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United Electronics Corporation (UEC), a domestic manufacturer of printed circuit boards, today announced the installation of two new conveyorized developing lines at its Franklin Park facility, both manufactured by Circuit-Tech Machinery. One line develops primary image resist for inner and outer layers; the other develops solder mask. Each is fitted with an automatic unloader and replaces older equipment with nearly double the throughput.
Why Developing Matters
Developing is where a board's circuitry and solder mask openings first take physical form. After exposure, the developer washes away the unexposed resist or mask, leaving the pattern behind. The process must be precise: under-developing leaves residue that can cause shorts, plating defects, or contaminated pads, while over-developing erodes fine lines and mask features. Consistent chemistry, temperature, and spray coverage are what keep every panel in that narrow window.
What It Means for Your Boards
Sharper, more consistent features. Automatic chemistry and temperature control hold the developer at its optimum from the first panel of the day to the last, while oscillating spray delivers even coverage across the entire panel. The result is clean, accurate line definition on inner and outer layers and crisp solder mask openings and dams, even on fine-pitch designs.
Clean panels, ready for the next step. Fresh water and multi-stage rinsing stop the developing action at exactly the right point and flush away residue, followed by squeeze rollers and high-velocity air drying. Panels leave clean and dry, ready for etching, plating, or final cure.
Hands-off unloading. Automatic unloaders collect panels as they exit, reducing handling of freshly developed images and solder mask and keeping both lines running continuously.
Nearly double the throughput. Compared with the lines they replace, the new developers process close to twice as many panels, removing a key bottleneck in imaging and solder mask and helping shorten lead times on quick-turn and production work alike.
Built for reliable uptime. Improved controls and easy service access simplify UEC's regular preventive maintenance, keeping the lines in peak condition and in production.
Continued Investment in Domestic Manufacturing
"Every feature on a circuit board — every trace, every pad, every solder mask opening — passes through a developer," said Ramesh Patel, President of United Electronics Corporation. "These new lines give us tighter control over that step and nearly double our capacity to run it. That means more consistent boards and faster turnaround for our customers. It's another investment in giving our customers better boards, faster, right here in Illinois."
Both developing lines are installed and fully operational at UEC's Franklin Park facility, serving customers across the automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, and industrial electronics markets.
