Flex Circuit Board Sales Soar at Mass Design with Medical Sector Leading

NASHUA, N.H., April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- High-reliability flexible circuit board sales for 2011 are taking off at Mass Design Incorporated - much of it from medical device manufacturers that strive to cram more functionality into smaller spaces.

"While avionics and defense industry demand for our flexible circuit boards continues to grow; we see record growth of 18% from the medical electronics sector – diagnostic and monitoring equipment, surgical tools and both implantable and non-implantable medical devices," said Bill Gately, sales manager, Mass Design (http://www.massdesign.com). Mass Design has been manufacturing flexible circuit boards for medical technology companies such as Siemens, Nova Biomedical, GE Healthcare, Baxter, Tyco and others for over a decade.

Mass Design fabricates printed circuit boards (PCBs) for original equipment manufacturers as well as manufacturing fully assembled printed circuit boards with all components installed. The PCBs may be flexible, rigid or rigid-flex boards that combine the two properties in a single unit. 

Images of Mass Design's Flexible and Rigid-Flex Boards are available at: http://www.massdesign.com/flex2.php

According to research published by the electronics manufacturing trade group IPC in Bannockburn, IL, (http://www.ipc.org) after a decline in North American flexible circuit sales are way up. An October 2009-2010 comparison shows "flexible circuit shipments increased 11.0% and bookings were up 19.4%."

Stretch Flex is the Next Big Thing

The Economist, in a recent article titled, "A shapely future for circuits," predicts that coming generations of circuits will not only be flexible but will stretch to mimic, say, human skin in a prosthetic hand. Even the hard components that sit on tiny islands in these circuits may one day be flexible as well (http://www.economist.com/node/18304110).

Flex and rigid PCBs are designed and manufactured at Mass Design's US-based, 75,000 square-foot facility in Nashua, New Hampshire and by manufacturing partners in Asia.

Mass Design produces flex circuits using Acrylic/Kapton, as well as adhesive-less materials with either Kapton or liquid photo-imageable overcoats. Finishes are tailored specifically for lead free HAL processing. Fully dynamic continuous flex circuits and one time "flex to install" stiffened types are available.

Mass Design certifications include: ISO9001: 2008 Certified, ISO 13485: 2003 Certified, UL796. Registered and DDTC Certified.

SOURCE Mass Design Incorporated