SURREY, U.K., Nov. 5 -- Flexible printed circuit production will grow av average 21.5% per year through 2008, reaching $2.84 billion, says a new report from BPA Consulting. Worldwide flex production will total $1.98 billion in 2004, a record.

While the main drivers remain mobile phones, display interconnects, digital cameras and PDAs, new applications are emerging in the medical, aerospace and military markets, BPA predicts that these markets will remain relatively small.

The demand for hard disk drives and optical media drives is also increasing for portable consumer goods, A/V and computers . However, says BPA, the net effect for volumes will be negligible as the smaller size of flex boards used will offset higher demand. Furthermore, the costs of flex-rigid PCBs outweigh the benefits in most portable consumer applications.

Discrete flexible circuits and connectors will continue to be used in most mobile phones for the next thrree to five years. Many Asian producers are developing and sampling innovative lower-cost technologies that show promise, BPA says.

Asia (excluding Japan) produces the largest volumes of FPC, having overtaken Japan last year. The fastest-growing country in Asia is China, who has increased its share of Asian production from 8% in 2000 to 17% in 2003. China is expected to account for 29% in 2008.

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MILPITAS, CA, Nov. 2 — Bliss Industries named Samuel Sher vice president of sales and marketing responsible for growth and diversification plans.

Sher has 20 years of sales and marketing management at companies like Applied Materials, where he was senior director of marketing, and Synexis, where he was as well as a chief marketing officer. He has an MBA from Adelphi University and a bachelor's of science from New York State University.

He will report to Ken Bliss, president and CEO.

Bliss makes carts for SMT manufacturing.

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San Diego, Nov. 5 -- FocalSpot Inc., a provider of BGA/SMT inspection and rework, named Jeff Herberg global customer support manager and Glenn Olaes x-ray product line manger.

Herberg has 20 years of experience in : field service, applications engineering, technical training and sales support with GenRad/Nicolet Imaging Systems and Teradyne.

Olaes has eight years experience in : applications, customer support and regional sales management with Nicolet Imaging Systems/SRT, GenRad, Teradyne and VJ Electronix.

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SAN JOSE, Nov. 3 - Record semiconductor sales of $214 billion in 2004 will be followed by flatness next year, the Semiconductor Industry Association said today. In its annual forecast for 2004-2007, SIA projects sales will grow 6.3% in 2006 and 14.2% in 2007, reaching $259 billion. The trade group projects "less favorable" demand for memory products will dampen expansion next year.

SIA expects that 2004 year-on-year growth rate will be 28.5%. More than 50% of the semiconductors sold in 2004 will go into products purchased by consumers, a ratio that will grow as consumers embrace portable digital media, SIA said.

Lower demand for memory devices and passives in 2005 will offset modest improvements in microprocessors, logic and DSPs.

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