In a year when engineering teams are being asked to deliver smaller, smarter and faster products under tighter cost and regulatory pressure, the Micro Component Group has announced an ambitious 2026 agenda focused squarely on application-led innovation in photo-chemical etching (PCE).
Bringing together micrometal GmbH, HP Etch, Etchform and Thin Metal Parts, the Group is doubling down on close collaboration with customers in medical devices, wearables, semiconductors, energy systems, filtration and aerospace, markets where ultra-precise, burr-free metal parts are often the limiting factor in product performance. A key focus area for 2026 is next-generation micro-needles and cutting elements for minimally invasive medical devices, where tip radius, edge sharpness and consistent geometry directly influence patient comfort and clinical outcomes.
“Too often, metal parts are treated as a commodity,” says Jochen Kern, head of sales and marketing at Micro Component Group. “In reality, they are frequently the component that decides whether a new design is feasible, manufacturable, and scalable. Our 2026 agenda is about starting with the application and using PCE to unlock ideas that other technologies simply cannot realize.”
Unlike stamping, laser cutting, or wire EDM, PCE introduces no mechanical or thermal stress, maintains base-material properties, and can generate extremely fine features, complex apertures, and sharp edges with repeatable tolerances in the single-digit micron range. With the Group’s combination of reel-to-reel, sheet-based PCE, electroforming and precision laser capabilities, engineers can move from early prototypes to high-volume production without changing process or supplier.
This is particularly critical in sectors such as minimally invasive and wearable medical devices, where micro-needle arrays, micro-filters, and functional surfaces define both patient outcomes and regulatory approval; in EV and battery systems, where lightweight thermal and current-carrying structures must be tightly controlled; and in advanced sensing and semiconductor applications, where intricate metal patterns drive signal integrity and reliability.
“For manufacturers who have never used PCE, the biggest surprise is usually the design freedom,” Kern adds. “We can economically produce geometries that would be impossible or unaffordable with conventional tooling, and we can do it at scale. That combination of creativity and industrial robustness is what our 2026 program is built on.”
Engineers and OEMs wanting to see what this looks like in practice are invited to meet the team at MD&M West in Anaheim, 3–5 February 2026, Booth 1587, and explore how application-driven PCE (including state-of-the-art micro-needles) can redefine what their next generation of metal components can achieve.
