Mitsubishi Electric Corporation’s (TOKYO: 6503) ME Innovation Fund has invested in Elephantech Inc. The startup is the first company in the world to successfully mass-produce printed circuit boards using metal inkjet printing. This is the fund’s fourth investment in a target company.
Under its mission of Making the world sustainable with new manufacturing technologies, Elephantech uses its metal inkjet printing and copper plating technologies to manufacture and sell P-Flex flexible printed circuit boards (PCB). The company has established a unique manufacturing method called Pure Additive which has a lower environmental impact than conventional manufacturing methods. With this technology, the company is working toward eco-friendly and sustainable manufacturing.
PCBs are indispensable to manufacturing, but the conventional method of producing PCBs generates considerable waste. The conventional method is a subtractive method in which copper foil is first laminated entirely on the substrate and then removed where unnecessary to form a circuit. This method however requires a large amount of water. In contrast, Elephantec’s metal inkjet printing technology allows the metal to be printed on a substrate only where necessary. This not only minimizes the consumption of natural resources and water but also reduces any waste that is generated in the production process.
Mitsubishi Electric and Elephantech will together promote metal inkjet printing technology and explore the ideal form of manufacturing that matches the current era, which requires that consideration be given to the global environment. We will work toward the social implementation of additive manufacturing to bring innovative change to the manufacturing industry.
