Small Precision Tools Inc.designs and manufactures custom ceramic parts to micron tolerances using the ceramic-injection-molding process. CIM combines powder-injection-molding and sintering technologies. Examples of the finished products SPT offers are medical and dental tools, industrial and electronic components, and nozzles with hole diameters smaller than 15µm.

If you see a pattern developing, Potomac Photonicsmay have had something to do with it. The company, which utilizes laser technologies to fabricate 2-D and 3-D structures, specializes in laser patterning. The Lanham, Md., contract manufacturer patterns structures one of three ways: Laser Ablation, Mill & Fill and Contact Transfer. Milling is the term it uses to describe subtractive processing, the art of precision material removal.

Amadyne GmbH’s fab¹ automatic micro assembly system is suitable for pick and place, sorting, inspection and test functions. The system has a 500mm×430mm area for the X-axis and Y-axis and Linux-based open software architecture with SQL storage. According to the company, the fab¹ permits the fabrication of standard and advanced packaging technologies, such as chip on board, chip on chip, flip chip, multichip modules and eutectic soldering processes. An integrated flow box has a separation efficiency of 99.995 percent.

Nuvotronics, a small business established earlier this year in Blacksburg, Va., announced Monday that the PolyStrata Microfabrication process—originally developed under DARPA grant funding through the 3DMerfs program—will be available to commercial markets for the first time.