were about 400 PCB manufacturers in Germany, and now, there are about 45. The experts from German PCB productions are retiring, and we see that even the bigger com- panies have some lack of knowledge about PCBs. We are now providing this expertise to our customers. We do not own factories or have any shares in our partner factories. How- ever, we own what is most important when it comes to delivering the best quality at the low- est sustainable cost; we own the relationship with the factory, which is crucial. Matties: What are the trends in terms of or- ders? When you look at your forecast, what are you projecting? Anac: The forecast is that it's slowing down a bit, like all global markets, but it's not as criti- cal as the crisis in 2008. We are still growing. Matties: How would you say the general econ- omy is in Germany? Anac: The same condition. It's slowing down a bit, but still strong. von Bargen: I don't see a big problem for us because we are in a good financial situation. And from my side, the more the market is go- ing down, the bigger is our chance to win more market share because we have a solid founda- tion and a great team to provide support and quality to our customers. Matties: There are some pretty sophisticated and automated facilities within an hour or so of where we are. What impact would that have for the German customer? Are they first look- ing to produce in Germany, or are they deter- mined on being in Asia? Is the cost differential that much? Anac: It's different and depends on their appli- cation, of course. We have examples from the same customer producing one part of his prod- ucts in Germany and the other part in the Far East. Another example is military PCBs; these boards are only allowed to be produced in Ger- many or the European Union. Matties: Is there a line of separation where you decide to do something more high-tech here in Germany versus something in China? Anac: That's a good question. We see that the investments in the PCB factories in China are huge. They are world-leading and have the newest PCB plants. All of the machinery, in- cluding drilling machines and plating lines, are all state of the art. Your iPhone is produced in China, for example. They are leading and high- tech. Shaughnessy: Do you do HDI boards? NCAB's Illinois facility.