{"id":3224,"date":"2025-12-09T20:00:21","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T18:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/?p=3224"},"modified":"2025-12-09T20:20:01","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T18:20:01","slug":"estonian-electronics-industry-in-growth-phase-estonian-new-chip-competence-center-brings-momentum-to-the-sector","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/estonian-electronics-industry-in-growth-phase-estonian-new-chip-competence-center-brings-momentum-to-the-sector\/","title":{"rendered":"Estonian electronics industry in growth phase: Estonian new chip competence center brings momentum to the sector"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Estonian electronics industry is ending the year in a clear growth phase: orders have increased in the fall, companies are investing in innovative technologies, and the focus is increasingly shifting to higher value-added solutions. The international seminar \u201cEMS & Beyond 2025\u201d held in Tallinn on Friday, December 5, brought these trends into sharp focus, especially in connection with the launch of the new chip technology competence center KIIP.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arno Kolk<\/strong>, CEO of the Estonian Electronics Industry Association, emphasized that by the end of 2025, the market will have clearly returned to growth. According to him, \u201corders have increased in the fall and the market has been on an upward trend,\u201d reflecting customer confidence and companies\u2019 willingness to take on larger projects. Companies are investing more and more resources in automation, digitization of production processes, and quality control solutions to meet the growing demand for high-tech products. According to Kolk, this is not just a short-term recovery, but a structural change in which Estonian manufacturers are moving from simple assembly work to more complex and knowledge-intensive solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The birth and growth of the Chip Center in 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much more than in previous discussions, this time the focus was on KIIP, the Estonian chip technology competence center operating in the drone technologies unit at the Metrosert Application Research Center, which is rapidly becoming one of the key initiatives in the Estonian electronics and technology sector. The center brings together chip development, testing, and reliability assessment capabilities under one roof, linking the expertise of the state, universities, and companies. Arno Kolk described KIIP as \u201cthe engine of innovation for the entire sector.\u201d \u201cIt gives a strong boost to innovation across the sector and enables Estonian high-tech companies to take their products to a new level,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although KIIP is officially still in its start-up phase, the center\u2019s impact is already being felt. The chip center has consulted with 15 Estonian companies, helping them assess which products and business models are suitable for chip development, what the technical and regulatory risks are, and what resources are required. KIIP is part of a broader European network that aims to strengthen the chip development competence of member states and reduce dependence on solutions from outside Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Kolk, the sector\u2019s long-term competitiveness is ensured by strong growth: \u201cEnrollment numbers in engineering education are consistently high, and interest in electronics education is growing. Our campaign \u2018Study electronics!\u2019 has attracted new students to the field, which gives us confidence that there will be enough top specialists in the sector in the future.\u201d Links between universities and industry are strengthening as companies increasingly seek opportunities to involve students in development projects while they are still studying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experts from 19 countries<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cEMS & Beyond 2025\u201d seminar held in Tallinn on Friday brought together 230 electronics industry experts from 19 countries, highlighting Estonia\u2019s role as an international forum for discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of Europe\u2019s best-known analysts, Dieter Weiss<\/strong>, noted that there are \u201can extraordinary number of mergers and acquisitions\u201d in the sector and that the rapid growth of the AI server market is significantly increasing demand for high-tech printed circuit boards and EMS services. During the day, the role of Central and Eastern Europe in the global supply chain, complex market trends in the European EMS sector, the sustainability of PCB production in Europe, and geopolitical changes affecting supply chains and the market situation were discussed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the seminar, the Estonian Electronics Industry Association presented awards to four individuals for the first time: Andres Taklaja<\/strong> (posthumously), Dieter Weiss<\/strong>, Andres Ojalill<\/strong>, and Arno Kolk<\/strong>. Otto Pukk<\/strong>, Chairman of the Board of the Estonian Electronics Industry Association and President and CEO of Incap Corporation, said: \u201cThe strength of the Estonian electronics industry lies in the people who, through their dedication, knowledge, and vision, have managed to create a sector that competes successfully throughout Europe.\u201d According to Pukk, all of the laureates are united by their significant contributions. \u201cThe work of these people extends beyond the boundaries of their companies or organizations. They have shaped the development of the entire sector and created a strong knowledge-based foundation on which future generations in the industry can rely.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honors for long-term contributions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andres Taklaja\u2019s contribution was crucial in the creation of the association \u2013 he was the first chairman of the EETL and, as head of the Radio Engineering Institute at Tallinn University of Technology, played an important role in training radio engineers. As the founder of Rantelon, he made a significant contribution to the development of the Estonian electronics industry and the country\u2019s defense capabilities. Dieter Weiss is one of the most influential experts in the European EMS sector, whose work has significantly increased understanding of the strategic role of electronics manufacturing in Europe. Andres Ojalill has been a central force in the implementation of IPC standards in Estonia, both in industry and in vocational education, establishing Estonia\u2019s first IPC training and certification center. Arno Kolk received the award for his long-term contribution, which has resulted in the Estonian Electronics Industry Association becoming a strong community with nearly 90 members, and he has significantly advanced engineering education and the next generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s EMS & Beyond 2025 seminar exhibition featured Amitronic, Bee Produced, CalcuQuote, Eurostat, Future Electronics, Global Electronics Association, Luminovo, Metrosert, Mycronic, Smthouse, TE connectivity, Testhouse Nordic, TLT PCB, TTI, W\u00fcrth Elektronik, and Yageo Group. The seminar is supported by Tallinn, Incap Corporation, In4ma, Data4PCB, Luminovo, Global Electronics Association, TLT PCB, and Avnet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Photo: Experts from the drone technologies unit of the Metrosert Application Research Center, 
the Estonian Chip Center and the metrology division at the EMS & Beyond 2025 trade fair.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Photo: Olev Mihkelmaa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Estonian electronics industry is ending the year in a clear growth phase: orders have increased in the fall, companies are investing in innovative technologies, and the focus is increasingly shifting to higher value-added solutions. The international seminar \u201cEMS & Beyond 2025\u201d held in Tallinn on Friday, December 5, brought these trends into sharp focus, especially in connection with the launch of the new chip technology competence center KIIP.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":3212,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3224"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3226,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3224\/revisions\/3226"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kiip.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}