PRESCOTT — TCLAD Inc., a Prescott manufacturer that specializes in advanced thermal materials and printed circuit boards, welcomed Gregg Wavrunek of U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s office to tour the facility.

“The visit focused on TCLAD’s role in the regional economy, the challenges facing U.S. printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturers, and opportunities to strengthen domestic electronics supply chains,” a statement from TCLAD reads.

TCLAD has faced changes in the market including international tensions with China that have forced the company, and other similar companies to adapt.

“During the discussion, company leaders highlighted the pressures facing the U.S. PCB industry due to low-cost imports, particularly from China. John Hauschild, Vice President at TCLAD INC, noted that TCLAD’s situation reflects a broader national trend: only about 130 PCB manufacturing sites remain in the United States, “down from roughly 2,000 two decades ago,” the statement reads.

Because of the changes to the PCB landscape, TCLAD has focused on defense, aerospace and high-value domestic customers which rely on United States production. TCLAD made a $7.5 million federal appropriations request, potentially allowing for the creation of 50 jobs in the industry to add to the total of one of Prescott’s current employment leaders. The request would support new equipment to keep up with defense requirements.

“My key takeaway was that we still have a lot of work to do to increase the level of awareness of the challenges that exist in the U.S. supply chain for printed circuit boards,” Hauschild said.

Hauschild said there has been investment into the CHIPS Act to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing and investment into rare earth metal protection, but circuit board manufacturing also needs to be supported.

“The main reason for that is low-cost competition out of Asia,” Hauschild said of the decrease to PCB manufacturing sites. “The way that ourselves and others have survived has been finding customers or technologies that value either the U.S. supply chain from a logistics standpoint, from a security standpoint [or] from a customer service standpoint.”

TCLAD has also remained a manufacturer because of investment in new materials including thermal technology for better performance and more efficient energy use. This type of manufacturing is capital equipment intensive and requires skilled labor, meaning a subsidized economy with low-cost labor opened the door for China to take control of the market, Hauschild said.

Next for TCLAD, they are looking to take a trip to Washington D.C. in December, where they will spend part of their time reconnecting with the Baldwin office to reconvene conversations. Hauschild said the goal of the visit is to make sure both the challenges and opportunities are understood.

“If we can work together to align on some appropriations funding, we want to help continue to upscale and grow jobs in Prescott,” Hauschild said.