Unimicron warns that AI-driven PCB expansion is fueling customer double-booking as equipment shortages and materials constraints put additional pressure on the supply chain.  TTM Technologies is expanding beyond its traditional PCB business with a $650M deal to acquire MKS Instruments' Ophir Optics division. 

Rice University researchers developed a method to recover antimony from flame-retardant plastic in e-waste.

Renesas launched the RX74M and RX74N flagship 32-bit MCUs, the first RX family built on a 22nm process.

Zuken releases CR-8000 2026 PCB design platform.

PCEA will host a 3.5-hour webinar on Nov. 4 led by Susy Webb covering signal routing techniques to improve signal integrity and EMI performance.

PCEA will host a free webinar Dec. 8 featuring Asaf Israelit discussing how AI can optimize entire BoMs, identify component alternatives, reduce costs and address supply chain risks before production.

PCEA will host a free webinar Nov. 17 featuring Yash Sutariya discussing global PCB supply chain disruptions, sourcing risks and strategies for strengthening supply resilience.

In the latest episode of PCB Chat, Qualcomm senior designer and manager Miroslava Velasco discusses her career in PCB design, the mentors who helped shape her professional development, and the importance of encouraging the next generation of women engineers.

PCEA Training announced its winter and spring 2027 schedule for the Certified Professional Circuit Designer (CPCD) program, with online classes beginning Jan. 15 and Mar. 19 and an in-person session April 26–30 at PCB East.

CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY is accepting entries for the 20th annual New Product Introduction Awards, with submissions for electronics assembly products due Dec. 14.

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.

Scanfil reported a 31 percent increase in third-quarter revenue to approximately $294M.

The US will award $389M in R&D funding for power semiconductors and critical materials.

Unimicron warns that the race to add AI PCB capacity is causing customer double-booking, with equipment and materials constraints straining the supply chain.

TTM Technologies has agreed to buy MKS’s Ophir Optics division for $650M.

In Mycronic’s Jan–Sep interim report, PCB Assembly Solutions demand stayed soft in high-mix/low-volume with price pressure from Japanese rivals, while PCB Test benefited from rising fab investment.

Samsung Electro-Mechanics is reportedly building $2.8B of FC-BGA substrate capacity in Sejong, Korea.

US Conec, an optical interconnect maker that includes circuit board interconnects, will invest $149M in a 200,000-sq-ft North Carolina expansion.

Apple’s push to cut supply chain emissions is hitting persistent hurdles at PCB makers, where more advanced boards demand more energy.

Burckhardt Compression won hydrogen compressor orders for chipmaking in Taiwan and South Korea.

Managing Vias in Very High Data-Rate Differential Pairs
PCD&F/CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY

Copper-Filled Circuit Boards Push Data Center Power Converter to 98.8% Efficiency
Bioengineer

Magneto-Mechano-Electrochemical Fiber for Deformation-Resilient and Smart Electronic Textiles
ScienceAdvances

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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.