Printed circuit boards (PCBs) for military and aerospace applications remain the largest vertical market segment for PCB manufacturers in North America, representing about one-third of the market. And it is the only vertical market segment expected to grow in 2016 as a share of the North American market, according to 2016 Analysis and Forecast for the North American PCB Industry.
Other key findings include segmented market data showing that flexible circuit market growth has continued to outpace rigid PCB growth by a wide margin, but the negative growth rates seen in recent years in the rigid PCB market steadily diminished and growth turned positive in 2015. Estimated PCB production in North America declined 4.3 percent from 2014 to 2015, while estimated market growth was virtually flat, increasing just 0.4 percent.