There have been significant changes in EMI/RFI shielding, primarily in the level of shielding required; number of small, new applications requiring shielding; restructuring of industry participants; and the disparity in growth rates among shielding options. In spite of the increased appearance of new electronic technologies (e.g., laptop/ notebook computers and wireless handhelds), there have been few new shielding technologies or even enhancements of old technologies. The major shielding options available in 1998 are still relevant, and only their market shares of total shielding have changed. Most current company product offerings look very much the same as in 1998.

According to a soon-to-be-released updated report from Business Communications Company, Inc, RGB-066Y EMI: Materials and Technologies, the U.S. demand for EMI/RFI shielding options was estimated at $523 million in 2002 and is expected to approach $630 million by 2008. Shielding of electronic devices from electromagnetic radiation is essentially a "band-aid" phenomenon since it adds no value to the product.

The major shielding options include: metal cabinets, conductive coatings (electroless plating, vacuum metallization, and conductive paints), conductive plastics/elastomers, laminates/tapes, and a widely diverse "Other" category which includes gaskets, metal sheet/foils, wire mesh, windows, connectors, etc.

Growth of each of these shielding options is best measured by overall coverage in square feet, which shows slight increases in use of the least expensive options -- metal cabinets -- and slight decreases in conductive coatings, led by vacuum metallization.

Major issues confronting the EMI market include:

• Ever-increasing frequencies driven by higher chip speeds, in which traditional shielding options do not perform as well as with lower frequencies, resulting in leakage of extraneous electronic signals (a controversial subject because EMI shielding producers claim that their current products can be effective at higher frequencies);


• Increasing cost pressures due to a stagnant economy, especially in the telecommunications industry, driving cheaper shielding alternatives;


• Increased overall potential of the EMI business due to continual development of Bluetooth technology (wireless);


• Environmental pressures on metal disposal, which affect conductive coating technologies;


• Controversy over whether redesigning circuitry can solve EMI problems occurring at higher frequencies;


• Continued development of more costly "absorbent" EMI technologies, which are more effective at higher frequencies than current "reflective" shielding technologies (excluding gaskets, which are the most prominent of the absorptive traditional technologies); and


• Long-term potential of fiber optics, which could eventually eliminate the need for EMI shielding.