50 Years of Innovation: Productronica and the Transformation of Electronics

In 1975, the state of the art in electronics looked very different. Printed circuit boards (PCBs) have been made of something like carton with one or two layer of copper typically carried just a few dozen to a couple hundred components - mostly through-hole resistors, capacitors, and DIP-packaged integrated circuits. While surface-mount technology (SMT) was on the horizon, it had yet to reach mass adoption. Panasonic was among the first to launch equipment for electronics mass production under the brand name Panasert. Beginning in 1969 with the first semi-automatic Axial-Insertion Machine followed in the later 70th by fully automated Axial-Insertion Machines. European TV manufacturers received first equipment in 1978 when Panasonic opened its branch office in Hamburg. Components were physically large by today’s standards; axial resistors and sizable electrolytic capacitors were the norm. A “small” passive SMD part might have been an 0805 or 1206 - sizes now considered standard or even large in modern design.

Machine automation at that time was rudimentary. Many assembly steps were still performed manually or with the aid of basic mechanical pick-and-place systems. Speeds were modest - perhaps 3,000 to 5,000 components per hour (CPH) for the more advanced systems, assuming optimal conditions. Around 1990 the SMD technology made a quantum leap by introducing the optical recognition and centring of components allowing smaller chip components placed in higher density areas. This has been making the production of mobile phones for the mass market possible, and the industry received a major upwind by that.

Today’s high-end smartphones and wearables may contain upwards of 2,000 + components on a single board, including ultra-small passives in 01005 or even smaller formats - just fractions of a millimeter across. Advanced SMT machines, such as the NPM-G Series from Panasonic, can place components at speeds exceeding 100,000 CPH who are typically put together in lines consisting of 3 to 15 machines.

Productronica has not just chronicled this journey; it has been an active participant in it. From showcasing the first generation of automated assembly systems to today's demonstrations of machines placing 01005 components with sub-20 µm accuracy, the show remains a focal point for the future of electronics manufacturing.

Celebrating a half-century of Productronica is celebrating a half-century of human ingenuity -where boards went from holding tens of components to thousands, where part sizes shrank from centimetres to microns, and where machine speeds surged from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands of placements per hour. As we look to the future, one thing is clear: the drive for more compact, more powerful, and more precise electronics will continue unabated.

Here’s to the next 50 years of pushing boundaries - fueled by innovation, inspired by need, and brought to life at Productronica.