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MKS' Atotech: More Horizontal Panel Plating in the U.S.
October 11, 2023 | Christopher R. Daczkowski, MKS' AtotechEstimated reading time: 1 minute

Recently, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) opened its new $100 million captive printed circuit board manufacturing facility in Moscow, Idaho. The new facility features state-of-the-art PCB equipment from MKS’ Atotech, one of the leading providers of advanced PCB and IC substrate horizontal manufacturing equipment for the electronics industry. This type of equipment is normally delivered to Asian markets and is not usually seen in North America.
Equipment selection is a crucial decision for any company and directly impacts the quality and efficiency of production processes. For our customers, several key factors usually drive the decision to install MKS’ Atotech equipment lines. These include our long history as a reputable global solutions provider and proven record of successful installations worldwide. Today, we have delivered and installed more than 2,150 horizontal PCB lines for surface treatment, desmear and metallization, copper electroplating, and final finishing of printed circuit boards and IC substrates, of which more than 1,000 are horizontal copper platers. They are well known for their outstanding repeatability of copper deposition uniformity and pure copper plating results.
With the shift toward increased investment in local manufacturing in the U.S., our system solutions are appreciated as high-quality products to support manufacturing demand now and in the future. With our long history in the Americas, we are happy to see this development and are excited to provide the best possible technical support to our customer base, which is growing, especially with the trend of opening new, innovative PCB plants.
Follow this link to continue reading this article which appears in its entirety in the September 2023 issue of PCB007 Magazine.
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Designers Notebook: Addressing Future Challenges for Designers
02/06/2025 | Vern Solberg -- Column: Designer's NotebookThe printed circuit board is and will probably continue to be the base platform for most electronics. With the proliferation of new generations of high I/O, fine-pitch surface mount semiconductor package variations, circuit interconnect is an insignificant factor. Circuit board designers continually face challenges such as component quantity and complexity, limited surface area, and meeting the circuit board’s cost target. The printed circuit design engineer’s prominent position demands the development of efficiently manufacturable products that perform without compromise.