Circuits Assembly articles from August 2008

Circuits Assembly archives from August 2008

Dynamic duo teams again.(Caveat Lector)
August 1, 2008... The phone was ringing and it was Phil Marcoux on the line. Believe me, when the man known as the Father of SMT calls, you put down your comic book, take your feet off the desk and snap to attention. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "A group of...

Cobar Europe.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Solder supplier Cobar Europe (cobar. com), a member of the Balver Zinn Group, named WKK Distribution (wkk.com.hk) to sell its products in China, India and Southeast Asia.

Molex Inc.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Molex Inc. (molex.com) completed a previously announced acquisition of AFlex-tech Inc. (aflextech.com.tw). No financial terms were disclosed. AFlextech has sales of $25 million and 300 employees.

Zestron America.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Zestron America (zestron.com) has taken delivery of a Gen3 Systems (gen-3systems.com) CM-60 Contaminometer.

Kester (kester.com) named Cluff & Associates.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Kester (kester.com) named Cluff & Associates (cluffin.com) as representative in Colorado, Montana, Utah, Wyoming and southern ldaho.

Fine Line Stencil.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Fine Line Stencil (finelinestencil.com) purchased an LPKF (lpkf.com) stencil AOI.

Indium Corp.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Indium Corp. (indium.com) named Powell Industries its sales channel partner in Washington, Oregon, ldaho and California.

Jabil Circuit.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Jabil Circuit (jabil.com) has begun pilot production of Location Based Technologies' (locationbasedtech.com) PocketFinder location devices in Le Mans, France.

Zollner.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Zollner (zollner.de) purchased an Agilent Technologies (agilent.com) Medalist x6000 automated x-ray inspection system.

Austin American Technology.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Austin American Technology (aatcorp.com) and Zestron America (zestron.com) have completed compatibility experiments for cleaning equipment and products. The testing was conducted with current PCB defluxing inline and batch equipment, as well as...

Lord Corp.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Lord Corp., a supplier of thermal management materials, adhesives, coatings and encapsulants, has invested $2.5 million to renovate its electronic materials labs at its Cary, NC, headquarters. As part of the expansion, the firm consolidated...

A-Laser.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... A-Laser (a-laser.com), a division of FCT Assembly, purchased an LPKF (lpkf.com) Microline 600 laser system.

Mirtec Co. Ltd.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Mirtec Co. Ltd. (mirtecusa.com) said North American revenue was up more than 81% year-over-year for the first six months of fiscal 2008. The privately held company did not disclose revenue figures. In a statement, president Brian D'Amico cited...

BPM Microsystems.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... BPM Microsystems (bpmmicro.com) named Esman Elektronik (esman.com) as its distributor for Turkey.

Lenthor Engineering.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Lenthor Engineering (lenthor.com) has been approved for Lockheed Martin's (lmco.com) corporate AVL.

Valor Computerized Systems.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Valor Computerized Systems (valor.com) signed a cooperative agreement establishing a technological partnership under which it will provide Guilin University of Electronic Technology (GUET) with DfM and other software, and GUET will use the...

EMS firm Assel selected Valor's.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... EMS firm Assel selected Valor's (valor.com) vPlan enterprise-level process engineering software platform for electronics assembly.

Photo Stencil.(In Brief)
August 1, 2008... Photo Stencil (photostencil.com) has expanded its capacity in the US and abroad, upgrading its photoplotting infrastructure and adding electroformed stencil manufacturing capacity and capability.

Robert Willett.(People)
August 1, 2008... Cognex Corp. named Robert Willett president, Modular Vision Systems Division, the company's largest operating division. He was group vice president of business development and innovation for product identification at Danaher Corp., and...

Steven DiMarco.(People)
August 1, 2008... CyberOptics promoted Steven DiMarco to vice president and general manager, Inspection Systems Business, responsible for new systems product development and a manufacturing center in Singapore, as well as global sales, marketing and service. He...

Bhawnesh Mathur.(People)
August 1, 2008... EPIC Technologies named Bhawnesh Mathur CEO, replacing interim CEO Randy Haight, who remains on the company's board. Mathur has nearly 30 years' experience in electronics with IBM, Arrow Electronics and Sanmina-SCI.

Lauro Montalvo.(People)
August 1, 2008... AIM named Lauro Montalvo national sales manager, Mexico, responsible for managing promotional, sales and support activities. Lauro has 16 years' experience in soldering technologies, including as an SMT process engineer with Delphi Electronics....

Michael Greenlee.(People)
August 1, 2008... ViTechnology Inc. named Michael Greenlee president.

T. Scott Hatton.(People)
August 1, 2008... Sypris Solutions vice president and CEO T. Scott Hatton resigned, effective July 4. Anthony C. Allen, vice president, treasurer and assistant secretary, has been named acting CFO.

Geraint Anderson.(People)
August 1, 2008... TT Electronics named Geraint Anderson chief executive, effective Aug. 4. He supersedes Neil Rodgers, who resigned. Anderson was previously global vice president of Cisco's Linksys Service Provider business.

Warren Mitchell.(People)
August 1, 2008... EMS firm Winland Electronics named Warren Mitchell vice president of operations and supply chain. He has 20 years' experience in manufacturing and supply chain management, including with Pemstar Inc.

Greg Hayes.(People)
August 1, 2008... Indium named Greg Hayes Southeastern USA regional sales manager, responsible for soldering products for the region. He has 15 years' experience in soldering materials sales, and a bachelor's degree in business management from the University of...

Doug Burkhardt.(People)
August 1, 2008... Key Tronic Corp. promoted Doug Burkhardt to vice president of worldwide operations and Larry Bostwick to vice president of engineering and quality. Burkhardt has been with Key Tronic for 19 years, most recently as director of China operations....

Jim Yeager.(People)
August 1, 2008... EMS firm Silicon Forest Electronics named Jim Yeager quality assurance manager. He was previously director of quality and engineering at Suntron. Also, Jay Schmidt has been named sales and marketing manager. He was vice president-operations at...

John Anderson.(People)
August 1, 2008... HumiSeal Europe named John Anderson development chemist. He received a master's in science in chemical biology from the University of Leeds in 2007.

Tim Kardish.(People)
August 1, 2008... Assembly and process equipment supplier APS Novastar LLC named Tim Kardish chief executive. He was president of Labsphere Inc., and also held executive positions at X-Rite and Leica Microsystems.

Dynasil acquires RMD in $20M deal.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... WEST BERLIN, NJ - Dynasil Corp. of America (dynasil.com) has acquired Radiation Monitoring Devices Inc. and specific assets of RMD Instruments LLC (rmdinc.com) for $20 million, including $12.5 million cash and 4.6 million shares of common...

Right recipe can cut Pb-Free PCB costs.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... ROMULUS, MI - The right combination of materials, finishes and solders can have a marked effect on bare board cost and reliability. Indeed, according to Jim Kelch, director of sales/marketing, at PWB fabricator Saturn Electronics Corp....

St.pete ok's package to keep Jabil.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- St. Petersburg officials have approved almost $35 million worth of tax incentives to keep Jabil Circuit headquartered here, a local paper reported on July 3. Under terms of the deal, the state of Florida would pay $20...

Henkel, Shanghai University form electronics analysis Center.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... SHANGHAI - Henkel (henkel.com/electronics) and Shanghai University, along with other research universities, have entered into an agreement to form a Shanghai Region Joint Electronics Research and Failure Analysis Center. "One-third of...

Private investment group purchases SCS.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... INDIANAPOLIS - Private investment firm Berwind Corp. has acquired Specialty Coating Systems (scscoatings.com) from Bunker Hill Capital L.P. for an undisclosed sum. Bunker Hill had acquired the company, which makes parylene conformal...

Catalyst acquires Ramp Industries.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... ENDICOTT, NY - Catalyst Manufacturing Services (catalystems.com) has acquired certain assets of fellow NY-based EMS provider Ramp Industries (rampindustries.com). No financial terms of the agreement were disclosed. The combined companies...

Silicon forest growing capacity.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... VANCOUVER - EMS firm Silicon Forest Electronics (si-forest.com) has added 20,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space and reconfigured two manufacturing lines to increase speed and flexibility for quickturn, low-volume production. The company...

Building blocked: Lego pulls flex deal.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... COPENHAGEN - Lego Group is taking its toys and going home. Europe's largest toy maker will end its three-year outsourcing deal with Flextronics (flextronics.com) next year and bring manufacturing back in-house, the company said in July. ...

Elcoteq halts sale of Russian unit to Flextronics.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... HELSINKI - A deal to purchase Elcoteq's subsidiary in Russia fell through after Flextronics failed to obtain approval from Russian competition authorities. In May, a Russian paper reported Flextronics (flextronics.com) had failed to...

Nihon Superior upgrades Singapore to regional HQ.(Industry NEWS)
August 1, 2008... SINGAPORE - Nihon Superior Co. (nihonsuperior.co.jp) has upgraded its Singapore location - Nihon Superior Trading (S) Pte Ltd.-to a regional headquarters, with plans to establish an English-speaking R&D center there. The R&D center will be...

Semis Drop by Half.(Market WATCH)
August 1, 2008... Trends in the U.S. electronics equipment market (shipments only). % Change Mar. April (r) May * YTD Computers and electronics products...

June PMI above 50%.(Market WATCH)
August 1, 2008... TEMPE, AZ-Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in June, following four months of contraction, says the Institute for Supply Management (ism.ws). June's PMI was up 0.6 points, reaching 50.2%, while new orders dipped...

Industry market snapshot.(Market WATCH)
August 1, 2008... Book-to-bills of various components/equipment. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Semiconductor equipment (1) 0.89 0.92 0.87 0.82 (r) 0.79 (p) Semiconductors (2) 1.70% 1.34% 1.82%...

Metals index.
August 1, 2008... Price Per Lb. Date 7/9/07 4/7/08 5/6/08 6/9/08 7/14/08 LME Cash $6.44 $9.35 $10.99 $10.23 $10.70 Seller and Settlement for Tin LME Cash ...

Q2 Global PC shipments up 16% YoY.(Market WATCH)
August 1, 2008... EL SEGUNDO, CA-Worldwide PC shipments in the first quarter rose in accordance with normal seasonal patterns, increasing 16% over a year ago, according to iSuppli Corp (isuppli.com). Global PC unit shipments rose to 71.9 million units....

Execs bullish on US mfg.(Market WATCH)
August 1, 2008... WASHINGTON-Some 44% of North American companies intend to expand production in the US over the next three years, according to a survey released in June by the National Association of Manufacturers (nam.org), The Manufacturing Institute...

World growth rates slowing.(Market WATCH)
August 1, 2008... LOS ALTOS, CA - China's electronic equipment production market is finally slowing down, and taking the rest of the world with it. Citing the recent economic environment and spate of earthquakes, research firm Henderson Ventures...

An rx for growth.(Talking Heads)(Interview)
August 1, 2008... Revenues from Jabil's (jabil.com) industrial, instrumentation and medical businesses have risen 68% compounded annually over the past three years. Yet the vice president of Jabil's global business units, Tony Allan, says there is still plenty...

It's not all about miniaturization: processing large boards means thinking big.(Screen Printing)
August 1, 2008... It seems everything electronics-related I read these days has to do with miniaturization. I've even written several papers, columns and articles on the subject and, of course, it is the main driver in our industry. But, many other electronics...

The underappreciated manufacturers' Rep: Be kind to the rep. They are vital to the chain.(Better Manufacturing)
August 1, 2008... While I usually discuss SMT processes, equipment and materials in this space, every now and then it is important to take note of the human aspect. One of the most overlooked and, in many cases, underappreciated personnel is the manufacturers'...

Auditing a fabricator: guidelines for prototypes and production boards overlap, but for offshore production the rule is caveat emptor.(PWB Procurement)
August 1, 2008... PWB procurement can be categorized as either procuring prototype or production boards or both. But the common denominator is both require assurances the fabricator has the capability and capacity to deliver the required quantities on time and...

Cutting machine programming time: How a novel process can avoid repeated online debugging.(Program Generation)
August 1, 2008... One of the biggest challenges in printed circuit board manufacturing is generating programs offline for production machines. This process is required for every assembly we build. But, for many manufacturing engineers, it means many more hours...

Simultaneous acoustic imaging and surface mapping: combining the methods reveals not only the anomaly, but the extent of 3-D distortion.(Cover Story)
August 1, 2008... Plastic-encapsulated microcircuit (PEM) warping is of interest to manufacturers for several reasons. First, component warping may create internal stresses that, if eventually released, may result in electrical failure. For example, warping...

Stop the HOP; When HOP failures pop up, review the reflow profile.(Tech Tips)
August 1, 2008... Recently, a customer observed intermittent opens on thin and fine pitch BGAs (TFBGA). The PCB is a Pb-free design and the TFBGAs were soldered with SAC 305 paste. X-ray inspection of the identified failure locations on the TFBGAs indicated...

Problems in the mix: why lead and Pb-free are often an unhappy marriage.(Soldering)
August 1, 2008... Components with Pb-based alloy finishes, put into a Pb-free process, don't always go willingly. Problems can result, as in the instance recorded here. It seemed innocent enough: Double-sided boards, including surface mount and through-hole...

Decoding the ICT programming house; As in assembly, going outside has its time and expertise advantages.(Test and Inspection)
August 1, 2008... Test escapes leading to field returns are a test engineer's worst nightmare. The cost of field failures is enormous. As with each test and inspection step, robust test implementations can reduce the potential for field failures. One of the...

How clean must bare boards be? The fabrication process is a prime source of contaminants.(Process Doctor)
August 1, 2008... Many ask why we need clean bare boards for a "cleaned assembly" process. The answer is most cleaning systems are designed to remove only the easy-to-get-to flux residues. But take, for instance, underneath low-standoff areas, where it is...

ABCs of price vs. value: what first-graders can't tell you about cost of ownership.(Pb-Free Lessons Learned)
August 1, 2008... Which values are smaller: 3% or 2%? Eighty hours or 180 hours? $95,000 or $120,000? If you selected 2%, 80 hours and $95,000, congratulations: You understand the "greater than" and "less than" principles, and are at least as smart as a...

Faster throughput through reliability analysis: Thorough reliability analysis helps minimize process variability.(Getting Lean)
August 1, 2008... Capitalizing on the benefits of Lean manufacturing requires a companywide focus on elimination of non-value added activity and enhanced throughput. Reliability analysis resources can be great tools in supporting this effort. At EPIC...

Molex's Solder Charge interface.(Component Advances)
August 1, 2008... Solder Charge PCB interface optimizes benefits of density of a BGA tail, but improves on the latter's shortfalls in processing and manufacturing. The concept consists of a blanked solder mass that gets extruded through a hole near the tip of a...

3-D laser scanning microscope.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... VK-9700 confocal microscope has capabilities of SEMs and noncontact profilometry. Said to be capable of 18,000x magnification and 0.001 [micro]m precision. Performs surface profile, roughness, 3-D and comparative measurements. Optional...

Electroformed ni squeegee blades.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Slic Blade squeegee blades are said to form a surface with low surface energy. Provide 100% electroformed nickel that reportedly will not chip or flake. Are said to provide lowest wiping pressure, longest blade life, enhanced stencil life and...

Enterprise monitoring dashboards.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... iMonitor 2.0 enables creation of real-time dashboards to monitor the enterprise, factory, and lines in real-time through web browsers. Creates unlimited numbers of interactive and real-time production tracking, materials, utilization and...

Placement machine with dispensing head.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... FLX2010 MKL placement machine now comes with a three-head system that performs material dispensing and consecutive placement of LEDs on film substrates. Features placement axis with an integrated component adjustment mechanism, and two...

3-head high-speed dispenser.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... KD-2077 features three standard dispensing heads for a rate of 0.1 sec/shot. Provides automatic syringe pressure compensation, dot size confirmation, low adhesive warning and independent temperature control for each head. Features up to four...

Vacuum component pickup.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... ProcessMate PM100 lifts and positions small or delicate parts in bench-top assembly processes. Designed as a pick-and-place tool for use with Performus fluid dispensers; permits positioning of parts with one hand and application of adhesives,...

120-feeder placement machine.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... MC-12 is said to pack up to 120 feeders into a 1.25 x 1.44 m machine. Has a top speed of 36.000 cph. Board size support is 510 x 460 mm. Comes with component side-view camera, and a complete set of software options. Has 12 mm high-performance...

Dipping paste for PoP devices.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... LFM 48 N is a no-clean, Pb-free alternative to gel pastes traditionally used in BGA PoP stacked device applications. Is for holding larger area devices that often exhibit warpage during reflow. Combines ultra-fine solder spheres and a...

RTV coater and dispenser.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Precisioncoat applies room temperature vulcanization materials and is controlled by proprietary software on Windows XP. Applies silicone adhesives and sealants. Offers bead control and accurate application. Standard configuration applies...

Low-dross Pb-free alloy.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Alpha SACX 0807 is said to offer performance similar to SAC 305 on complex, dualsided assemblies where excellent wetting is required. Reportedly produces less dross and works in lower operating temperature processes associated with high-Ag SAC...

Cable-to-board interconnect.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... The 0.050" pitch Micro Mate Discrete Wire Cable Terminal includes a socket assembly. Provides cable-to-board solutions for the TFM/SFM Series board-to-board interconnect system and features the Tiger Eye contact system. Includes Power Mate and...

Single-axis actuators.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Model LX30 comes with or without a motor bracket, with one or two short blocks, or one or two long blocks. All configurations are available in a covered version. Model LX45 comes with or without a cover, with or without a motor bracket, and in...

Higher accuracy printer platform.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... The Horizon 01i screen printer now has a reported accuracy of 2.0 Cpk @ +/-25 [micro]m, and can output DPMO statistics. The Horizon 03i now comes with Cyclone under-stencil cleaning, said to reduce change over times and paper volume. Comes with...

Pb-free wire.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Eco-Plus S03X7C-56M Pb-free wire is said to reduce or eliminate flux splatter, joint overheating and solder tip erosion and carbonization, while also improving wetting and solder joint strength. Reportedly reduces tip consumption caused by...

Stainless steel lifting pins.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Kwik-Lok pins are 100% stainless steel and provide a 5 to 1 strength factor. Have a 17-4 PH stainless steel forged lifting ring to resist corrosion in harsh environments. Large opening accommodates a wide range of lifting hooks or hardware....

Handheld ID readers.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... DataMan 700 handheld ID readers include DataMan 750, said to be ESD-safe and ideal for reading 1D and 2D codes, and IDMax decoding software, for code degradations that result from differences in material types and surfaces. DataMan 710 features...

Laser-cut stencils.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... ElectroLaser stencils offer precision of laser-cut apertures and paste release properties of 100% electroformed nickel. Contain no trace elements liberated to the aperture walls, causing increased surface roughness. Offer the natural lubricity...

Die-attach solder paste.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Indium9.32 halogen-free, no-clean, die-attach solder paste is said to exhibit low voiding ( Indium, indium.com

Hot melt packaging adhesives.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
August 1, 2008... Select Technomelt hot melt adhesives are offered in finger-sized, ready-to-use packets. Load directly into the dispensing tank; the dry outer casing melts with the adhesive. Designed to replace sticky cavity packaging and plastic waste. Come in...

"Package-on-package warpage-impact on surface mount yields and board level reliability".(Component Reliability)
August 1, 2008... Abstract: This paper presents a systematic study performed to modulate the warpage of the top and bottom PoP, and to study the effect of the relative warpage of the top and bottom PoP on surface mount yields during PoP assembly. A 15 x 15 mm...

"A comprehensive parallel study on the board level reliability of SAC, SACX and SCN solders".(PWB Reliability)
August 1, 2008... Abstract: Although a large number of research studies have been performed and are currently under way in the Pb-free soldering area, especially on the reliability of SAC solder joints, data on comparison of SAC solders with other Pbfree solders...

"Effect of joint size and pad metallization on solder mechanical properties".(Solder Joint Reliabiiity)
August 1, 2008... Abstract: Metallurgical analysis, mechanical testing and finite element analysis were conducted to understand the effect of joint size and pad metallization on solder behavior. A range of design and material variables was evaluated. The pad...

"Effects of warpage on fatigue reliability of solder bumps: experimental and analytical studies".(Solder Joint Reliability)
August 1, 2008... Abstract: PWB and component warpage results principally from CTE mismatch among the materials that make up the assembly. Warpage occurring during surface-mount reflow processes and normal operations may lead to severe solder bump reliability...