Large-area vacuum coating is defined as vacuum processing of thin films and substrate surfaces which are significantly larger in area than integrated circuits. Historically, applications of large-area vacuum coating technology have included roll-to-roll metallized polymer films for capacitors, decorative packaging, and window glazing films; and coatings on rigid discrete substrates for decorative fixtures, precision mirrors and lenses, and antiglare CRT screens. New markets, evolving technologies, and societal concerns will influence the direction and growth of large-area industrial vacuum coating technology in the 1990’s. With the increase of two-worker households and the corresponding popularity of convenience cooking, food packaging materials which provide extended shelf life and enhance microwave preparation will be a growing market. More demanding requirements for recording media, medical applications, and space technology will generate new commercial opportunities for large-area vacuum coating. And concerns relating to control of toxic by-products of industrial coating, plating and etching processes will cast large-area vacuum processing in an attractive new light.