Doing more with less – driving connector changes

Constant innovation and product development underpin a rosy future for the connector industry, says Peter Davis, Australia New Zealand regional director for electronics distribution company Farnell.

“Miniaturisation continues to be the big trend in the industry,” says Davis.

“Looking back over the past 10 or so years, you can see consistent reductions in height and depth, as manufacturers continue to meet the challenge of equipping smaller and smaller devices with greater and greater data transference and other capabilities.”

While innovations in plastics and the development of different configurations enabled manufacturers to jump the hurdles that threatened to stall miniaturisation in the early 1990s, Davis says the materials currently in use are capable of delivering even more.

Davis says the European Union’s 2003 adoption of the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) Directive forced manufacturers to develop technical solutions that minimised the use of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium (the directive also restricts the use of PBBs and PBDEs – flame retardants used in several plastics).

“While this directive is only in force in Europe, other jurisdictions have either adopted or are looking at adopting similar measures,” says Davis.

“In today’s world, manufacturers cannot hope to prosper by simply targeting their home market. Neither is it economic for them to maintain parallel production lines to meet differing market conditions.

“As a result, the strictest regime tends to become the industry standard,” says Davis.

Davis says that although different types of connectors will continue to be developed, saying the pin-socket connector for new design is “almost a thing of the past”, and materials will undoubtedly continue to be refined, miniaturisation is definitely where the most attention is focused.

“Users are continuing to demand smaller components. Manufacturers are literally developing ways to do more with less in order to satisfy those customers.”

While the trend of doing more with less is driving the connector industry to new levels, it is likely to have an opposite effect on the cable industry, says Davis.

“Convergence is a big trend in communications technology. Ten, even five, years ago, your home might have a stereo, a television, a radio, computer, video/DVD player – all separate appliances, all with their own cables. Now, you might listen to the radio through your television, play DVDs on your PC, even do the lot through one multimedia system,” he says.

Furthermore, many of those devices are likely to be wireless.

“Wireless technology is going ahead in leaps and bounds. Bluetooth, infrared, we’re increasingly developing new ways to move data without plugging in wires and cables,” says Davis.

And this trend applies in the workforce as much as in the home.

“Workers in a whole range of industries are more mobile than ever. As a result, more and more companies are thinking twice about permanent installation, and asking themselves if they can manage wirelessly,” says Davis.

Price plays a part as well, with commodities such as copper and plastics likely to increase over time.

“As mobile technology becomes increasingly more reliable, as speeds and coverage continue to improve, there will be more and more opportunities for homes and businesses to reduce the use of cable.”

Davis says that trend is likely to see cable manufacturers diversifying into other markets or the market will consolidate.

“While data transference is increasingly mobile, cable continues to be essential in some industries, the electricity industry, for example. Even in internet applications, wireless has some limitations, particularly where the geography doesn’t suit, and satellite technology is still very expensive.”

Trends in both industries highlight the rapid technological changes driving the development of the electronics industry as a whole.

With the big manufacturers leading the way, it is vital Farnell and other distributors maintain strong relationships with a broad range of suppliers and continue to sharpen up their delivery systems in order to make the most of those relationships, says Davis.

“The supply chain is increasingly important to our success. Manufacturing is increasingly concentrated in Asia, while Europe remains home to many of the leading designers. At the same time, design and production windows are shorter, markets more global and our customers, who include an increasing number of both OEMs and CEMs, are demanding a faster response.”

The move to increased use of the internet is inevitable, says Davis.

“We are, however, conscious of the need to maintain traditional channels for those of our customers who prefer to work that way,” he says. Customers need to be able to communicate with us by their preferred way, not ours.

“However, in an industry that is developing so rapidly, a new catalogue every year, or even twice a year, is not going to cut it anymore.”

Davis says as the electronics industry develops, the internet will play an increasingly important role not only in the relationship between distributors, customers and suppliers, but in a whole host of industry relationships.

“element14, Farnell’s new technology resource and online community, is a prime example of how the internet can provide a valuable one-stop resource for design engineers, students, suppliers – even journalists, looking for unbiased technical information and opportunities to collaborate with their peers around the globe.

“In the two months since element14 was launched, we have seen thousands of people sign up, and we expect thousands more over the coming months as more content is uploaded and shared."