Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1330321
JANUARY 2021 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 63 similar to the solder mask that is sold for stan- dard imaging. If you're a board shop, you are probably faced with a choice of companies that all have inks because of the UL compo- nent. You have multiple, well-known, large manufacturers, which is important. It's not a sole source. Anybody adopting this technology is going to have to go through UL, but it's fairly straight- forward because they've been obtained from the big three. I suspect there was a price premi- um with indirect imaging having faster photo speed dry films that commanded a small pre- mium, but those premiums have disappeared. I also suspect that, with the inkjet system, any premiums you pay for the inks will also disap- pear in time because it will grow into higher volumes and become more mainstream. It's still very much the beginning. I know of maybe six units installed in the U.S. and a few in Europe. When I talked to board shops, early adopters were motivated by knowing that this technology is going to evolve in terms of pro- ductivity and other things. A lot of early adopt- ers are doing it for the reduction in their wa- ter and power usage, as well as waste treat- ment costs. Many companies are big enough that they can get involved in a technology even if the machines are not perfect or mature. It's similar to the early adopters of direct imaging. It started with laser-based and metal-halide- based. It wouldn't take a stretch to know that eventually, this will be surpassed by LEDs and other multiple wavelengths. But the early adopters wanted to take advan- tage and get in on the technology, and that's what I see right now. It's not like you would go to a $10 million shop, and they would say, "We're going to invest the capital." But you start to see early adopters that are motivated, with California being where you have more restrictions and forward-thinking owners. I doubt that just a few years down the road, this will be as mainstay as direct imaging, but there will be an evolution of the equipment in terms of productivity. Johnson: In the case of a greenfield facility where you build and set up new equipment, would you recommend going straight to inkjet? Are they going to be giving up anything if they take on that strategy? Carignan: The things that have to be consid- ered with the adoption of inkjet are really what your product portfolio is. Even with a 2–3-pic- oliter droplet size—probably the finest reso- lution you find—most people are either using CBT Tech's fully automated TiTan 8400D UVLED/DMD Direct Imaging system.