Global PCB Connections: Rigid-flex and Flexible PCBs—The Backbone of Modern Electronics
Flexible Thinking: The Key to a Successful Flex Circuit Design Transfer
Happy’s Tech Talk #29: Bend-to-Install Semi-flex FR-4
Listen Up! The Intricacies of PCB Drilling Detailed in New Podcast Episode
April 25, 2024 | I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 1 minute
In episode 5 of the podcast series, On the Line With: Designing for Reality, Nolan Johnson and Matt Stevenson continue down the manufacturing process, this time focusing on the post-lamination drilling process for PCBs. Matt and Nolan delve into the intricacies of the PCB drilling process, highlighting the importance of hole quality, drill parameters, and design optimization to ensure smooth manufacturing. The conversation covers topics such as drill bit sizes, aspect ratios, vias, challenges in drilling, and ways to enhance efficiency in the drilling department. Listeners will also learn about the critical relationship between design choices and manufacturing capabilities, as well as subsequent steps of metalizing the drilled holes through an electrolysis process.
This series is all about the specifics that can affect your circuit board during the manufacturing process and includes tips and tricks for optimizing design, fabrication, yields, and cost.
I-Connect007 is committed to providing digital content that meets the needs of the electronics industry, including magazines, books, newsletters, market reports, podcasts, and event coverage. As the industry's longest-running digital media company, I-Connect007 is a leading publisher of exclusive content for the global electronics industry.
Click here to listen to episode 5 of On the Line With: Designing for Reality. Visit our educational resource center to access more free content.
Share on:
Testimonial
"Our marketing partnership with I-Connect007 is already delivering. Just a day after our press release went live, we received a direct inquiry about our updated products!"
Rachael Temple - AlltematedSuggested Items
New Podcast Episode Drop: MKS’ Atotech’s Role in Optimize the Interconnect
09/04/2025 | I-Connect007In this episode of On the Line With…, host Nolan Johnson sits down with Patrick Brooks, MKS' Atotech's Global Product Director, EL Systems, to discuss the critical role that wet processes play alongside laser systems in advancing the Optimize the InterconnectSM initiative. Brooks points to Bondfilm as a key example—a specialized coating that enables CO₂ lasers to ablate more effectively than ever before.
New Episode Drop: MKS’ ESI’s Role in Optimize the Interconnect
08/26/2025 | I-Connect007In this latest episode, Casey Kruger, director of product marketing at MKS’ ESI, joins On the Line With… host Nolan Johnson to share how CO₂ laser technology delivers faster, more accurate vias in a smaller, more energy-efficient footprint.
New Podcast Episode Drop: Optimize the Interconnect and the Future of HDI
07/28/2025 | I-Connect007The Optimize the Interconnect podcast series continues with its second installment, featuring Chris Ryder, senior director of business development at MKS’ ESI. In this episode, Ryder shares compelling real-world examples that illustrate why Optimize the Interconnect is gaining traction across the industry.
New Podcast Series Launches: Optimize the Interconnect
07/16/2025 | I-Connect007I-Connect007 is excited to announce the debut of Optimize the Interconnect—a new podcast series featuring guest Chris Ryder, senior director of business development at MKS’ ESI. This insightful series explores how MKS’ ESI is rethinking microvia formation for today’s most advanced HDI PCB and substrate designs.
Trouble in Your Tank: Can You Drill the Perfect Hole?
07/07/2025 | Michael Carano -- Column: Trouble in Your TankIn the movie “Friday Night Lights,” the head football coach (played by Billy Bob Thornton) addresses his high school football team on a hot day in August in West Texas. He asks his players one question: “Can you be perfect?” That is an interesting question, in football and the printed circuit board fabrication world, where being perfect is somewhat elusive. When it comes to mechanical drilling and via formation, can you drill the perfect hole time after time?