Markets

The solder mask stencil and chemical etching industries demand high quality stainless steel with specific properties. Material must be flat, have no surface imperfections and be free of the residual stresses that result from cold rolling.

Continuing miniaturisation within the PCB industry means that ever more stringent requirements are placed on solder printing quality. This means that substrates must meet exacting thickness tolerances and show stable mechanical properties. Our material meets all of these requirements and ensures minimum reworking during PCB assembly and solder reflow work.

Our stainless steel is primarily aimed at the stencil industry but is also an excellent substrate for chemical etching applications. The high quality surface finish ensures excellent resist adhesion and step etched parts are free from deformation.

Electronic components are important in almost every aspect of our lives. Not just in entertainment, telecommunications and the automotive industry but also in Aerospace and Defence.

Sensitive microelectronics need to be housed in robust, hermetic enclosures often in very hostile environments where they are subjected to heat, moisture and contamination. To ensure sealing integrity for these components, the thermal expansion characteristics of the alloys must be adjusted to that of the various glass grades and ceramic materials being joined to them.

We offer wire, bar and plate in nickel-iron alloys, Kovar 2918, Invar 36, Alloy 42 and Alloy 51 with the necessary controlled expansion characteristics. Also these alloys are offered with correct mechanical characteristics dependent on the manufacturing process employed for them whether this be turning on sliding-head lathes, conventional turning/milling or drawing/stamping on presses.

The rechargeable battery industry uses both nickel and nickel plated material as mainstream products for interlink cells and battery connectors. These connectors or ‘tags’ link any number of individual cells to form a pack. The ever increasing demand for smaller, lighter battery packs that have higher storage and output capacities places greater demands on the quality of materials used in the connectors.

As output power increases so does the current carrying capacity of the connectors. The design of the packs requires materials to provide minimal resistivity. Weight is also a consideration so movement towards thinner materials can also be beneficial. Some assemblers also require specialised crimps for wire connectors that negate the need for time consuming solder connections. There are also requirements for specialist multi-cell tags.