Helping protect the latest generation of eHealth technology
Through the pandemic, people have become more health-conscious. Many are turning to wearable eHealth technology.
Growth in wearables is being driven by miniaturisation that enables manufacturers to embed smaller, smarter sensors into garments to track sleep or medical conditions; and by changes in consumer habits. eHealth technology is also affordable. If they monitor their own health and catch symptoms and illnesses, people can help protect themselves and keep healthcare costs down.
Ranjit Atwal, senior research director at Gartner, said. “The introduction of health measures to self-track COVID-19 symptoms, along with increasing interest from consumers in their personal health and wellness during global lockdowns, presented a significant opportunity for the wearables market. Ear-worn devices and smartwatches are seeing particularly robust growth as consumers rely on these devices for remote work, fitness activities, health tracking and more.”
In line with this, the analyst projects that worldwide spending on smartwatches will increase from an estimated $18.5 billion in 2018 to a projected $25.8 billion in 2021, and it expects sales to reach $31.3 billion by 2022.
Yet, it is not just the volume of wearable eHealth devices that is on the up. There has also been a widening in the range of health categories to encompass not only fitness, but also heart health, femhealth and mental health.
The various form factors include rigid, flexible, stretchable, thin and large-area. Generally, current wearables are using customised sensors developed to a standard design, but they may need to evolve to fit the many form factors of eHealth devices. For this, miniaturisation will be key. Additionally, silicon photonic integrated chip sets offer the promise to extend the longevity of wearables by prolonging battery life. All these elements are sensitive and require a flexible approach to liquid protection.
Wearable devices are often worn 24 hours a day and taken off only when charging is required. They are frequently worn during exercise, increasing risk of damage from sweat and during swimming, leading to further risk of water damage. Shower steam is another risk factor as are rain or humidity when devices are worn outdoors.
Designs need to be sufficiently robust to avoid excessive cleaning damage caused by users, a growing issue through the pandemic.
There are three broad options: mechanical sealing, individual component liquid protection, or coatings. Traditional liquid protection methods like mechanicals seals or conformal coatings are often unwieldy or unreliable and prone to cracking, delaminating and degrading. Mechanical seals are rigid and inflexible when protecting miniaturised components
In contrast, the latest nano coatings are flexible, reliable and ideal for providing effective water protection to wearable devices. These coatings offer robust protection plus protection to internal electronics against corrosion or damage from cleaning agents such as IPA.
The importance of repairability
It is also important that eHealth devices and solutions that protect them from liquid damage are repairable. This is particularly key in manufacturing where, especially if a business is producing small, volumes, it will want to be both environmentally and cost-efficient.
As eHealth devices transition into auxiliary medical tools, the need for repairability will become more urgent. Nano coatings can continue delivering liquid protection and do not degrade over time, so will last the whole product lifetime.
That’s key. Nano coatings are not compromised by other types of damage. So, even if a product does need to be repaired, the coating will remain effective. They are a solution therefore that can help protect eHealth devices through their normal lifetime and extend that lifetime further.
For more information on how nano coating improves the protection and lifespan of products, contact one of our liquid protection experts here.
From invention to launch, the manufacture of the modern car is an astonishingly complex technological endeavour. Thousands of intricate parts are involved, with up to 100 high-quality sensors deployed throughout the vehicle to meet evolving security, efficiency and environmental standards. Some of the most important are built into the engine to ensure that the owner can identify and prevent possible issues before they result in breakdowns and expensive repairs.
Engine sensors measure voltage, fuel temperature, oxygen levels and much more, ensuring that the vehicle is operating at peak efficiency. By 2030, half the cost of a car will be accounted for by its electronics, of which sensors with semiconductors will be a major part, says Deloitte. Consequently, these sensors will need to be protected to prevent increased breakdown.
Looking further down the road, once autonomous vehicles have become part of our everyday reality, sensor technology will be as utterly essential as the electricity in their batteries. AVs will require a multiplicity of sensors as part of a new approach to operation, maintenance and sustainability. Without camera, radar and lidar sensors, these vehicles are unable to function. Whatever the vehicle or its drive train, the problem remains that with many sensors necessarily exposed to the elements, something is bound to break, leak or need upgrading.
The failure of sensors brings multiple risks. The first is that it will result in damage to the car that will lead to the need for expensive repairs – and recent industry estimates indicate that some car parts can cost well over £1,000 to repair or replace. The second is that it will render the car unusable even if there is nothing mechanically wrong with the rest of the vehicle. Either eventuality is likely to cause brand damage. Failing sensors can also inflict significant environmental damage by causing an increase in emissions, alongside performance and drivability problems.
The level of impact sensor-failure has on brand image becomes even clearer when the likely impact on the motorist is considered. When an individual is alerted to a fault with their car by a sensor, they have two options: get it looked at or not. If the fault allows them to continue to drive and it is not convenient for them to go get the car checked out, they will keep using it without knowing what damage they are doing. Faulty sensors also raise stress levels. Consumers will either think repairs are going to be very expensive or worry about being stranded if their car breaks down on the road.
Promoting reliability and sustainability
Protection at sensor level is the best solution to the high cost of car repairs. Nano coatings are ideal as opposed to mechanical sealing or conformal coatings, which can degrade when exposed to heat or vibrations. Lasting protection can be provided using the latest nano coating technology that chemically bonds the coating onto the printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) to give outstanding thermal durability. This solution trumps mechanical seals, which add extra weight and require more space as well as lower the vehicle’s energy efficiency and prevent automotive innovation.
Practical solutions like liquid proof coatings can enable manufacturers to make sensors repairable so they no longer require replacement. This will increase vehicle reliability and ensure vehicles are sustainable and environmentally friendly – vital factors in the considerations of car-buyers.
For more information on how nano coating improves the protection and lifespan of products including sensor technology, contact one of our liquid protection experts today here.
With Christmas almost upon us, manufacturers’ attention once again falls on the annual top Dream Toys list released by the Toy Retailers Association. 2020’s selection makes especially fascinating reading as the list highlights the toys that parents have relied on to entertain and educate their children for the extended amount of playtime they’ve had this year.
It is interesting to note that almost half (47%) of the most popular stars in the ‘long list’ for 2020 require either batteries or charging via USB in order to operate. These electronic toys include hi-tech Super Mario™ Lego® figures that give instant expressive responses via LCD screens and speakers, as well as a new generation of radio-controlled combat vehicles that do battle with built-in infrared cannons. Also on the list are some returning iconic names, with Peppa Pig and Barbie among them.
Lamentably, a large volume of these electronic toys will inevitably end up in landfill sites, just as they do each year. But with manufacturers now increasingly being required to reduce the waste they produce there is a real need to ensure all such toys are constructed from the outset to be long-lasting and repairable.
No matter how popular they are, the threats to the lifespan of electronic toys remain the same; they include the type of spillages, splashes and misuse around water which commonly occur around children. And this year – with parents paying closer attention to hygiene around their little ones’ playthings – toys will have to withstand more regular and vigorous antibacterial cleaning than in the past. Then there is the issue of corrosion damage from humidity, which can also lead to faulty electronics.
However, manufacturers can help to reduce this problem by ensuring electronic toys are manufactured with the best liquid protection so that they don’t become damaged and consequently discarded after a much shorter lifespan than they ought to have. By using functional nano coatings, it is possible to provide protection for the types of splashes, spills and even accidental submersion that children are likely to subject their toys. Nano coating offers a lifetime of protection enabling electronic toys to easily be rehomed to another family after a much longer period of use, as opposed to yet again ending up as landfill.
For more information on how nano coating improves the protection and lifespan of products including electronic toys, contact one of our liquid protection experts today.
Electronics manufacturers and consumers are increasingly focused on extending product lifespan. In March 2020, the European Commission announced plans to extend the eco-design directive, billed as the ‘right to repair’, to phones and tablets in a bid to increase the repairability of electrical devices. This is likely to be one of a wave of legislative activities designed to extend consumer product lifetimes.
The drive towards ‘right to repair’ is also driven by environmentally-aware consumer trends. Consumers are looking to purchase products with a longer lifespan and repair them when needed, rather than discarding the device. All this has the potential to lead to further legislation, but also to change manufacturers’ mindsets around repairability. For existing products, manufacturers may look to modify designs to make them compliant. For new products we could see designs chosen for manufacture based on how easy they are to repair by a consumer.
Manufacturers are also more conscious of safety. Consumers are not skilled electricians and may not have the tools to conduct repairs. There are concerns about what happens when repairs go wrong and potential for new legislation. Some manufacturers are considering introducing longer warranty periods to control repairs for longer and provide longer-lasting products.
Recent design trends have often made electronics difficult to open without compromising the device’s liquid protection mechanisms or structural integrity. This is due to rigid gaskets and seals, thick conformal coatings or glues. Once compromised, these sealed parts and/or products are irreparable. If a product is dropped or broken, the seals often become obsolete. Even where repairs are possible, they are unlikely to be cost-effective.
All this is likely to lead to changes in the ways electronics products are designed. We may see welds or glued joints replaced with latches or gaskets. We may see additional safety mechanisms added to products to protect consumers when carrying out repairs. Manufacturers will also be increasingly focused on extending the ‘time-to-fail’ and ‘time-to-service’ a product. The more likely a component is to be repaired, the greater the chance of damage to surrounding components, leading to a perpetual risk of device failure.
Fortunately, there is an alternative. Nano coatings can continue delivering liquid protection and do not degrade. Typically, they are not compromised by other types of damage so that even if a product does need to be reworked or repaired, the coating will remain effective. The ability to repair components and whole devices saves costs, reduces the need for landfill and enables regulations around waste to be more easily met. Over the coming years, the drive to repairability is likely to continue as new legislation comes on stream but there will also be more focus on safety.
Manufacturers will want devices to last over 10 years to avoid the need for repair. They may also need to take design into account. They will certainly need to add safety mechanisms to ensure compliance but also to protect devices during repair. Those mechanisms will also need protecting from moisture or dust damage and that will also impact design.
Manufacturers will want the flexibility to choose the safety mechanism most suited to their device and have that safety mechanism last ten years; be repairable; and be protected from dust and liquid. Again, nano coating offers benefits in protecting the device and safety mechanisms from the damage that makes repairs more likely, but also in making those repairs viable. Nano coating eliminates the need for bulky mechanical seals, helping, manufacturers stay competitive in a market that calls for increasing sustainability.
To find out more about how our technologies support repairability, ensuring electronics keep working in any environment, please contact us.
Smart cities are fast taking shape, driven by advanced, high-capacity mobile connectivity and networks of thousands of sensors. This will be a huge market. According to a recent report from MarketsandMarkets, The Internet of Things (IoT) in smart cities market is projected to grow from US$ 79.5 billion in 2018 to US$ 219.6 billion by 2023. It is a sector fuelled by innovative applications.
Yet as McKinsey said in its 2018 report: “’Smartness’ is not just about installing digital interfaces in traditional infrastructure or streamlining city operations. It is also about using technology and data purposefully to make better decisions and deliver a better quality of life.”
Aesthetics are critical, as is the ability to match products to their location. How things look is important in infrastructure and street furniture design. This includes everything reliant on sensor-technology, from dynamic, sensor-guided traffic and streetlights, to public transport monitors and displays, telecoms cabinets, fire and flood-detection.
Most cities have had multiple designers. One district or suburb does not want to look like every other, because each has its own character, of which its inhabitants are often protective.
Yet, with tens if not hundreds of designs of the same product necessary, the need for individual designs could quickly increase manufacturing costs. The solution is for electrical components that include sensors to be designed so they can be mass-produced and reused across multiple designs, while also reducing their housing costs. Miniaturisation is playing an important role here in helping save space, reduce costs and allow greater design flexibility.
The necessity to protect sensors from the elements, however, could be a limiting factor for manufacturers seeking production diversity. Sensors need protection from water ingress, otherwise the smart city will malfunction whenever there is heavy rain, burst pipes or flooding.
But in reducing sensor-housing costs, greater care must be taken to provide water-protection directly to the components as opposed to relying on the housing to act as a barrier. Mechanical solutions can be used to help the housing provide water-protection, but these will increase production costs.
Conventional methods of water-protection such as conformal coatings will not allow for miniaturisation necessary within sensor housing. The more densely packed the printed circuit board assemblies (PCBAs), the less space for physical seals. More PCBAs mean more connectors for communication. As these cannot be protected by traditional conformal coatings, they are often very vulnerable, or need mechanical seals built into the connectors themselves.
Nano-coatings by contrast, provide protection directly to the electronic components, making them more durable. These coatings are ultra-thin; can protect every part of the PCBA, and do not crack and delaminate with age as conformal coatings do.
Without nano-coatings, there is a danger that the importance of water protection will lead manufacturers to produce, highly-standardised, designs. The mission to make the street scenes of smart cities attractive and distinctive will fail. By contrast, manufacturers adopting advanced water protection technology such as nano-coatings will have the ability to produce more individualised street infrastructure designs that meet the aspirations of their customers – the public authorities and infrastructure companies.
We can already see that the Internet of Things and miniaturisation are making the smart city dream a reality. Yet for that dream to be realised, suppliers that support and simplify the implementation of design freedom are essential. It is key, therefore, that manufacturers are not hindered by outdated weather protection technology. Moving forwards, this will be essential if the vision of the smart city is to become a reality.
The worldwide demand for smart home devices is one of the few growth trends to be positively affected by COVID-19. Despite the pandemic’s economic impact, global shipments of smart home voice control devices are forecast to increase by 30% in 2020, according to ABI research. Worldwide shipments were forecast to be more than 1.39 billion in 2023 with a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.4%.
Previously unheralded benefits of smart home technology have risen to the forefront in this environment due to consumers’ rising concerns over health and safety. Devices such as smart locks and video doorbells enable users to ensure deliveries are securely received with no face-to-face interaction required. Other commonly touched areas including light switches and television controllers can be avoided using voice control.
This increased usage comes with its own challenges as home smart devices are often and increasingly being used outdoors or in bathrooms and kitchens, and can be susceptible to water damage and corrosion which can reduce their operational life. There are many ways in which electrical devices can be damaged by water and moisture in the home environment – for example, drink spillages can damage television remotes and humidity and steam from kitchens or bathrooms can affect smart thermostats. Curtain rails or smart blinds can be vulnerable to rain splashing through an open window or even condensation.
The smart devices that are finding a space in more and more of our homes are at risk from water damage, ranging from bathroom humidity to weather-related corrosion. For manufacturers to avoid the potential impact on their brand reputation and likely loss of future revenue incurred, as well as the financial cost of replacing a damaged device, utilizing some form of water protection is therefore going to be essential as a key building block of the smart home of today and of the future.
But the pandemic has also highlighted an increased need for protection against another type of liquid damage: The damage caused by consumers using cleaning products to disinfect their smart home devices. Google trends usually show a peak every year in people ‘googling’ how to clean their consumer devices in the week after Christmas, with the expectation being that now they have received a new electronic device as a gift, they want to clean their old one in order to sell it on. This year though, we have seen just such a spike in searches during the pandemic itself. Manufacturers are even issuing guides on how to clean these devices safely without damaging them. Most such guides highlight the obvious points around don’t get your device wet, avoid moisture; don’t spray chemicals, don’t use wet wipes, etc.
As a result, manufacturers are becoming more interested in devices that protect against both environmental damage from rain, humidity and moisture, as well as cleaning agents such as Isopropyl alcohol (IPA).
Traditional water protection methods are often unwieldy or unreliable. They come with many kinds of problems, such as inhibiting electrical conductivity, being prone to cracking, delaminating and degrading. In contrast, the latest nano coatings are far more flexible and reliable and are ideal for providing effective water protection to smart home devices. Different levels of protection can be covered, all the way from splashes and spills to full immersion. Here, the latest nano coatings offer robust protection to internal electronics against corrosion or damage from cleaning agents such as IPA.
Smart technology providers are able to support the creation of the ‘smart home vision’ by using these solutions to minimise the need for costly repairs and lessen their maintenance call-out requirements. By greatly improving the lifetime of the sensors used in a wide spectrum of smart technology applications, they can effectively increase the longevity of many smart home devices.
Solutions will need to offer protection against a wide variety of water-related risks in order protect against damage to electronic devices. By being able to protect any form, any shape, any design of electronic device the top solutions will add extra flexibility and also a wide range of materials used, well beyond a basic plastic box. In doing so they will support the vision of the future smart home not only from a functional perspective, but an aesthetic one too.
To find out more information on how we can help you meet your smart home device manufacturing waterproofing requirements please contact us.
As public places including non-essential shops begin to re-open globally, a technological revolution has quietly taken over the traditional marketplace. Enabled by rapid advances in wireless data and spurred on by a move away from cash payments by consumers, Point of Sale (POS) technology has emerged as a major global industry. With this sector forecasted to be worth over $125B annually by 2027, we can expect manufacturers in this field to continue to expand and innovate.
The fastest growing segment in this market is expected to be the handsets and terminals used by superstores, restaurants and sole traders alike. These mobile terminals have a host of benefits over older, bulkier form factors, offering users portability, flexibility and the option to process payments anywhere there’s mobile data.
But this flexibility also comes with an increased vulnerability to wear and tear and environmental damage. If these systems are exposed to humid environments or wet conditions, there is a significant risk of failure of the device.
The COVID-19 Pandemic has brought some of these challenges to the forefront. Not only is there a greater demand for payments to be taken outside, but devices now need to be regularly cleaned and disinfected after handling, increasing the chance of liquid ingress and damage to electronics.
The failure of POS devices from these kinds of liquid damage is expensive. A failed POS terminal can incur costs to the manufacturer/service provider several times over:
- Since POS systems are often sold as part of a comprehensive service where providers take a small cut of all transactions, they begin losing revenue as soon as a device fails.
- Providers may sell their devices and services with a guarantee that faulty terminals will be repaired or replaced. As well as the obvious repair or replacement costs, there are also administrative and handling costs for the return of the faulty device.
- Customers frustrated with unreliable hardware are likely to switch to service providers they feel are more dependable, costing companies revenue and damaging brand reputation.
These pain points for the provider are felt all across the POS customer base, regardless of scale. Customers with large numbers of POS terminals that see a high failure rate in its payment devices will quickly move on to a POS service provider they view as more reliable, costing the original provider a substantial loss in revenue. And although the loss of revenue from the churn of a dissatisfied sole trader will be less impactful for the POS provider, in an era where brand reputations can be destroyed in a single tweet, the reputational damage caused by an unreliable device should not be underestimated.
This is why we are using our P2i technology to protect POS terminals. Our plasma nano-coating technology bonds a microscopically thin polymer layer directly to the entire surface of electronic components, protecting them from liquid and corrosion damage. Unlike other water protection methods, such as crack-prone conformal coatings or mechanical seals and gaskets, nano-coatings don’t add weight or bulk to the POS terminal, provide continual protection to a treated device’s electronic components for the lifetime of the product, and the protection isn’t compromised when the outer body of a POS terminal is knocked or damaged. Moreover, P2i’s solution is also proven to show no deterioration in levels of protection following rigorous testing with isopropanol; also known as isopropyl alcohol (IPA), commonly used as an antiseptic or disinfectant; meaning manufacturers and customers can be confident that they can properly clean their POS terminals without risk of damaging the device.
With COVID-19 transforming retail and accelerating adoption of new technology, P2i is working with manufacturers to ensure their hardware is reliable and ready to meet the challenges of a new era of payment technology.
The automotive printed circuit board (PCB) market is already expanding rapidly, thanks largely to reduced hardware costs, but over time we are likely to see more electronics being fitted into both new and second-hand vehicles, which will drive further growth. Consequently, the global automotive PCB market is expected to reach more than $14 billion during 2018-2024 according to a new report available from ResearchAndMarkets.com.
We also anticipate this market will continuing to expand in the future. Features like rear-facing cameras and automated parking are becoming standard. Markets for applications from vehicle lighting and safety to powertrain components and interiors are all maturing – and the growth this brings will drive further expansion in automotive PCBs.
Consumer expectations of the reliability and safety of these components are increasing too. In part, this is driven by manufacturers looking to differentiate around the reliability and safety of vehicles. The arrival of autonomous vehicles on our streets will serve to raise the reliability and safety stakes and the need for more reliable PCBs – even further.
We are already seeing stringent standards in place governing automotive PCBs: from IPC-6011 which defines the generic performance specifications for PCBs to AEC Q100, which delivers failure test qualifications for integrated circuits. Moreover, product recalls in the automotive industry are expensive, which further pushes the need to ensure PCB vendors deliver maximum performance and reliability. Additionally, the need to protect the PCB rises with the number on each car.
Modern vehicles are designed with increasing numbers of electronic components which are vital to their day-to-day function. As more electronic components become integral to vehicles, there is a growing requirement to improve the reliability of component: effectively to match the dependability of more traditional, less electronics-dependent vehicles, which have fewer points of failure, by protecting the PCBs from damage. In pursuing this aim, manufacturers put an ever-higher premium on the integrity and lifespan of PCBs.
All this is enough to make the need to protect boards an imperative for any automotive manufacturer. Yet, the trend to miniaturisation of components makes achieving this protection ever more challenging. It is, therefore, becoming increasingly important that manufacturers integrate the latest water protection methods to protect these components and help ensure longevity.
Unfortunately, there are weaknesses with current water protection methods. The most commonly used are conformal coatings, which struggle to protect the entire PCB. Connectors cannot be protected as the coating is too hard and thick. Spray coatings, brush coatings and CVD (chemical vapour deposition) coatings also age poorly, cracking and delaminating over time. Gaskets and sealed enclosures are commonplace modes of protection. However, they tend to deteriorate through vibration and natural aging.
These traditional approaches to water protection also struggle to manage miniaturised boards. This is a big problem given the trends we see today. More components and functions being added into cars inevitably leads to a reduction in the space available for each circuit board, and therefore also to a focus on miniaturisation. This often makes protecting the boards more difficult. Moreover, the more densely packed the PCBs inside a console or engine, the less space there is for physical seals.
Finally, more PCBs mean more connectors for communication. As these cannot be protected by traditional conformal coatings, they are often poorly protected, or need mechanical seals built into the connectors themselves.
Finding a Way Forward
Today we see nano coatings emerging as the ideal solution to these challenges. Typically, they are ultra-thin. By applying them, instead of thicker coatings, manufacturers avoid the problem of underfill behind the board. They can protect every part of the PCB including connectors and they do not crack and delaminate with age. The coating is chemically bonded to the surface of the PCB, meaning that it becomes part of the product and will last for the board’s lifetime.
From the miniaturisation perspective, nano coatings don’t have the same challenges with space limitations that traditional sealants have. Today, the use of nano coatings is growing as an effective way to protect PCBs. Given the increasing integration of electronics with vehicles and continuing technical innovation in the field of nano coatings, we can expect the use of nano coatings in the automotive industry to continue to increase.
To find out more information on how we can help you meet your automotive manufacturing waterproofing requirements please contact us directly.
The ongoing growth of the drone market looks set to continue, with 7.5 million drones projected to be taking to the skies in Europe by 2030. Gartner analysis shows huge global uptake in construction, emergency services, insurance and logistics. For drone deliveries to be commercially viable, however, flight time and range needs to be maximised and downtime for recharge and repair reduced.
Reliability requirements for large fleets of wide-ranging urban delivery drones are stringent, as they will be constantly exposed to changing weather patterns. Governments will regulate forcefully to ensure manufacturers and operators of delivery drones can guarantee fleets are safe and reliable.
With drones now poised to be rolled out at scale for frequent, long-term autonomous operation, electronic components emerge as a likely point of failure. Ambient humidity, rain, salt fog and other atmospheric contaminants pose a high risk of electrical shorting and corrosion.
The form factor of the now-ubiquitous rotor drones makes comprehensive waterproofing challenging. Internal seals or external “wetsuit” style waterproofing adds weight to devices and limits maximum range, flight speed and payload. Thick conformal coatings painted or sprayed directly onto circuit boards and components keep water out but can’t be used on connectors, because they inhibit electrical conductivity, and are prone to cracking and delaminating.
This is where plasma nano-coating technology is the perfect solution. Already widely used in consumer electronics, the technology uses plasma to bond an invisibly thin, ultra-light layer of polymer to the surface of the electrical components. Nano-coatings allow for full reworkability and repair of drones, but unlike other water protection methods, provide continual protection to a treated device’s electronic components for the product lifetime. And in contrast to mechanical solutions, the protection isn’t compromised when the outer body of a drone is knocked or damaged. The microscopically thin coatings also add up to huge weight savings, with a nano-coating protection on a mid-sized drone weighing as little as half a gram, compared to 170 grams or more for a “wetsuit” or similar barrier.
In fact, some commonly used waterproofing methods can add to the weight of a drone by as much as 12%. Research has shown that the weight of a drone correlates with expected battery life, with performance declining almost in direct proportion to increasing weight. A best-case improvement of 12% battery life per charge for a single drone is already impressive, but when scaled up across a global fleet the savings become staggering. With multinational retailers and logistics companies already investing heavily in drone technology to secure dominance over a rapidly emerging market, the rewards of utilising high-tech solutions like nano-coatings are too big to ignore.
That’s where we feel we fit into the picture at P2i, thereby helping increase the range, battery life and maneuverability of the product.
The ongoing roll-out of this technology is another reminder that as advances in battery technology and AI bring the dream of a global society revolutionised by drones to reality, manufacturers shouldn’t ignore the massive potential of nanotechnology to help drones transition from niche curiosity, to indispensable part of the global economy.
To find out more information on how we can help you achieve your drones‘ waterproofing requirements please contact us directly.
In an increasingly environmentally conscious world, manufacturers are the pioneers of eco-friendliness. Making operations more sustainable is essential to corporate social responsibility models, not to mention success. With nearly half of UK consumers more likely to buy from competitors with a wider range of eco-friendly delivery options, manufacturing sustainability needs to be taken seriously if shoppers are going to stay loyal.
As well as keeping brand loyalty alive, the introduction of new environmental standards such as the IEC 61249-2-21 has put increasing pressure on manufacturers to moderate their chemical usage, employ halogen-free manufacturing processes and use deionized water. And with global e-waste expected to reach round 7 kilograms per capita by 2022, manufacturers need to cut down their contributions by ensuring that product components and new technological solutions across the supply chain are completely reworkable and easy to repair.
Though these terms are often used interchangeably, reworkability and repairability are not the same. Reworkability refers to the process of replacing faulty or damaged components on printed circuit boards at the manufacturing site, usually before they leave the production environment. Repairability is used in a post-sale context, where components are fixed outside of the production environment. And for manufacturing success, it’s essential that products are both easily reworkable and easily repairable.
The sustainability challenge
When it comes to electronics, scrapping and throwing away is no longer a solution. For true manufacturing sustainability, reworking and re-soldering components is the future of device longevity. As such, “right to repair” legislation concerning the reduction of wastage and product life extension is set to change the landscape of electronical usage when introduced by the EU commission in 2021: making spare parts easily accessible and compelling manufacturers to provide any software or manuals needed to complete repairs. Without the threat of voided warranties or the obligation for manufacturers to undertake after-sale repair work, customers can make cost-effective repairs at home – increasing the length of product usability and putting sustainability at the heart of manufacturing.
Of course, the easier a device is to take apart, the easier it is to fix. Recent design trends have often made electronics difficult to open without compromising water resistance or structural integrity. This is due to rigid gaskets and seals, thick conformal coatings or glues. Though these features help to waterproof devices, they can be susceptible to mechanical damage or make repairability impossible by covering connectors.
As repairability becomes more important, these mechanical solutions become increasingly unfit for purpose. Even if it’s technically possible to repair a device with these features, it’s unlikely to be cost effective and the device will likely end up as e-waste. Despite consumer preferences and legislations, reworkability is increasingly becoming part of the manufacturing process in its own right – helping reduce waste, boost sustainability, save manufacturers money on materials and scrappage costs, and achieve better profitability across product lines.
The benefits of nano coating technology
Offering highly water-resistant products on a cost-effective basis is the only way to meet the demands of the changing manufacturing landscape, and the answer to this challenge is nano coating technology. Protecting PCBs and even whole devices from the inside out, nano coating technology eliminates the need for bulky mechanical seals – making devices easier to open and repair, and keeping circuit boards accessible and fully re-workable. With this technology, manufacturers can stay competitive in a market that calls for increasing levels of sustainability – boosting product life length, reducing production costs and prioritising environmental concerns.