96 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I JULY 2021
American Standard Circuits Acquires
Orbotech Ultra Dimension 800 E
West Chicago-based PCB fabricator Ameri-
can Standard Circuits has recently invested
in Orbotech's Ultra Dimension 800 4-in-1 AOI
solution.
Flexium Posts 7% YoY Growth in
May 2021 Sales E
Taiwan-based flexible printed circuit (FPC)
maker Flexium Interconnect Inc. has reported
sales of NT$2.4 billion ($86.55 million at
$1:NT$27.72 ) for May 2021, up by 7% com-
pared to May last year, but almost flat from the
previous month.
The Powerhouse Future Is Flexoelectric E
Researchers have demonstrated "giant flexo-
electricity" in so elastomers that could
improve robot movement range and make self-
powered pacemakers a real possibility.
Future Washable Smart Clothes Powered
by Wi-Fi Will Monitor Your Health E
Purdue University engineers have developed a
method to transform existing cloth items into
battery-free wearables resistant to laundry. ese
smart clothes are powered wirelessly through a
flexible, silk-based coil sewn on the textile.
Altix Receives Repeat Order for Direct
Imaging Equipment E
Xiamen Guangpu Electronics Co., Ltd., a lead-
ing Chinese manufacturer of LED lighting,
photoelectric sensors, IoT based hardware and
FPC products, has expressed its trust in Altix
by ordering multiple direct imaging machines.
Consider This: Designing Via-in-Pad for
Higher Density Flexible Circuits E
For flex circuit designs with high layer counts
utilizing high-density outer layers, the extra
area utilized for separate pads and SMT com-
ponents severely limits the available space for
trace fan out. By designing via-in-pad in flex and
rigid flex circuits, it can significantly increase
density, utilizing vias as mounting pads.
Fralock Holdings Acquires Lenthor E
Fralock Holdings, LLC, a leading developer
and manufacturer of engineered materials
solutions for critical applications, announced
the acquisition of Lenthor Engineering, Inc.,
one of the largest privately owned companies
in North America that designs, manufactures
and assembles flex and rigid-flex printed cir-
cuits. Fralock is a portfolio company of Arsenal
Capital Partners.
Nan Ya PCB Posts 40% YoY Revenue
Growth in May E
Taiwan-based PCB manufacturer Nan Ya
Printed Circuit Board Corp. posted sales of
NT$4.1 billion ($148.1 million at $1=NT$27.68)
in May 2021, slightly down by 0.4% from the
previous month, but up by 40% from May of
last year.
Flexible Thinking: Star Trek Memories E
Columnist Joe Fjelstad not only watched Star
Trek with fascination, he grew to become his
own inventor, thanks to his father—an aero-
space engineer. "e passion for flight, espe-
cially rocketry, entered my veins early," he
writes.
