The global conformal coating market is poised to grow to US$ 16 billion by 2024. This market is growing significantly in India, too. David Greenman, director, HumiSeal, spoke to the Electronics Bazaar team about the company’s business drivers and how it plans to leverage India’s potential.
EB: What are the local and global business strategies that your firm uses?
HumiSeal has been in the market for around 60 years. Starting off as a small brand in the United States, we have grown to become a global name. At present, we have four manufacturing units around the world—our headquarters in Pittsburgh, USA; HumiSeal Europe (UK), HumiSeal India (Pune) and a licensee in Japan. Together, these four centres provide complete global coverage. Our strategy is to promote the technical quality of the products that are marketed under the HumiSeal brand.
In India, we have been supplying products for nearly 40 years – initially, as a direct supplier and later, through the help of our distributors. The events and shows that we have attended throughout the last decade in India have enabled us to grow our market share through business leads. They also helped us map out our future plans for India. We have recently added another company to the HumiSeal stable, which has helped us extend our product range, enabling us to venture into sectors such as thermal management, potting, display adhesives, etc. So our range of products is continually expanding, year after year.
EB: What were the main growth drivers for the company, in the past few decades?
HumiSeal has always focused on being the technical leader in the field of conformal coatings. We have been successfully developing and marketing conformal coatings for 59 years and grown into a global company.
In the past 12 months, we have added new products to our portfolio, expanding the range of our electronics protection materials. By providing technical services and solving our clients’ problems, we have grown the HumiSeal business. We’ve combined that with effective marketing and accurate technical information. Such good branding all over the globe has helped us to grow.
EB: What prompted you to set up a unit in India and what challenges have you faced here?
There are many reasons for setting up the India operations. As I have already mentioned, the shows we attended in the last 10 years have helped us realise the potential that India has to offer. In order to exploit that potential, we needed a manufacturing base in India instead of importing from our USA or European facilities; hence, we established HumiSeal India Private Ltd in Pune.
Originally, when we came to India, the market was dominated by defence and aerospace clients. Now we see a growing market in industrial controls, automotive and even in certain white goods. Earlier, Indian industries used a coating because manufacturers thought it was something that was “nice to have.” But with the continued miniaturisation of electronics, the reduced conductor spacing, along with the introduction of lead-free soldering, conformal coating is now essential to improve the reliability of the products.
EB: How do you plan to bring the Indian market to the level of the already-evolved American or European markets, with respect to your product lines?
At present, Europe is an established, mature market. Over the last 37 years, we have developed and educated that market. We need to do something very similar in India. We have to educate the market about what a conformal coating is, what the benefits of using it are, and also explain to potential clients how to apply the coating in the best possible manner. We need to introduce clients to the various application methods to bring them up to the same level as the European market. All this needs to be done in conjunction with introducing them to the best practices of the international market.
EB: How will your global product-marketing protocol differ in India?
HumiSeal, being a premier brand in conformal coatings, is a bit costly when compared to some of the Indian brands. But we can clearly demonstrate the benefits of HumiSeal compared to the standard commercial products available here. We started off in the defence industry; so we know how to make a quality product. We have to look closely at the Indian market, the pricing, branding, etc, but at this moment we are pleased to say that we are doing very well and are projecting good growth over the next five years.
EB: What are the main technical focus areas in conformal coating manufacturing at the moment?
Our focus is on developing the next generation of conformal coatings to meet the ever increasing demands being put on electronic assemblies in the environments they now have to operate in. Apart from that, meeting the high throughput of volume manufacturing is another issue we’re looking at. Complying with the never-ending government restrictions on the use on the use of solvents and chemicals in the manufacturing industry is another focus area.
EB: As a conformal coating manufacturer, what are the major technical challenges you face and how do you deal with them?
There are two major challenges facing the industry today, as stated earlier—the operating environment and government restrictions on the use of chemicals. To meet the requirements of the operating environment we need a thorough understanding of how a conformal coating provides protection; this understanding is built up over years of developing conformal coatings. This is also achieved by having a close relationship with the clients developing the PCA (printed circuit assembly). Finally, we need to be able to tap into the latest resin technology to select the right product/products to provide the required protection. By staying close to our various suppliers, we are up-to-date on what new resins are becoming available for evaluation.
By working with suppliers, we find or develop materials that conform to government restrictions, and then from these options, develop a conformal coating. By following this principle, HumiSeal has been able to bring to market a number of environment-friendly or green conformal coatings that meet modern day needs.
