Murata Manufacturing, a leading MLCC manufacturer, recently issued an official notice stating that it will launch product line optimization in FY2026. It will discontinue some consumer-grade and automotive-grade MLCC part numbers to free up production capacity for high-value products used in AI servers. The adjustment of production capacity structure by the industry leader has further revealed supporting opportunities for China's domestic MLCC industrial chain, and also raised attention to the demand for upstream material processing equipment such as electronic slurry defoaming machines.

MLCC is one of the basic components widely used in electronic devices. The demand for high-capacitance MLCC from AI servers creates a siphon effect. High-capacitance products consume far more capacity per unit than ordinary products. Manufacturers in Japan and South Korea have shifted their production capacity toward high-capacitance and high-value-added products, leading to tighter supply of consumer-grade products. Price increases in the industrial chain are spreading from distributors to original manufacturers. Domestic MLCC producers and upstream material enterprises are facing a window of order spillover and import substitution. Upstream sectors including ceramic powder, electrode slurry and release film are expanding production simultaneously.

MLCC manufacturing is highly dependent on slurry quality. Ceramic slurry features high solid content and high viscosity. Uneven dispersion or residual bubbles will affect the thickness consistency of dielectric layers formed by casting, resulting in fluctuating capacitance performance or even component failure. Slurry defoaming before casting and printing serves as a critical step to control product yield. Sienox electronic slurry defoaming machines combine planetary revolution and rotation with vacuum environment. Materials are homogeneously mixed under compound motion, and vacuum negative pressure facilitates bubble removal. The equipment is suitable for dispersion and defoaming treatment of high-solid-content materials such as ceramic slurry and electrode slurry, helping production lines stably control batch consistency of slurry.

From the perspective of industrial chain structure, the product line adjustment of leading MLCC manufacturers and domestic enterprises undertaking spillover orders reflect that downstream demand is still in an expansion phase. The production expansion and process upgrading of upstream materials are advancing synchronously. Slurry processing equipment must not only meet current capacity requirements but also adapt to higher precision and efficiency.

The prosperity cycle of the MLCC industrial chain continues, and the equipment demand for electronic slurry processing keeps growing. Defoaming equipment capable of stably handling high-solid-content slurry will be more widely applied before casting, printing, stacking and other processes. Equipment manufacturers with planetary vacuum defoaming technology are expected to obtain more supporting opportunities amid this industrial chain expansion.