Global And China FPCB Industry Report, 2014

In 2013, flexible PCB board industry enjoyed a high-speed growth with the market size approximating USD12.03 billion, up 16.2% from the level in 2012. The South Korean vendors developed rapidly and were excessively upbeat about the industry’s outlook, aggressively expanding capacity starting from the very beginning of 2012. As a result, most of new capacity was available in Q2 2013. However, the FPCB companies in South Korea without diversified customers, were heavily dependent on the key accounts such as Samsung and LG, thus making them less competitive during negotiations. Therefore, these vendors cut the prices steeply in Q4 2013, sending them into price war.

In 2014, price decline continued to deteriorate, which led to a sharp fall in revenue of South Korean vendors. The implications of high-speed capacity expansion are high fixed costs, which would thus result in a plunge in profit margin. It is projected that the revenue of INTERFLEX, a leading South Korean FPCB company, would tumble by 50%, and its operating margin would record a 27% loss in 2014 in contrast to no-profit-no-loss in 2013. Additionally, affected by the order shift of Apple, the company has hardly received any orders from Apple in 2014.

Another pressure for the vendors in South Korea came from the depreciated yen, and the won appreciated against the yen. However, the Japanese products have better performance; coupled with the reduced prices bought on by yen depreciation, they are more competitive.

Apple shortened the supply chain, giving more of its orders to the vendors in Taiwan, which resulted in a fall in revenue of M-Flex, at an estimated 20% drop in 2014. And as the losses expand, M-Flex’s operating margin is expected to slip from -8.4% in 2013 to -11.8%.

Despite a substantial decline in revenue of the South Korean vendors, the biggest customer of FPCB market—Apple did not bring down the purchase price. Meanwhile, the new iPhones have bigger size and therefore need more FPCBs. Consequently, the vendors in Taiwan and Japan saw a big increase in revenue, thereby filling in the vacuum. We predict that in 2014 the market size of FPCB worldwide reached USD12.608 billion, up 4.8% from 2013.

Of the Taiwanese vendors, ZDT generated the most revenue. ZDT under Hon Hai obtained more of the orders from Apple. It is forecasted that its revenue will jump by 55% to USD1.518 billion in 2014, overtaking Japan’s SEI as the world's second. In contrast, the world’s first NOK reduced the capacity in Japan, instead expanded the capacity in Thailand and Mainland China, which helped not only substantially increase its revenue but also rapidly turn out of red. At the same time, the global HDD market tends to be stable, with the shipments rising mildly from 2013. The HDD for FPCB is the main product of NOK, an Apple's leading supplier.

We project that in 2015 smartphones will present a slowing growth, tablet PCs will begin to decline, notebook computers will grow slightly or be flat. Moreover, LCD-TVs are expected to grow by a small margin. And wearable devices are very likely to rise significantly, but its application of FPCB is too small to fuel the market. In 2015, it is more than likely that LCD-TV will be the mainstay to drive the market. And after 6-8 years of popularization, LCD-TV is expected to undergo a boom of TV set replacement. And consumers will choose 4K TV with higher resolution or change the original smaller 32-37 inch television to 40-42 inch television.

We expect that it will be very hard for the South Korean vendors to reverse the downtrend when Samsung’s mobile phone shipments slow down and its LCD shipments are falling with losses. It is more likely that the South Korean vendors will suffer collapse, while the companies from Japan and China’s Taiwan will benefit from it, especially Japanese ones that had improved the competitiveness after the repeated depreciation of yen.

Separating the Best From The Rest

Do you know how to find a superior electronics contract manufacturing company? Too many small to mid-sized electronics businesses make the mistake of basing their partnership decisions on little more than the lowest bid offered. This, however, can be a fatal mistake. In all cases, you'll get what you pay for in terms of quality of components, parts, production value, and services. As a result, it's important that you have a concrete set of criteria that will help you to pinpoint a "zero" from a "hero" and ensure that you make the best possible decision when hiring a contract manufacturing service. This list of characteristics and qualifications will help to get you on your way to a successful partnership.

History & Experience
For obvious reasons, it's in your best interest to look for a business that is well established. A contract manufacturer that has been able to hold its own throughout the years has done so by proving itself again and again as a reliable service that produces high quality designs and PC board assembly serves. Be sure to investigate how many years the manufacturer has been in operation, and feel free to inquire about their level of industry expertise.

Age & Type of Equipment
You want a contract manufacturing company that is able to quickly and efficiently design and assemble your PC boards, and making use of advanced technologies is one of the best means of accomplishing this goal in the most cost-effective manner possible. Feel free to ask your prospects about the types of machinery and equipment that they utilize, and take a look at what type of condition the units are in. Are they well maintained? This is a good sign that the business is reputable.

Operator Certifications
The company's employees who will be working on your boards should be either certified on the latest industry standards, or else working towards their certifications. This indicates a level of knowledge and expertise, and also portrays the worker's passion and interest in providing solid work and superior boards.

Quality Standards
ISO9001-2008 should be the minimum industry standard that the contract manufacturer has established. It's important to find out whether or not the company has reached these and other important standards for quality and safety throughout the board design and production process.

Aluminum PCB Product Repairs
Should something go wrong with a board, will the contract manufacturer be there to help you out with fulfillment services? In order to save yourself from a lot of stress and monetary losses, it's wise to seek out a company that will take the time to troubleshoot and repair problems so that you don't have to shell out the money on warranty replacements.

Unless your electronics contract manufacturer meets all of these criteria, it's in your best interested to move on with your search so as to find the best fit for the job.

PCB Prototype Assembly Services

The evolution of our world's technology is truly astounding. In the past decades, we've made great leaps and bounds in terms of what our electronic devices are capable of accomplishing, and things are only getting better. Technological engineers and electronics designers are continuously dreaming up new ways to improve existing products, as well as completely original ideas for simplifying everyday life and tasks. But how does this process occur, exactly?

Every bit of technology - from the smallest, consumer electronic gadget to complex healthcare and aerospace units - begins with an idea. From here, plans can be made to develop a working prototype in order to test the capabilities of the device and to determine whether the idea is worth investing in, or how it can be further expounded upon in order to make it more operable, functional, and efficient. Every step in designing and assembling the prototype is essential to enabling the simple dream to become a reality. To give you a better idea of the process, this post will walk you through the life cycle of a prototype.

The Idea Phase
At this point, you or one of your clients may have a thought for how to improve an existing unit or device, or for creating something brand new. Here, you discuss what the PC board should be able to accomplish, what the functions of the device should be, and the sizing requirements for the unit and, therefore, for the board.

The Design Phase
Once you have a good idea but any size constraints for the board and know what it is that you want to be able to do with it, you can begin actually planning and designing the schematics for the PCB development for the prototype. You'll need to consider the necessary components for achieving your objectives, and how these will factor into the layering and thickness of the board, as well as any budgetary concerns.

The Assembly Phase
After the design schematics have been tested out and approved, the board is ready to be assembled for the working prototype. In order to ensure that the PCB will be functional, efficient, and effective, it's important that all settings are properly calibrated (for automated processing), and that the use of the most advanced equipment is utilized so that every component is laid out and connected with the utmost precision, while still maintaining speed.

The Testing Phase
After the board has been assembled, it will need to be subjected to testing. First, you or your contract manufacturer will need to analyze the PCB to ensure that it's actually functioning in accordance with the client's specifications and the design schematics that were previously drawn up. Any inconsistencies or errors will need to be troubleshooted and addressed before the board is presented to the client. From here, the client may want to run their own set of tests, and actually test out the use and functionality of the device as a working whole before making a decision about ordering a larger batch.

The Adjustment Phase
After testing out the initial prototype, you or your client may notice certain areas that could be improved upon, which would make the end product more efficient and effective. After making not of these areas, you may need to go back to the original specs and make some adjustments before mass assembling the final PC boards.

A Never Ending Cycle
Even after a prototype has been approved for mass production and has made its way to the end user, its evolutionary cycle is never actually complete. As technology advances, it will be discovered that the existing device can be improved upon, or even eventually replaced, by something better, but that's what makes the world of technology so exciting! As long as dreamers are coming up with new ideas, we'll be ready to take on the challenge of developing prototypes that may end up changing the world.

SUPO INDUSTRIAL CO., LIMITED

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