The rising deployment of circuit boards in electro-mechanical applications has been a pivotal contributor toward molded interconnect device market growth. MIDs are essentially injection molded plastic parts that consist of conductive circuit patterns that can be used to perform electrical and mechanical functions. MIDs find extensive applications in many industrial sectors ranging from automotive and medical to consumer electronics. In essence, MIDs are being used to downgrade a number of parts on a single integrated chip that would contribute to space-saving and weight reduction – an essential production parameter in the aforementioned sectors. Additionally, the integration of multi-function technologies for scalability has been remarkably promoting molded interconnect device industry.
U.S. molded interconnect devices (MID) market size, by end-use, 2017 & 2024 (USD Million)
Even though MID came into inception quite a while ago, it has not yet been adopted widely across the globe. Of late though, the healthcare sector has been a major recipient of MID deployment, driven by the shifting trends toward the development of advanced medical equipment. The increasing importance given to portability and miniaturization in medical devices in addition to surging healthcare costs have been encouraging medical equipment manufacturers to integrate electronic fixtures in these components.
One of the leading suppliers of interconnected devices, Molex has recently developed an innovative MID which could prove to be useful for medical device designers to combine mechanical and electrical features in compact applications. The increasing popularity of molded interconnect devices across the medical industry to address convergence, miniaturization, and application issues is poised to boost MID market size over the years ahead. Driven by the surging adoption of MIDs, molded interconnect device industry size from the healthcare sector will grow at a CAGR of more than 15% over 2018-2024.
The advent of additive manufacturing (AM) – primarily 3D printing and laser soldering has opened new doors for the players in molded interconnect device market. The capability of AM to maintain high production flexibility with reduced effort enables affordable and high-speed MID manufacturing. Earlier, prior to the advent of the additive manufacturing technology, it was quite difficult to produce MIDs with the help of soldering owing to the generation of high temperature during the process. However, considering the functionality benefits such as short lead times and cost-effectiveness of laser soldering technique, it has been prominently used for developing MID components and prototypes.
The laser soldering technique also enhances the reliability of molded interconnect devices. Quite overtly, pertaining to the aforementioned benefits of this technique that ensures its usage for developing complex and reliable MID variants, laser direct structuring based MID market size will be pegged at a revenue of USD 300 million by the end of 2024.
Many industries lately have been looking forward to increasing the productivity and overall factory efficiency with the deployment of innovative MID technologies. The recent initiative taken by Yamaha Motor Europe IM Division to use 3D printing technology for delivering high-speed, flexible, high quality, and high accuracy MID validates the expanse of the adoption of these devices. Yamaha has introduced a new 3D molded interconnect device machine which provides features like automatic accuracy compensation, smart component shape recognition, and fast changeovers. The introduction of advanced technology for the development of MID has thus helped Yamaha Motor Europe to enhance its plant efficiency as well as productivity. In essence, the surging adoption of advanced MID manufacturing facilities by leading product manufacturers will have a noteworthy influence on overall molded interconnect device industry outlook.
The increasing importance of molded interconnect systems for space saving, weight reduction, affordability, and the development of complex circuit boards will generate lucrative opportunities for the giants in molded interconnect device (MID) market. Considering the future scope of MID, industry contenders have been focusing on increasing the production of innovative electronic circuit platforms with the help of advanced technologies. Powered by the rise in the adoption of wearables and smartphones, molded interconnect devices market size will be pegged at USD 840 million by the end of 2024.