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December 23rd, 2025
News and Resources for PCB Design, Fab and Assembly Professionals Subscribe •  Advertise •  PCD&F •  Circuits Assembly •  Tell A Friend
THE LEAD

China has quietly developed and begun testing a prototype EUV lithography system in Shenzhen, signaling progress toward domestic AI chip production amid Western export controls. Ukraine’s fast-growing defense technology sector is struggling to scale due to a severe shortage of PCB, RF and hardware design engineers.

TECH NEWS

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order on artificial intelligence that will attempt to preempt a growing number of state laws governing the technology with a national standard.

Quilter AI has completed a fully functional, first-pass computer design, positioning Project Speedrun as a turning point for accelerated hardware R&D.

Researchers recently developed a tiny, MEMS-based clock that makes use of silicon doping to gain atomic clock-level stability.

Tips on expanding power delivery in systems with USB PD 3.1.

TopLine introduces Flip Chips with Daisy Chain dummy components.

PCEA reports that PCB East 2026 exhibition space is more than 70% booked and on track to sell out, with the event moving to the DCU Center in Worcester for its April 28–May 1 conference and April 29 exhibition.

Entries for Circuits Assembly's 2026 NPI Awards, recognizing innovations in electronics assembly equipment, material and software, are due Jan. 9.

Photonics Systems debuts InnoLas DP10X0 laser depaneling system.

PCB West 2026 booth sales are now open to all exhibitors, with more than 60 percent of the floor already reserved following early access for returning companies.

Looking for networking opportunities? Join the PCEA Discord server, bringing together engineers and designers from around the world on a private channel for discussing technical questions and career opportunities.

ROI
Building a Future from Obsolete Parts
Let it be said that the printed circuit industry faces a whole lot of challenges. While some are geopolitical in nature, most are not. The foundational challenge is advancing technology in the most cost-effective and profitable manner to enable continued development of exciting new processes and products.

PETER BIGELOW

Peter Bigelow





















BUSINESS NEWS

KKR has reportedly became the main contender for the acquisition of assets of Taiyo Holdings, with the intent to privatize the Japanese chemical company.

GPV and East/West Manufacturing have entered into a strategic partnership whereby the two EMS companies will support each other's production to serve customers in regions affected by trade and domestic manufacturing compliance issues.

Zuken reaffirmed its FY2028 targets of ¥49B in sales and ¥7.4B in operating profit in a recent investor presentation.

AGS Devices has officially gone live with the Celus Design Platform.

Spinnaker Manufacturing in Tilton, NH, sustained an electrical fire that local authorities said could have resulted in much more extensive damage.

Wistron's board approved a new, $135M investment plan to expand AI server and networking production at its Hsinchu campus in Vietnam.

Rohm and Tata Electronics announced a strategic partnership in the semiconductor business.

Kitron has received approval from Swedish competition authorities and the Swedish authority ISP to proceed with the acquisition of Deltanordic, a deal that was announced on Nov. 19.

Foxconn has hired 30,000 workers in eight months at its Devanahalli plant in Bengaluru.

Jabil sold two St. Petersburg buildings for $25M in leaseback deal.

Kitron has signed a EUR 7M agreement with a new customer to produce electronics for autonomous systems across air, land, and sea domains for the defense industry.

AT&S appointed Gerrit Steen chief financial officer.

Neways named Sascha Brüning vice president defense.

THE FLEXPERTS
Flex Final Finishes
Is it possible for flex circuits to have the same final finishes available for rigid PCBs? Yes, you can use any of the final finishes available for rigid PCBs, but whether you should use them depends on the application.

MARK FINSTAD

Mark Finstad






















TECHNICAL ARTICLES

Beyond the Gerbers: How Unstructured Data Drives PCB Cost and Lead Time
PCD&F/CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY


Graph Neural Networks for Automatic Addition of Optimizing Components in Printed Circuit Board Schematics
ECML PKDD 2025/Lecture Notes in Computer Science


Circular Innovation: How to Build Reverse Electronics Supply Chains – the Case of CIRC-UITS Project
IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology


EVENTS

Jan. 21-23: 40th InterNepcon JapanTokyo Big Sight, Japan
Feb. 2-5: Pan Pacific Strategic Electronics SymposiumHawaii
Feb. 3-4: EIPC Winter ConferenceAix-en-Provence/Marseille, France
Feb. 6, 13, 20, 27, Mar. 6: Certified Printed Circuit Design Training, Online
Feb. 17-19: Chiplet SummitSanta Clara, CA
Apr. 22-23: Del Mar Electronics ShowSan Diego, CA
Apr. 28-May 1: PCB East 2026Worcester, MA
May 15, 22, 29, June 5, 12: Certified Printed Circuit Design Training, Online
May 26-29: IEEE Electronic Components and Technology ConferenceOrlando, FL
June 9-11: ZIW Americas 2026Dallas, TX
June 15-16: PCB Detroit 2026Detroit, MI
June 24-26: Vietnam Intcomm 2026 & Electronic Vietnam 2026Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Sept. 29-Oct. 2: PCB West 2026Santa Clara, CA


 

BOOK-TO-BILLS/MARKET TRENDS
             Oct. Trend
EMS 1.26 Down
Semiconductors         15.3% Up
PCBs 1.00 Up
Component Sales Sentiment 122.2 Up
Changes are year-over-year.    

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PCB Update is a digital newsletter for PCB design, fabrication and assembly professionals, brought to you by Printed Circuit Engineering Association™. E-mail industry press releases or links to the editors of CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY or PCD&F: pr@pcea.net.


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