Isola Group S.à r.l., a market leader in copper-clad laminates and dielectric prepreg materials used to fabricate advanced multilayer printed circuit boards (PCBs), announced that it has launched a new certification program for PCB fabricators. The program is open to qualifying fabricators in the United States able to demonstrate the ability to process such high-speed digital materials as Isola’s I-Tera MT and I-Speed.

Ray Sharpe, president and CEO of Isola, stated, “We are pleased to roll-out this certification program following the initial success with APCT. During the qualification process, APCT successfully manufactured high-layer count PCBs using I-Speed and I-Tera MT laminates in both pure and hybrid multilayer packages.”

APCT was the first candidate to be accepted for qualification in this new certification program. To be considered, a PCB fabricator must meet strict quality standards and demonstrate the ability to meet the more demanding manufacturing expertise required to process high-speed digital laminate and prepreg materials.

As part of the certification program, qualifying participants will have access to direct factory support, product training and immediate access to Isola’s entire product inventory. The program also provides for co-op marketing initiatives with Isola.

Ray Sharpe continued, “As Isola introduces new materials to support emerging markets and applications, OEMs may require additional technical support to migrate to these new materials. OEMs will be able to rely on the expertise and advanced understanding of PCB fabricators that have completed Isola’s certification program.”

Saeed “Sy” Sardar, Vice-president of Sales and Technical Services for Isola’s Americas Region added, “Isola takes pride in developing long-term relationships with its worldwide customer base of PCB fabricators, such as APCT. We understand that time-to-market is a critical factor for their success and the success of the OEMs that rely on their efficiency and expertise. Certification in this program will provide fabricators with a competitive advantage in production scale-up of new products through early sampling, 24/7 technical support and shortened leads times.”

Fabricators interested in learning more about Isola’s certification program should contact their local Isola sales office.