As major Taiwanese PCB manufacturers like Unimicron (3037-TW) and Tripod (3715-TW) actively invest in Thailand, the Taiwan Printed Circuit Association (TPCA) announced today on Nov.27th that Taiwan's PCB industry has been expanding its footprint in Southeast Asia in response to changing geopolitical dynamics. Several companies have launched new investment projects in the region to meet clients' risk diversification demands. In line with this trend, TPCA has started planning an "International PCB Talent Development Program" this year, collaborating with Thailand's academic and industrial sectors.

Thailand's PCB industry is relatively well-developed, with over ten Taiwanese PCB manufacturers having established new factories there. These factories are expected to ramp up production by 2025, significantly boosting the country's PCB output. With the surge in demand for international talent across the PCB supply chain, TPCA has launched its "International PCB Talent Development Program" in 2024. The program aims to promote the industry, offer training courses, facilitate job matching, and provide retention incentives. Its goal is to systematically nurture talent with foundational PCB knowledge and help them quickly secure employment, creating a long-term talent pipeline for PCB operations abroad.

TPCA pointed out that since the beginning of this year, the association has been in frequent communication with Thai universities and the National Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy Office (NXPO) under Thailand's Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research, and Innovation. Thanks to these efforts, TPCA's "International PCB Talent Development Program" has received strong support from various Thai universities. In late October, during the TPCA Show 2024, TPCA hosted a series of industry-academia activities, inviting representatives from the NXPO and King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT) to visit Taiwan and sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), formally kicking off the Taiwan-Thailand industry-academia collaboration and working together to build a comprehensive international talent platform for the PCB industry.

The TPCA has already begun the first phase of the program in Thailand, holding promotional seminars in various locations, with over a hundred students attending each event. This shows the strong interest among Thai students in pursuing careers in the PCB industry. At these events, TPCA outlined the ways to participate in the program, the available digital courses, and job opportunities, while inviting several companies already operating in Thailand to interact with students, showcasing their commitment to talent recruitment and development. This program is planned to run in two phases each year, with continued collaboration with local universities to lay a solid foundation for future industry-academia partnerships.

Looking ahead, TPCA will continue to deepen its physical and online talent training platforms and extend its focus to meet the growing demand for talent in Southeast Asia, where Taiwanese businesses are active. The program will not only target local industry-academia collaborations but also cater to international students in Taiwan, broadening the talent pipeline for the PCB industry.

In addition, the second phase of the program will include hybrid training on basic PCB manufacturing processes, followed by a talent matchmaking event in the third phase, both scheduled for the first quarter of 2025. In the final phase, TPCA will offer retention rewards to participants who join TPCA member companies, further strengthening the industry's long-term talent development.