Tech Pioneer In2tec looks to the fuure as it celebrates its 25th anniversary

A British company that is leading the way in the thriving field of sustainable electronics is proudly celebrating its 25-year anniversary.

Northamptonshire-based In2tec has gone from a humble start-up to working with major OEMs across the banking, consumer electronics, automotive, aviation, and numerous other sectors.

In2tec was born in 2001 following a management buyout of the C&K Switches division of ITT Cannon and quickly positioned itself as an interface solution provider that expertly meets customer needs around design and integration – particularly cutting-edge flexible automotive technology.

Over the decades, the team became increasingly conscious of the wastefulness within the electronics industry and the destruction that throwaway electronics have on our planet. This fundamentally changed the company ethos, and since 2008, In2tec has been at the forefront of R&D in sustainable electronics with a focus on modular technology, which is designed to be disassembled so components can be easily replaced.

Sustainable Electronics Ambassador and Commercial Director Emma Armstrong said: “We are proud to be part of the fight against ewaste, and our mission is to protect the world for future generations by encouraging by inspiring sustainable electronics.

“While this anniversary and our growth is a cause for celebration, valuable components and vital materials like gold, silver, copper, and rare earth elements are still being discarded in landfill at an alarming rate.

“These wasted materials must be replaced, causing untold environmental, financial, and medical damage.

“Over the quarter-century that In2tec has been in existence, the necessity of modular, sustainable technology has become clearer than ever. There needs to be a complete overhaul in the way electronics across all industries are manufactured for the sake of our health, the planet, and a sustainable economic future.

“Some observers say future technological and scientific solutions will emerge to overcome the material scarcity problem and the environmental trauma caused by our culture of throwaway electronics. What they fail to realise is that the solution is already here – and it is modular technology. No other company out there offers a viable solution like In2tec.”

The company is particularly proud of Flexi-hibrid™, In2tec’s alternative to the conventional resin PCBA (printed circuit board assembly). It provides a significant material cost saving versus conventional PCBAs, while the polyester substrate is also recyclable.

It also allows fully flexible circuits that allow a streamlined design, aligning with the shapes of the real estate it will sit in, a huge advantage in automotive and aviation design. Unlike traditional circuit boards, Flexi-hibrid™ can follow the silhouette of surfaces, opening a world of design choices and efficiency.

Emma adds that a major part of the increasing popularity of sustainable technology is driven by consumer awareness. “The same way consumers have changed their attitudes towards plastic bags and drinking straws, we are seeing a cultural shift that recognises the astonishing harm disposable technology presents,” she said.

Many electronic components are designed for more than 25 years of life, but on average, are used for less than 4.5 years. More than a billion mobile phones and 300 million laptops are produced annually. This staggering output contributes to the estimated 347 million tonnes of ewaste on the planet, which is expected to grow to 746 million tonnes by 2030. Yet there is a solution that combines economic and environmental viability – the reuse, repair, and refurbishment of electronics.

Historically, technical challenges have made circularity in the electronics industry expensive. Stress caused to de-soldered components by the reclamation process makes it difficult to conserve viable components, and widely used methods of recovering materials are inefficient, destroy value, and are costly in terms of emissions and energy.
However, embracing tech products designed to be disassembled and modular can slash the consequences of ewaste cost-effectively.

In2tec allows manufacturers to economically and ecologically remove components from ewaste and reuse them with its twin technologies ReUSE® and ReCYCLE™. Licensing makes it plausible for all technologies. Keep the facilities and equipment, and materials they’re using, we just change how they make it to be more repairable, reusable, and recyclable. Millions of circuit board assemblies produced.

The company’s signature ReUSE® and ReCYCLE™ comprise a closed-loop process allowing manufacturers to remove components from existing electronics at the end of their useful life and reuse them.

ReUSE® is a series of materials, processes and design principles used to manufacture printed circuit board assemblies (PCBAs). ReCYCLE™ is the ultra-low energy process for unzipping PCBAs – the foundation of nearly all technology – to the original bill of materials (BoM).

The technology's versatility allows global commercialisation and a vast reduction in the overall energy used to manufacture and process when it reaches its end of life – something that is impossible when using conventional circuit board processes or materials.