The RoHS-compliant MC280 RF cable assembly from Insert , Taiwan, has a coaxial cable diameter of 0.81mm

Manufacturers in mainland China and Taiwan have ample available capacities to accommodate impending demand increase. The RF cable assembly industry in Asia has maintained steady production growth in the past few years, underpinned by robust sales of consumer electronics and networking devices. Mainland China alone posted a 10 percent annual increase in output, on average, in the last 10 years. The global industry sees a 10 percent to 15 percent production growth this year, while manufacturers expect their annual sales to shoot up by as much as 50 percent.

Most mainland China makers of RF cable assemblies are located in central and eastern China, particularly in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. The makers' product lines include various types of interconnect products, with RF cable assemblies accounting for about half of their overall production. Taiwan also has a substantial RF cable assembly industry. Applications in computer, communications and consumer electronics, LAN devices and antennas have been driving growth for the segment.

By putting more emphasis on R&D, most RF cable assemblies makers on the mainland are able to release numerous new products on a yearly basis. Most makers have over 10 R&D staff to design customized RF cable assemblies, and advanced R&D equipment is adopted for product development activities.

With applications widely used in wireless 3C systems, WLAN, GPSes, base stations and station satellite systems, makers invest 3 percent to 10 percent of their annual sales to improve product features. For instance, Hantechnic Inc. of Taiwan invests about 8 percent of its annual sales on R&D.

Insert Ent. Co. Ltd, also Taiwan-based, focuses its R&D on improving RF cables by increasing their bandwidths. Currently, it offers RF cable assemblies with bandwidthsof 6Gbps. It expects to release a new model with bandwidths of 11Gbps before the end of the year. Insert has about 35 patents for its RF cable assemblies in many regions including the United States, Japan, Europe and mainland China. The company obtained technology transfers from NTT of Japan in 1996. Most of its new models of RF cable assemblies are used in notebook PCs, wireless devices, mobile phones, PDAs, GPS devices, Bluetooth devices and microwave radios.

Zhenjiang Zhengkai Electronic Co. Ltd, from mainland China, offers RF cable
assemblies that adopt connectors of N, L29/(7/16), TNC, BNC, SMA, SMB, MCX types and cables of FSJ1-50A, FSJ2-5, LDF4-50A, LDF5-50A, VXL5-50, LMR100, LMR195, LMR200, LMR240, LMR400, LMR500, LMR600 or RG6, RG58, RG59, RG174, RG316, RG402, RG405 and RG213.

Wieson Technologies Co. Ltd designs its cable assemblies to support EMI and RFI protection and meet FCC distortion requirements. The company allotted about $3.92 million to its R&D lastyear. Ten engineers are in charge of RF cable assemblies and related products such as antennas. Wieson also has a microwave communication laboratory used in product development. The lab contains one antenna-measurement-anechoic-chamber measuring 325x285x640cm, a far-field antenna measurement system, a broad-band transmitted antenna and two NRL-4433 standard gain antennae.

Zhenjiang Shanrui Electron Technology Explore Co. Ltd also plans to develop RF cable assemblies with wider temperature range and low impedance. The supplier is a mainland China company.
Output boost imminent
Makers are upping high-end exports

	The 9.5 plug RF cable assembly of Jieyang Grandfull, mainland China, measures 1.8m and has an outside diameter of 7mm

Makers say they are well prepared for the expected increase in volume orders, as most of them have sufficient available capacity. Currently, companies utilize an average of 70 percent of their capacities. Mainland China-based Zhenjiang Zhengkai has a monthly capacity of 100,000 RF cable assemblies. The maker foresees a more receptive market in the next two years, which will translate to a 10 percent increase in overall output.

Jieyang Grandfull Electronic Ind. Co. Ltd can produce 150,000 units of RF cable assemblies monthly. The company is set to expand its capacity by 50 percent to 70 percent within the next six months to accommodate rising volume orders. The company allotted $62,000 to purchase new high-end production equipment to improve efficiency. It also plans to acquire equipment used in the QC of products.

Zhenjiang Shanrui has a monthly capacity of 50,000 units of RF cable assemblies. With more than five years of industry experience, the company sees high potential in increasing its capacity within the next few years.

Aside from upping their production output, Taiwan makers sharpen their edge over the competition by focusing on product quality enhancements. Taiwan-based Wieson can manufacture 7.2 million units of connectors and cable assemblies, 1.5 million units of which are RF cable assemblies. Wieson, established in 1989, started as a solution provider for connectors and cable assemblies for IT applications. It owns 36 production lines in its two factories, which are certified to ISO 9001, ISO 9002, ISO 14001 and ISO/TS 16949.

Seventy percent of Insert's annual sales come from RF cable assemblies and connectors. The company's monthly output was 2.9 million units last year. It says it will continue to ramp up production by 20 percent to 3.48 million units this year. Insert has two factories located in Taipei, both of which are certified to ISO 9001 and ISO 9002. The company adopts the 5S and is compliant to RoHS.

Insert subcontracts some manufacturing processes such as mold making and electroplating while other processes, including assembling and product design, are done in-house. To increase its edge in manufacturing, it invested about $320,000 in testing machines. It is also in the process of acquiring ISO 14001 certification.

Meanwhile, quotes for RF cable assemblies are expected to rise in the last quarter of the year and through the next due to the hike in the cost of raw materials such as copper. Most makers forecast a 10 percent increase in prices, with a few expecting a 20 percent rise to offset production costs. Observing that the cost of raw materials surged by 50 percent, Jieyang Grandfull says its RF cable assemblies will increase its price by 20 percent.

On the other hand, Taiwan makers plan to bring down prices for RF cable assemblies by 3 percent to 5 percent.

On average, mainland China makers export 30 percent to 50 percent of their total output of RF cable assemblies, with a few makers shipping up to 80 percent. Low-end and midrange products are shipped mainly to the Middle East and South Asia, while high-end devices are shipped to the Americas and Europe. Makers are exploring the prospects of increasing the proportion of high-end product to increase their export sales in these regions.

Zhenjiang Zhengkai exports less than 10 percent of its RF cable assembly output at present. The company plans to increase its export volume to 15 percent within this year and the next.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's export value for RF cables and connectors takes about 3 percent of the worldwide share. Major export markets of the island's RF cable assemblies include the Americas, Europe and Asia. A large number of makers offer OEM and ODM services.

Thirty percent of Insert's annual sales account for OEM and ODM sales, while the rest are from its own-brand sales. Europe is its main export market, taking up 90 percent of its shipments, and Asia with 10 percent.
Hantechnic ships 80 percent of its overall output, with markets including the Americas, which absorb 48 percent; Europe, 30 percent; and Asia, 2 percent. Sales of RF cable assemblies take about 15 percent of annual sales, while RF connectors take about
30 percent.