Custom Ceramic Components Manufacturer – USA

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Microns Advanced Ceramics manufactures precision technical ceramic components to customer drawings — alumina, zirconia, silicon carbide, silicon nitride, aluminium nitride, and boron carbide, from single prototypes through production volumes.

We are based in Hayward, California, and we work directly with the design engineers who specify the parts, not only with purchasing. If your drawing is not yet finalised, send it anyway — most of the cost in a ceramic component is decided at the drawing stage, and we would rather flag an expensive feature before you release it than quote it as drawn.

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What We Make

Components made to print, not a catalogue. Typical work includes:

Tubes, Rods and Bushings
Common Materials: Alumina, Zirconia
Typical Applications: Electrical insulation, furnace hardware, guides

Substrates and Plates
Common Materials: Alumina, Aluminium Nitride
Typical Applications: Electronics packaging, thermal management

Seal Faces and Valve Components
Common Materials: Zirconia, SiC, Alumina
Typical Applications: Pumps, chemical processing, fluid control

Wear Parts, Guides and Nozzles
Common Materials: Alumina, SiC, B₄C
Typical Applications: Abrasive handling, textile, blasting

Semiconductor Process Parts
Common Materials: 99.5–99.9% Alumina, AlN, SiC
Typical Applications: Etch chambers, wafer handling, gas distribution

Insulators, Feedthroughs and Standoffs
Common Materials: Alumina, Si₃N₄
Typical Applications: High-voltage, EV battery, vacuum systems

Structural and Fixture Components
Common Materials: Alumina, Zirconia, ZTA
Typical Applications: Punches, dies, locating and load-bearing parts

Crucibles and Refractory Hardware
Common Materials: Alumina, SiC, Magnesia
Typical Applications: Melting, sintering, kiln furniture

If your part is not in that list, it is very likely still within scope. The list describes what customers commonly ask for, not a boundary.

Materials We Manufacture In

Alumina (Al₂O₃)

Grades We Run: 95%, 96%, 99.5%, 99.9%, 99.99%
Chosen For: Best all-round property-per-dollar; insulation, wear, high temperature

Zirconia (ZrO₂)

Grades We Run: 3Y-TZP (YSZ), Mg-PSZ, Ce-TZP
Chosen For: Highest toughness of any oxide ceramic; impact and handling tolerance

ZTA / ATZ

Grades We Run: 6–20 vol% ZrO₂ in Al₂O₃, and the inverse
Chosen For: Much of zirconia's toughness at closer to alumina's cost

Silicon Carbide (SiC)

Grades We Run: Sintered (SSiC), Reaction-Bonded (RBSiC)
Chosen For: Hardness plus thermal conductivity plus chemical inertness

Silicon Nitride (Si₃N₄)

Grades We Run: Gas-pressure and reaction-bonded
Chosen For: Thermal shock resistance; rolling contact; molten metal contact

Aluminium Nitride (AlN)

Grades We Run: Standard and high-conductivity
Chosen For: Electrical insulation with 170–200 W/m·K heat removal

Boron Carbide (B₄C)

Grades We Run: Hot-pressed
Chosen For: Maximum hardness per unit mass

Boron Nitride (BN)

Grades We Run: Hot-pressed hexagonal
Chosen For: Machinable, lubricious, high dielectric strength

Zirconia content in ZTA is adjustable to the application — we are not restricted to a single fixed formulation.

Not sure which material applies?

The material comparison chart puts all of these side by side on ten properties, or send the operating conditions and we will recommend.

Manufacturing Capability and Tolerances

Forming Methods

Dry Pressing

Best For: Simple prismatic parts
Typical As-Fired Tolerance: ±1%
Volume Suited To: Medium–high

Cold Isostatic Pressing

Best For: Uniform density, larger blanks
Typical As-Fired Tolerance: ±1%
Volume Suited To: Low–medium

Slip Casting

Best For: Hollow and complex geometry
Typical As-Fired Tolerance: ±1.5%
Volume Suited To: Low–medium

Injection Moulding

Best For: Small, complex, high repeatability
Typical As-Fired Tolerance: ±0.5%
Volume Suited To: High (tooling amortised)

Extrusion

Best For: Tubes, rods, constant cross-sections
Typical As-Fired Tolerance: ±1%
Volume Suited To: Medium–high

Tape Casting

Best For: Thin substrates and sheets
Typical As-Fired Tolerance: ±2% on thickness
Volume Suited To: High

Sintered ceramic shrinks 15–20% during firing. Anything tighter than the figures above requires grinding after fire — which is where most of the cost in a precision ceramic part sits.

Machining and Finishing

Ground tolerances to ±0.002 mm on features where geometry permits
Surface finish to Ra 0.1 µm on lapped and polished faces
Diamond grinding, lapping, honing and polishing
Green machining where it can replace a post-fire grinding operation — this is the main lever for reducing cost on complex parts
Laser drilling and cutting for small features and thin sections
Metallisation and brazing for ceramic-to-metal joints, where required

Size and Geometry Limits

Rather than claim no limits, here are the constraints that actually shape a quote — worth checking your drawing against before you send it:

Wall thickness uniformity matters more than absolute thickness. Abrupt section changes crack during drying and firing.
Internal corners need a radius. A sharp internal corner is a stress concentration a ceramic cannot yield around, and it is the most common design change we request.
Aspect ratio on thin, long features is limited by handling in the green state as much as by machining.
Threads in ceramic are possible but expensive and structurally weak. A metal insert or a clamped joint is usually the better design.
Tolerancing everything is the single most common cost driver we see. Tolerance the features that functionally need it and leave the rest at as-fired.

Send the drawing early and we will tell you which of these apply.

What We Do Not Do

Worth stating plainly, because it saves everyone time:

We do not supply raw ceramic powder — we manufacture finished components.
We do not manufacture traditional ceramics: tableware, tile, sanitary ware, brick.
We do not stock a standard catalogue of off-the-shelf parts. Everything is made to a drawing or a specification.
We will not quote a part we do not think will survive its stated application. If your drawing specifies a material that will fail under the conditions you have described, we will say so and propose an alternative.

Industries We Serve

Semiconductor Equipment

Etch chamber components, wafer handling, gas distribution, focus rings, process tubes. High-purity alumina, AlN and SiC are selected for plasma erosion resistance and low particulate generation — purity matters more than strength here, because a glassy grain-boundary phase erodes preferentially and releases particles onto wafers.

Related Page: Semiconductor Ceramic Components

Automotive and EV

Inter-cell thermal barriers, busbar insulation, inverter substrates, sensor housings. Thermal runaway containment and high-voltage isolation are the driving requirements.

Chemical Processing

Valve seats and plugs, pump seals, nozzles, liners, thermocouple sheaths. Specified where a metal corrodes and a polymer softens.

Electrical and Electronic

Insulators, feedthroughs, standoffs, substrates, heat spreaders.

Industrial and Structural

Punches, dies, fixtures, wear plates, guides, load-bearing components.

Energy and High-Temperature Process

Furnace and kiln hardware, crucibles, refractory components, thermal barriers.

Quality, Inspection and Documentation

Test methods we report against, so our numbers are comparable to any other supplier's:

Flexural Strength
Standard: ASTM C1161 / ISO 14704

Fracture Toughness
Standard: ASTM C1421

Vickers Hardness
Standard: ASTM C1327

Density and Porosity
Standard: ASTM C373 / ASTM C20

Thermal Diffusivity
Standard: ASTM E1461

Dielectric Strength
Standard: ASTM D149

Zirconia Surgical Implants
Standard: ISO 13356

Alumina Surgical Implants
Standard: ISO 6474

Inspection

Dimensional verification by CMM and optical comparator; density and porosity testing; surface finish measurement; ultrasonic and dye-penetrant inspection for internal and surface defects; SEM microstructural analysis where the application requires grain size or phase verification.

Documentation Available on Request

Certificates of conformance
Material certifications
First article inspection reports
AS9102 format where required
Dimensional inspection reports

From Drawing to First Article

1. Send the Drawing

STEP, IGES, DXF or PDF. Include the operating conditions — temperature, load, chemistry, electrical requirements — not just the geometry. Under NDA if needed.

2. Engineering Review — 1–2 Business Days

We check manufacturability, flag features that will drive cost disproportionately, and confirm or challenge the material selection. This is where most of the value is added, and it is free.

3. Quotation

Priced against the reviewed drawing, with material, forming method, tolerance strategy and lead time stated.

If we have proposed a change, we quote both versions so you can see what the change is worth.

4. Prototype or First Article

Dimensional inspection report supplied.

For qualification programmes, we can supply parts from the production tooling and process rather than a prototype route, so the qualification remains valid at volume.

5. Production

Scheduled to your release, with the same process and documentation as the approved first article.

Lead Times

Lead times depend on material, forming route, and whether tooling is required. Prototypes typically run shorter than production; injection-moulded parts carry tooling lead time up front.

We quote a specific date, not a range, and we tell you which stage governs it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do You Manufacture in the United States?

Yes. We are based in Hayward, California and serve customers across the US. For programmes with domestic-sourcing requirements, tell us at RFQ stage so we can confirm the specific compliance framework that applies to your contract.

What Is the Minimum Order Quantity?

There is no fixed minimum. We quote single prototypes. Unit price falls substantially with volume, particularly for injection-moulded parts where tooling is amortised across the run.

What Tolerances Can You Hold?

±0.002 mm on ground features where geometry permits, Ra 0.1 µm on lapped and polished surfaces. As-fired tolerances run ±0.5% to ±2% depending on forming method.

Send the drawing, and we will mark up which features need grinding and which can stay as-fired.

Can You Help Select the Material?

Yes, and we prefer to.

Send the operating conditions — temperature, load type, chemistry, electrical requirement, expected life — and we will recommend a material and explain what rules the others out.

See the material comparison chart for the underlying data.

Do You Sign NDAs?

Yes. Send the NDA with the RFQ, or request ours.

Can You Machine a Ceramic Part We Already Have?

In many cases, yes — grinding, lapping and polishing of customer-supplied fired ceramic.

Send the part specification and the required finished dimensions.

How Do I Get a Quote?

Upload your drawing through our RFQ page or email info@microns-ceramics.com.

Include operating conditions and quantity, and tell us the decision date you are working to.

Send Us a Drawing

Prototype or production, finalised drawing or early concept — send it and we will tell you what it costs, how long it takes, and what we would change.

Microns Advanced Ceramics

30995 Santana St
Hayward, CA 94544

Email: info@microns-ceramics.com

Upload a Drawing & Request RFQ →

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