DUBLIN -- Eastern Europe accounted for electronics production worth €55 billion ($63 billion) in 2013, according to new research.

Demand for bare printed circuit boards was just under €2.2 billion ($2.52 billion), while local PCB production in the region is estimated at €333 million ($382 million), Research and Markets says.

Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union present an interesting picture of a region in which many Eastern European countries formerly aligned with the Soviet Union are now members of the EU, while the remaining Russian satellite countries have trade agreements with both the EU and with Russia to greater or lesser extents, R&M says. "An interesting point to emerge during the research, was how heavily concentrated the FSU aerospace industry was in Ukraine. Antonov is based in Kiev. KSAMC is in Kharkiv, north of the conflict zone in the east of Ukraine. Although Russia retained its nuclear industry after the split with Ukraine, the aerospace industry remained under Ukraine's governance. As Russia seeks to rebuild its technology base, there are parts of Ukraine which would enhance its capability if they were to return to Russian governance."

One of the smaller countries, Croatia joined the EU in 2013 as the 28th state. Its electronics industry is small with total production value estimated at €200 million, and is dominated by industrial (industrial, instrumentation & control) and communications. Only three very small board shops have been identified in Croatia: IDT-TIM, Markovac and Tiplon Printed Boards. These make single-sided and double-sided boards for prototypes only.

In contrast to Croatia, one of the largest electronics producers in the region, Poland, has grown faster during 2011-2013 than any of the other east European countries. The value of its electronics production in 2013 is estimated at €6.8 billion ($7.8 billion). It is home to most of the leading automotive OEMs and Tier 1 manufacturers as well as being a major production hub for white goods. Poland is also home to a dozen small PCB fabricators, all with annual revenues less than €10 million and most less than €5 million.

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