Precoplat, a PCB manufacturer headquartered in Krefeld, Germany, announces the commissioning of a modern InfinityLine etching and stripping center. The production line for etching and stripping of inner layers was manufactured by Schmid and now enables Precoplat to produce the finest structures on printed circuit boards with high process reliability at a speed of up to 1.0 m/min.
The 'Fine Line' etching and stripping center relies on intermittent etching or acid etching in conjunction with precise stripping processes to meet the increasing demands for miniaturization of PCB structures. In addition to the general advantage that 'acid' etching attacks the track edges more moderately and thus reduces undercutting, vacuum etching technology enables a more uniform and controlled reduction of the copper layer thickness across the entire PCB layout. The system's ability to etch intermittently makes layer etching possible.
Together with the other new acquisitions in recent years, Precoplat is able to produce structures with a theoretical resolution of up to 15my. Layer, step or layer etching is now also possible with deviations of less than 2my. The production line is highly flexible. Thanks to the option of adding an additional etching and stripping module, the production capacity can be almost doubled.
According to Managing Directors Katharina Völker and Andreas Brüggen, the commissioning of the etching and stripping center represents a significant step for the company and underlines Precoplat's innovative strength. In addition, the etching and stripping center enables resource-conserving operation and minimized emissions. The process is fully integrated into the circular economy, as the used process media are broken down into their components and either recovered as precious metal or reused as process media. To avoid health hazards for employees, the process takes place in a completely isolated horizontal plant with state-of-the-art extraction systems.
www.precoplat.de
www.schmid-group.com
