OOSTERHOUT, THE NETHERLANDS - Vitronics Soltec will move its global engineering and product management responsibilities to its European Business Unit, which the company says will better leverage the company's soldering knowledge and provide comprehensive products and support on a global scale.

The shift to Europe will permit the company to take full advantage of nearly a century of soldering expertise, Vitronics said. Engineering teams in the US and China will be maintained and will continue to help product development, the firm said.

The company, which released new selective and wave soldering lines this year, said it expects to debut two more products in 2015.

Vitronics Soltec’s Advanced Technology team is led by Gerjan Diepstraten. The global Engineering and Product Management team will be headed by Ton Colijn, a 25-year Vitronics Soltec veteran who has been responsible for many successful product introductions, including the recently introduced ZEVAv selective soldering machine.

BANNOCKBURN, IL — Total North American printed circuit board shipments increased 1.6% year-over-year in April. Year-to-date shipments were down 0.2%.

ROLLING MEADOWS, IL – Panasonic Factory Solutions Co. of America said it recorded double-digit growth in its fiscal year ended March 31. The SMT equipment supplier cited notable progress with Tier 1 suppliers, including a more than 200% increase in mid-market penetration and nearly 400% growth in refurbished machinery sales.

"By refining our infrastructure, the evolution of our market strategy, and the innovative hardware and software innovations, we accomplished tremendous growth in fiscal 2013,” said M. Faisal Pandit, president of Panasonic FSA.

The company said it doubled its new customer accounts over the past year while research and collaboration yielded new innovations such as the AM100 placement machine, PanaCIM Express MES software, and other new products.

"Our growth in fiscal 2013 clearly proves Panasonic Factory Solutions has listened to and acted on what the market needed in order to offer total solutions aligning with the low volume high-mix market, as well as our Tier 1 manufacturers,” Pandit said.

PHILADELPHIA -- ACI Technologies will host a two-day TechExpo next week at its training and demo center here. The event will feature several presentations and equipment demonstrations, highlighted by a talk on nanocoating stencils by Chrys Shea.