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Surface mount technology (SMT) is a design and fabrication process that replaces the through-hole mounting of PCB components with direct placement on the printed circuit board surface.

Engineers designing printed circuit boards (PCBs) commonly generate a prototype board prior to full-scale manufacturing of boards for end products. Multiple prototype runs will often be included in the development of the final fabricated PCB, for good reason.

Surface Mount Technology (SMT) is the widely-used alternative to older through-hole (TH) printed circuit board design and manufacturing practices. While TH fabrication still has its place, SMT has largely taken over where size, weight, and automated manufacturing processes are considerations.

High Density Interconnected printed circuit boards (HDI PCB) have made technological advancements in electronics possible. They have been referred to under a variety of names: Sequence Build Up (SBU), Microvia Process (MVP), and Build Up Multilayer (BUM) boards, to name a few.

LDI processing requires a board with a photosensitive surface, positioned under a computer-controlled laser. A computer scans the board surface into a raster image.

In today’s world, it’s nearly impossible to get through the day without interacting with some sort of electronic device. Most are connected in some way to a source of communications, facilitated by the internet.

Businesses and consumers alike rely on electronic devices for nearly every aspect of day-to-day life. Automobiles are packed full of printed circuit boards (PCBs) for everything from lighting and entertainment to sensors that control the behavior of critical mechanical functions.

Electronics are taking center stage in a continuously growing variety of industries. From computers and high-performance servers that drive web sites and global enterprises to machine tools utilized throughout industrial sectors to smartphones and tablets, printed circuit boards (PCBs) have become critical elements of day-to-day living.

Printed circuit boards are turning up in an exponentially-expanding number of products including: Industrial equipment including machine tools and CAD/CAM systems, Computers and peripheral devices, Smartphones, tablets, and wearable technology such as fitness wristbands and watches, Televisions with ever-increasing technical functionality, Medical equipment including diagnostic and even robotic surgical devices, Renewable energy sources such as solar power and wind turbines, Consumer electronics from toys to increasingly-popular drones, Aircraft and other aerospace industries for commercial and military use