CHANDLER, AZ - The Rogers Corporation has appointed Michael D. Bessette to head its Advanced Circuit Materials Division (ACMD) effective July 10, 2008.

A 33-year veteran of Rogers Corporation, Bessette previously worked at Rogers’ R&D department in Connecticut, and also in Japan, where he headed up Rogers’ joint venture with INOAC Corporation, manufacturing elastomer materials. Bessette has been responsible for the Durel Division’s global electroluminescent backlighting business for the past five years.

"Mike Bessette brings his extensive experience in R&D... to the Advanced Circuits Materials Division at a critical time, as we strive to accelerate the division’s growth and product diversification." said Robert Wachob, president and CEO.

Bessette holds a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University and an M.S. degree in Chemical Engineering and Polymer Science from the University of Connecticut.

TAIWAN - Commenting on the outlook for handset-use PCBs, Unimicron Technology and Unitech PCB expressed differing opinions, with Unimicron stating its prediction of a better second half for 2008, while Unitech thinks that market outlook will not be apparent until late June.

Unimicron chairman Tze-Chang Tzeng said the company’s sales outlook is more optimistic than it was in the second quarter, and he believes that the sales should improve in the second half of the year, with third-quarter sales growth of 10% to 20% on the quarter, but also added that these estimations will depend on the status of orders in the first week of July. Tzeng said Unimicron should be able to achieve over $132 million in sales for 2008.

Unimicron rival Unitech company sources indicate that they have not yet seen signs of a seasonal upturn, and that a clearer outlook for the year will not be seen until late June, but despite low order visibility for the third quarter, the company expects that its June sales will post a mild increase on month. Shipments are expected to grow by 20% in 2008 due to growing sales of HDI boards used for handsets and other applications.