In press-fit technology for connectors, a press-fit pin with a larger cross-sectional diameter than the hole diameter is pressed into a through-hole in the printed circuit board. The connector pin is flexible in the press-fit zone to prevent the printed circuit board from being deformed by physical forces during the press-fit process. This creates a cold weld between the contact pin and the metallized PCB hole, which is particularly robust and fail-safe even in harsh environments.

You can save costs with our customizable catalog connectors. For special applications, we also offer completely new, customized solutions tailored to your specific requirements.

Using press-fit technology, we produce an extremely robust and contamination-resistant PCB connector that withstands vibration, shock, gas, humidity, moisture, and dust. Robust PCB connectors manufactured using press-fit technology have a failure-in-time (FIT) rate ten times lower than that of automatically soldered PCB connectors. They are used, for example, in airbag systems, ABS, and ESP modules, as signal transmission in these applications must not fail under any circumstances.
How? Press-fit technology generates maximum holding forces between the connector and the PCB with minimal insertion force. During the press-fit process, a press-fit pin with a larger diameter than the hole diameter is pressed into a through-hole in the PCB. In the press-fit zone, the connector pin is flexible so that the PCB is not deformed by physical forces during the press-fit process. A cold weld forms between the contact pin and the metallized PCB hole: a gas-tight, corrosion-resistant, low-resistance, and electrically conductive mechanical connection that is also suitable for potting. This technology is specified in DIN EN 60352-5 and remains contact-secure even under very high mechanical and thermal stresses, such as vibration, bending, moisture, dust, and temperature changes, and can withstand acceleration loads from shock of up to 200 G. G-forces define forces acting on the human body, an object, or a vehicle due to changes in the magnitude and/or direction of velocity. For comparison: Upon re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere, a space capsule is subjected to a G-force of approximately 7 G.  

We manufacture several billion contacts each year for various sectors and applications within the automotive industry. Our press-fit zones are available in strip thicknesses ranging from 0.2 to 1.2 mm for hole diameters of 0.56 to 2.0 mm, or can be customized to meet your specific requirements.