Printed Circuit Board Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Printed Circuit Board Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Printed Circuit Board market is expected to register a CAGR of 1.53% during the forecast period (2021 - 2026) and was valued at USD 58.91 billion in 2020, and it is projected to be worth USD 75.72 billion by 2026 during the period 2021-2026. The market experienced rapid growth in the last few years, primarily owing to the continuous development of consumer electronics devices and increasing demand for PCBs in all electronics and electrical equipment.

Key Highlights

• The adoption of PCBs in connected vehicles has also accelerated the PCB market. These are vehicles that are fully equipped with both wired and wireless technologies, which make it possible for the vehicles to connect to computing devices like smartphones at ease. With such technology, drivers are able to unlock their vehicles, start climate control systems remotely, check their electric cars batteries status, and track their cars using smartphones.
• Additionally, the demand for electronic devices, such as smartphones, smartwatches, and other devices, has also boosted the market’s growth. For instance, According to the US Consumer Technology Sales and Forecast study, which was conducted by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), the revenue generated by smartphones was valued at USD 79.1 billion and USD 77.5 billion in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
• 3D printing has proved integral to one of the big PCB innovations lately. 3D-printed electronics, or 3D PEs, are expected to revolutionize the way electrical systems are designed in the future. These systems create 3D circuits by printing a substrate item layer by layer, then adding a liquid ink on top of it that contains electronic functionalities. Surface-mount technologies can then be added to create the final system. 3D PE can potentially provide immense technical and manufacturing benefits for both circuit manufacturing companies and their clients, especially compared to traditional 2D PCBs.
• With the outbreak of COVID-19, the production of printed circuit boards were impacted by constraints and delays in Asia-Pacific region, especially in China, during the months of January and February. Companies have not made major changes to their production capacities but weak demand in China present some supply chain issues. The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) report, in February, indicated potential longer-term business impacts outside of China related to the COVID-19. The effect of diminished demand could be reflected in companies' 2Q20 revenues.

Key Market TrendsConsumer Electronics is Expected to Hold a Significant Market Share

• The usage of printed circuit boards (PCBs) is abundant in any electronic equipment, including calculators and remote control units, large circuit boards, and an increasing number of white goods, which is contributing to the market growth considerably.
• The increasing usage of mobile phones is further anticipated to drive the market for PCBs across the world. For instance, according to the Germany statistical office, at the beginning of 2019, nearly every household (97%) owned at least one mobile phone, compared to 94%, early in 2014. Mobile subscribers are also expected to grow from 5.1 billion in 2018 to 5.8 billion in 2025. (GSM 2019 Report). Due to the miniaturization trend of mobile devices such as smartphones, laptops and tablets for consumer convenience, there has been a rise in the manufacturing of the Printed Circuit Board (PCB).
• Moreover, owing to the increasing demand from the market segment, several market incumbents are specifically catering to the end-users’ needs, by offering PCBs in multiple batch sizes.
• For instance, AT&S produces printed circuit boards for smartphones and tablets, and it supplies to major companies, like Apple and Intel. Additionally, in 2020, Apple plans to launch two ‘iPhone SE 2’ models in different sizes. The upcoming iPhone SE 2 models may use a 10-layer Substrate-like PCB (SLP) for its motherboard, which may be manufactured by AT&S.
• Additionally, vendors operating in the market are focusing on the geographical expansions, further driving the growth of PCBs in this segment. For instance, in February 2020, Apple Inc’s supplier, Wistron, will soon start assembling iPhone PCBs locally in India. Apple’s iPhone PCBs were earlier manufactured overseas and then imported to India. The new strategic move is expected to set off by the government, choosing to increase customs duty on PCB assembly.

North America is Expected to Have a Significant Market Share

• With exploding consumer electronics sector, the soaring popularity of IoT, and rising applications in the automotive industry are identified as the key factors that are likely contributing a positive impact on the sales of PCBs in the region. Quality performance and great packaging flexibility of PCBs will contribute to their success in the interconnectivity solutions in the future.
• In Dec 2019, TTM Technologies, Inc., a leading global printed circuit board products, radio frequency components, and engineered solutions manufacturer, announced the opening of a new Engineering Center in New York. Following the acquisition of manufacturing and intellectual property assets from i3 Electronics, Inc., the company has hired a number of engineering experts previously employed by i3 to strengthen its advanced PCB technology capabilities and extend its patent portfolio for emerging applications for the aerospace and defense and high-end commercial markets.
• Further, the vendors in the market are making strategic acquisitions to enhance their PC capabilities. For instance, Summit Interconnect, Inc. recently announced the combination of Summit Interconnect and Streamline Circuits. The acquisition of Streamline increases the Summit group to three California based operations. The Streamline operation significantly improves the company’s PCB capabilities when technology and time are critical.
• Number of television viewers are expected to grow in the region due to introduction of online TV platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Google Pay and Sky Go. This would encourage market adoption due to increased deployment of PCB in television sets.
• Increasing demand for small, flexible electronics will act as a critical trend for the market. The growing use of flex circuits in electronic wearables will have a positive impact on the market. Moreover, materializing interest in foldable or rollable smartphones will create a massive number of opportunities for key market players soon.
• Moreover, in May 2019 San Francisco Circuits announced upgradation of turnkey PCB assembly capabilities. The Full turnkey PCB assembly through SFC minimizes the customer’s responsibility to source components, manage the bill of materials (BOM), inventory, and logistics associated that can be encountered when working with a PCB assembly partner.

Competitive Landscape

The printed circuit board market is highly competitive due to the presence of few major players like Jabil Inc, Wurth elektronik group (Wurth group), TTM Technologies Inc., Becker & Müller Schaltungsdruck GmbH and Advanced Circuits Inc. ​These major players, with a prominent share in the market, are focusing on expanding their customer base across foreign countries. These companies are leveraging strategic collaborative initiatives to increase their market share and increase their profitability. However, with technological advancements and product innovations, mid-size to smaller companies are increasing their market presence by securing new contracts and by tapping new markets.

• March 2020 - Zhen Ding Technology Holding Limited acquired Boardtek Electronics Corporation by Share-swap. After the share-swap, Boardtek would become the wholly-owned subsidiary of Zhen Ding. Boardtek engages in R&D, production, and sales of multilayer “PCB” which focuses on high-performance computing, high-frequency microwave, and higher efficiency of thermal dissipation.
• February 2020 - TTM Technologies Inc. has announced the opening of the Advanced Technology Center in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. This revitalized 40,000 sq. ft. the facility, located at 850 Technology Way, offers a wide variety of some of the most advanced PCB manufacturing solutions offered in North America today, including the ability to manufacture substrate-like PCBs. TTM acquired the assets of i3 Electronics, Inc. (“i3”) in June, 2019, and shortly thereafter began work to quickly retool this facility which started production in January, 2020.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support

Companies Mentioned

Jabil Inc.
Wurth elektronik group (Wurth group)
TTM Technologies, Inc.
Becker & Muller Schaltungsdruck GmbH
Advanced Circuits Inc.
Sumitomo Corporation
Murrietta Circuits
Unimicron Technology Corporation
Tripod Technology Corporation
AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik AG
Nippon Mektron Ltd.
Zhen Ding Technology Holding Limited

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