China PCB industry

With the development of science and technology, the electronic informationization processing needs for all types of products are gradually enhanced. Emerging electronic products continue to emerge, which continuously expands the use and market of pcb. Emerging 3G mobile phones, automotive electronics, LCD, IPTV, digital TV, computer replacement will also bring greater PCB market. Currently, communications equipment, consumer electronics, automotive electronics and computers and related products are the major terminal application markets of PCB, accounting for about 80% of the total market demand.

According to "Information Industry Science and Technology Development “11th Five-Year” Plan and Long-term Planning Framework in 2020", PCB (especially multi-layer, flexible, flexible-rigid and environment-friendly PCB technology) is one of the key fields in China’s electronic information industry over the next 5 to 15 years.

PCB industry in China mainland will maintain rapid growth in the next three years. The rapid development of the domestic 3G industry as well as the rise of electronic terminals such as smart phones, tablet PCs, green base station, will have a strong pulling effect on PCB, driving the growth of PCB industry. In 2016, the output value will reach USD 48 billion in China, accounting for 49.4% of the global PCB output value.

China has become the country that enjoys the largest PCB output value and the fastest growth speed, and also the main driving force to promote the development of the global PCB industry. But to become a powerful PCB-producing country the industry enterprises need to grasp the opportunity of the PCB developing to a higher density, upgrade its technology, has introduced high-tech products adapting to the needs of the market.

According to China Printed Circuit Association (CPCA) statistic, China's PCB (printed circuit board) output value in 2007 reached 14.3 billion U.S. dollars, accounting for the global market share of 28.6 percent, surpassing Japan to become the world's largest producer of PCB. However, how to transfer from a large PCB-producing country to a powerful PCB-producing country, PCB enterprises also should emphasize on powerful and accuracy.

The current PCB industry is thriving, but domestic enterprises are still facing many difficulties in this field. On the one hand, the transfer of industries in developed countries has created the prosperity in industry and the raising level; On the other hand, after reaching the top of the stage, the problems brought by development have appeared, and the costs of labor, utilities and environmental capital are no longer low. Electronic products are entering the era of little profit, and the price war has changed the supply chain. In the Asian countries, both cost and market advantages are existed in China and PCB industry is gradually shifted to China.

The growth trend of China's PCB industry
The demands for downstream products promote the development of the industry itself, the industry transfers from the developed countries to China, but for consideration to environmental protection, the Chinese government limits the low-end products below 4 layers, and encourages HDI high end products, such as Multilayer PCB. These factors promote the development of China's PCB industry to high-end products.

PCB development trend to the high density and fine
With the integrated electronic products developing to the direction of multi-functional, small, lightweight, Multilayer PCB, flexible printed circuit board FPC, the integrated rigid and flexible board, high-density interconnection laminates (HDI / BUM), IC Packaging and other varieties have become the high demand products.

From the world's PCB product structure, the request of the next generation electronic systems on PCB prominent show a more high-density and fine trend. China Printed Circuit Association adviser Jindu Lin said, PCB products have begun partially or fully to high-density interconnection laminates (HDI / BUM), package of (contained) boards, integrated (buried inlay) components produced board and rigid-flexible PCB. In the next period of time, these four types of PCB products will certainly become four highlights of the PCB industry, and in the future the more advanced transmission and calculation by the "light signal" printed light board will replace the current transmission and calculation by the"electronical signal" printed circuit board.

General manager of MEIKO said, digital consumer products such as mobile phone, digital TV, and low consumption, spacious and comfortable cars and other product’s rapid popularization made the people’s need of HDI Multilayer PCB expand, thus contributing to solve the problem of the thickness and layers. He stressed that the PCB construction of the arbitrary layers as the center of mobile phone will gradually become the mainstream products.

This development trends elaborated by the authoritative pointed out a map of the technology development road for domestic PCB enterprises, the enterprises should grasp the opportunities and meet challenges in the process of the PCB industry developing to a higher technology .

Reduce the pressure on raw materials price increase
In recent years, PCB industry raw materials in the overall tone of continuously rising price, there are significant fluctuations every year, if not controlled well by the enterprises, can not hedge risks, will face operating profit was "swallowed up" by the material price fluctuations and even face the loss situation.

Cheng An Copper Co., Ltd. in Foshan, chairman and general manager Tengfang Zhou told reporters, to avoid the risk of rising prices of raw materials, first should make a clear enterprise orientation, that is, production enterprises to do is actually processing and manufacturing, the profit is the appreciation in the process of processing, so the PCB enterprises do not try to make profit by the raw materials significant fluctuation, this can minimize the impact brought by the price increase of raw materials to enterprises.

Analysis the reasons for the rising prices of PCB raw materials, industry experts said that from a global point of view, factors of the international financial environmental impact, from the domestic level,both the current domestic economic situation and the raw material manufacturer’s individual acts are the incentives of PCB raw materials rising price. Shennan Circuit general manager said that should put PCB manufacturers and materials suppliers on one industrial chain, we can not separate the two sides ,they should be mutual understanding and support. He pointed out that cooperation is a long-term business practices, our common goal is to ride out the storm, if based on short-term, perhaps one party to make a number of interests, but will damage the whole PCB industry chain in the long term, will damage the two sides relations of cooperation.
At the same time, PCB enterprises themselves should also take actives of reducing costs, development of alternative materials, development of more suppliers and reasonable quoting to customers, to scatter the pressure on the supply of material focus, rising costs.

Raising the technological level is the key
While rising prices of raw materials will have a certain impact on domestic PCB enterprises, domestic PCB enterprises order to truly achieve development by leaps and bounds, we must adapt to the market, improve the PCB manufacturing technological level, improve the technological content and added value of the products, develop the high-end and middle level PCB products, adapt to the major restructuring of the domestic industrial structure, to maintain the sustainable development of enterprises and industry.

From Youlei said that the main problem Chinese PCB enterprises facing now is that they are big but not strong, too scattered, the vicious competition as the representative of starting a price war in the low-end market; in the field of high-end products mainly occupied by foreign-funded enterprises, domestic enterprises usually are small and not strong. There is still a long way to go for Chinese PCB enterprises in technological innovation, industrial progress and improve the overall competitive power.

In addition, the concept of environment protection of the Chinese PCB enterprises is weak relatively,easily result in environmental pollution, thus affecting the social image of the whole industry, or even lead to resistance to PCB industry in many parts of china.The competition model that mainly rely on low-cost of a single market for Chinese PCB enterprises will affect the healthy development of the whole industry.

For the existence of these problems, he suggested, the state and local governments should conduct targeted guidance from the following aspects: the first is emphasis on the PCB industry from the national electronic information industry development , that this is a key supporting product which decide the state's overall information industry level and the state's competitive power, especially the high-multilayer backplane, HDI, IC packaging boards and so on should be the product that national industrial policy to encourage and support.

Second, because PCB industry have pollution in a certain extent, this pollution is brought by the whole industry chain development, we can not consider it simply.Emphasis on supporting the PCB enterprises of the high technical contents, management practices, a large scale, promote energy-saving emission reduction, cleaner production, and for many small enterprises, should help and organization them to improve the environmental protection technology, to catch up with positively , the enterprise not satisfied requirements, there should be appropriate exit mechanism.

Third, we need to raise the threshold for new entrants, the priority of supporting the existing strong and large enterprises in industry, reduce social costs.

Measures for the PCB enterprises
First, enterprises should make clear the development strategy of intellectual property patent. Increase investment in technology innovation and make good preparation for the good technical talent and intellectual property talent pool in the patent application, it is necessary to improve the level of drafting patent application documents for custom pcb.

Second, the technological innovation of enterprises should be closely integrated with the patent strategy. In research and development process of new products and technology, you should choose the right time for patent applications, the usual practice is carried out after the completion of 80% of the study progress of patent applications, so that not only can take advantage of the first hearing to the public to conduct market research, but can also occupy the advantages of the prior application.

Third, the technological innovation of enterprises should make full use of patent information resources. Patent information resource contains more than 90% of the world's new technology and new results, and the effective use of patent information resources can help enterprises to master the technology developments to understand the competitor trends. At the same time, also avoid infringement of patent rights.

Fourth, enterprises should establish strict intellectual property confidential system. A series of intellectual property protected subject matters will be produced in the printed circuit board design and the manufacturing process, especially the design drawings for a variety of products and a strict system of custody and borrow should be established for such technical data.