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Xaar and Shifang advance digital inkjet coating for electronics
Xaar and Shifang Technology have partnered to develop a digital inkjet system for PCBA conformal coating applications, combining Xaar’s printhead technology with Shifang’s electronics manufacturing and system integration expertise.
PCBA conformal coating is used to protect electronic assemblies from environmental factors including moisture, salt spray, mould, dust, chemical corrosion and temperature fluctuations. The companies say increasingly compact and complex electronics are creating a need for greater control over coating placement and consistency.
Shifang’s solution integrates Xaar’s UV digital inkjet technology into the conformal coating process, allowing selective coating directly from digital design data without masking. Using Xaar eX printheads, the company has developed a functional coating print engine designed to control coating placement and thickness across complex PCB layouts.
The system completes coating in a single print pass, reducing process steps, manual intervention and material waste. According to the companies, production speeds can be up to ten times higher than traditional methods, while coating thicknesses of approximately 1 to 50μm can be applied and varied across different areas of a board.
Templates generated from Gerber files or image data enable rapid changeovers, multiple product variants and small-batch manufacturing. Variable-width configurations and printhead splicing options allow the system to accommodate different PCB sizes.
Xaar’s Ultra High Viscosity Technology, TF Technology and Sure Flow Technology are used to support stable jetting of conformal coating materials and reduce the risk of clogging. Precise material deposition is also intended to reduce overspray, material consumption, VOC emissions and consumable costs.
The development follows previous work between Xaar and Shifang using Xaar eX Series printheads to replace traditional coating methods in EV battery manufacturing.
John Mills, chief executive officer of Xaar, said: “PCBA conformal coating is a critical process for ensuring long-term reliability in electronic devices. This latest work with Shifang Technology builds on our wider collaboration in coating applications and demonstrates how industrial inkjet is once again delivering the precision, consistency and production stability required for advanced manufacturing in demanding environments.”
Zack Zhang, founder and CEO of Shifang Technology, added: “This cooperation brings together complementary strengths. By combining our system integration capabilities with Xaar’s proven industrial printhead performance, we have developed a digital conformal coating solution that eliminates masking, improves material utilisation and supports reliable mass production. The close technical collaboration between our teams has accelerated the transition from development to real production lines.”
Source
- Digital Printer (UK) (2026-10-01) - Original article: Xaar and Shifang advance digital inkjet coating for electronics - https://www.digitalprintermag.co.uk/news/131809/xaar-and-shifang-advance-digital-inkjet-coating-for-electronics/
