SHENZHEN — Toyo Ink SC Holdings, the parent company of the Tokyo-based specialty materials manufacturer Toyo Ink Group, this month opened the Shenzhen Toyo Ink Technical Center here. The new tech center is established under Shenzhen Toyo Ink, the company's Chinese subsidiary.

The new site is expected to accelerate electronic device development through technological collaborations with tech firms in the region. Major markets of focus include smartphones, wearable devices, electric vehicles, 5G base stations, and other growth fields where highly reliable, high-performance components are a must.

“As a leading materials supplier to some of the biggest names in the electronics industry, we are committed to staying at the forefront of advanced materials innovation,” said Kengo Kochiya, general manager of Shenzhen Toyo Ink Co. “The opening of the Shenzhen facility is in line with the Group’s global strategy of expanding businesses in the designated priority digital domain, which includes electronics and IoT fields. Through the Shenzhen Toyo Ink Technical Center, we intend to increase technical exchanges with high-tech firms in the region, with the aim of developing new semiconductors and their peripheral materials alongside the Group’s R&D centers in the United States and Japan.”

Moreover, the new facility is expected to strengthen the technical support capability for Toyochem, the polymers and coatings arm of the Toyo Ink Group. Under its LIOELM brand of functional films, Toyochem is a leading supplier of electromagnetic wave shielding films, electrically conductive adhesive sheets, low-dielectric adhesive sheets and other advanced polymer-based solutions to electronics manufacturers based in China.

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TORONTO -- Firan Technology Group today announced second quarter sales of $22.3 million, up 9.8% sequentially and 9.1% year-over-year. Bookings rose 6% sequentially and 45% from a year ago to $27.6 million. It was the company's best bookings quarter since fourth quarter 2019.

Net earnings after tax were flat at $0.

Sales at FTG's printed circuits business were up 19% from 2021 to $15.5 million. Sales growth was most pronounced at Circuits Toronto and the joint venture in China, as both sites are primarily serving the commercial aerospace market. On a year-to-date basis, net sales were $29.7 million, versus $25 million for the prior year period.

The Circuits Segment net earnings before corporate and interest and other costs was $800,000, down $300,000 from last year. The increase in sales was the most significant impact on the segment profitability offset by reduced subsidies from the US and Canadian governments. Revenue included $100,000 of government subsidies in the March quarter and $700,000 in the June quarter. Excluding the effect of government subsidies, net earnings from the Circuits Segment increased $400,000.

PCB WEST: The leading technical conference and exhibition for electronics engineers. Coming Oct. 4-7 to the Santa Clara (CA) Convention Center. pcbwest.com