Circuits Assembly articles from December 2008

Circuits Assembly archives from December 2008

Crapshoot in Juarez.(Cave at Lector)
December 1, 2008... The city of Juarez, Mexico, sits to the south and west of the US, sharing a jagged border--other--wise known as the Rio Grande--with the state of Texas. The Juarez Mountains rise to the west, abutting the sprawling home of some 1.3 million...

Digi-key Corp.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Digi-key Corp. (digikey.com) has expanded its line of Tyco Electronics Raychem Circuit Protection Products to include PolyZen Zener diodes.

SMTC.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... SMTC (smtc.com) cut 276 full-time staff and approximately 100 tempoary staff, mainly in Mexico, as it moved production to the company's facility in China.

A-Laser.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... A-Laser (a-laser.com), a provider of laser-cutting services, has expanded its hours of operations to meet demands of just-in-time manufacturers. The firm is now running three shifts to enable 24-hr. capacity. A-Laser is a division of FCT...

Sunburst electronics.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Sunburst Electronics (sunburstelectronics.com) is in the final stages of gaining ISO 13485 certification, a quality management standard for medical device manufacturing. The company plans to extend its medical device industry reach as a result....

Indium Corp.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Indium Corp. (indium.com) named EMC3 Group (emc3group.com its sales channel partner in Florida.

Ellsworth Corp.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Ellsworth Corp. (ellsworth.com) opened a wholly owned subsidiary, Ellsworth Latin America Adesivos LTDA, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, to provide adhesives, sealants, coatings, encapsulants, tapes, and dispensing and curing equipment to Latin America.

Manufactured Assemblies Corp.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Manufactured Assemblies Corp. (mac-cable.com), a provider of EMS and other products and services, will build a 40,000 sq. ft. office and production facility in Vandalia, OH, with the planned opening early next year. MAC, which has operations in...

Cobar Europe.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Cobar Europe (cobar.com) appointed Prosem Technology India (Prosemtechnology.com) its representative in India.

Optimal electronics.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... ACD (acd.biz has selected Optimal Electronics' (optelco.com) Optel MES software.

FCT solder.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... FCT Solder, a division of FCT Assembly, named Ally Jauksovas its representative in California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado and Utah.

Enics.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... EMS firm Enics (enics.com) could lay off more than 185 workers in Varkuas, Finland, at it moves operations to other company factories. The company is engaged in negotiations with workers over the layoffs. It currently employs 500 in Finland and...

Adeptron Technologies.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Adeptron Technologies (adeptron.com) will provide $15 million a year in electronics manufacturing services to and undisclosed Canada-based OEM. The deal also has "the potential to increase significantly." Full ramp is expected to take place...

BPM Microsystems.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... BPM Microsystems (bpmmicro.com) named Lynxtron Inc. its representative in southern Wisconsin, Indiana and northern Illinois.

Vicor Corp.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Vicor Corp. (vicr.com) recently added Koh Young Technology benchtop and inline solder paste inspection capability.

Scanfil.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... EMS provider Scanfil (scanfil.com) has begun a 70,000 sq.ft. expansion to its Hangzhou, China, production facilities. The company's China subsidiaries account for 36% of its overall sales.

PartnerTech's.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... PartnerTech's (partnertech.fi) Norfolk, England, manufacturing facility had received ISO 13485:2003 medical certification. The firm, the largest EMS company is Scandinavia, also reduced headcount by 65 during the September quarter.

Flex International Technologies.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... Flex International Technologies (fit-4flex.com) has received International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) registration from the US Department of State.

The Eagle group named Bliss Industries.(In Brief)
December 1, 2008... The Eagle Group named Bliss Industries (blissindustries.com) to represent its line of wire for ESD electronics and general material handling.

Recession spells end of Foxconn effect, analyst says.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... SAN JOSE--The top 10 EMS firms showed collective first-half growth of 4.3%, down from 20% last year, and the forecast, if not dire, is dimmer than before. In an economic wrap-up of the electronics industry, iSuppli Corp. in October said...

New IIT factory could double capabilities.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... POST FALLS, ID--Integrated Ideas & Technologies Inc. (integratedideas.com) recently completed construction and moved into a 23,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility. The new facility is expected to help the SMT stencil and metal fabrication...

IPC criticizes TBBPA inclusion in RoHS draft.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... BANNOCKBURN, IL--IPC (ipc.org) is taking issue with the inclusion of the flame retardant chemical known as Tetrabromobisphenol A on a draft list of substances that could be added to the EU RoHS Directive, firing off a letter requesting the EU...

H.I.G. Chemicals Holdings acquires Petroferm.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... GURNEE IL--H.I.G. Chemicals Holdings Corp. (higcapital.com) has acquired Petroferm Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Petroferm (petroferm.com), a specialty chemical manufacturer and formulator, had been privately held. ...

Newview EMS has shades of past.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... WOBURN, MA--From the ashes of MassTech EMS and Neo Nano Electronics has come a new electronics manufacturing company, Newview EMS Corp. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Paul Walker, former founder and CEO of SMTC (smtc.com), is involved with the...

Philippe Mysson.(People)
December 1, 2008... EFD International named Philippe Mysson business development manager, solder paste Europe. He holds a master's in chemistry from Dijon (France) University and has 24 years in solder manufacturing with Thomson Passive Components.

Roger Taylor.(People)
December 1, 2008... Roger Taylor has been named senior vice president Group Operations of Elcoteq. He has held senior operational management positions within Nokia and Motorola.

David Mckee.(People)
December 1, 2008... Indium Corp. promoted David McKee to key and direct accounts manger in Europe, responsible for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with a focus on solder products. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Pelle Wennerlund.(People)
December 1, 2008... Mydata named Pelle Wennerlund managing director in the China region. He has China experience with a trading company and with plastics machinery manufacturer Krauss Maffei, where he focused on EMS/electronics and automotive. [ILLUSTRATION...

Keya Bhattacharyya.(People)
December 1, 2008... Axiom Electronics named Keya Bhattacharyya Six Sigma Manager. Dr. Bhattacharyya previously worked as a quality/reliability contractor for Celerity, Planar, and Flextronics.

William "Bill" King.(People)
December 1, 2008... Datron Dynamics named William "Bill" King president. He has been with the company since 1996 and in manufacturing for 25 years.

Stephen Santangelo.(People)
December 1, 2008... Kester promoted Stephen Santangelo operations manager in North America, responsible for production and quality of solder paste products. The 30-year Kester veteran was most recently Asian Operations Manager for the solder paste business unit....

Jari Sarrinen.(People)
December 1, 2008... Salcomp named Jari Sarrinen chief financial officer, effective Jan. 25, 2009. The company also promoted Pekka Kyyriainen to voice president, global operations, super-seding Osmo Oja, who is retiring. He was general manager of Salcomp's plant in...

Ken Votruba.(People)
December 1, 2008... Sunburst Electronics hired Ken Votruba as manager of sales and service in Ohio.

Eric Monson.(People)
December 1, 2008... Krayden appointed Eric Monson salesman for Utah, Idaho and new Mexico, and Ken Vitale as sales representative in Richmond, VA.

J. Mike Sapienti.(People)
December 1, 2008... J. Mike Sapienti joined Sanmina-SCI as PCB business development manger for defense and aerospace. He has 25 years' experience in manufacturing, defense and aerospace to Sanmina-SCI, including at Intrinsix Corp., Zycon, parlex, and Teradyne.

Paul Jackson.(People)
December 1, 2008... Axis Electronics promoted Paul Jackson to manufacturing director and Chris Nye to materials director.

Barry Clark.(People)
December 1, 2008... AdoptSMT Group appointed Barry Clark managing director for its London-based AlternativeSMT group: He was previously with Universal instruments Corp. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Jolene Schofield.(People)
December 1, 2008... Synchronized Manufacturing Technologies named Jolene Schofield program manger and Steve Cahalane operations manger. Schofield has 20 years' experience, including her tenure with Sanmina-SCI. Cahalane has been an engineer, materials and...

Mike Griffin.(People)
December 1, 2008... Unisem promoted Mike Griffin to corporate vice president of marketing and business development, Gill Chiu to vice president and region head of business development for North America, and S.C. Lim to vice president and region head of business...

Industrial Electronics Services expands in TN.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... GRAY, TN--EMS provider Industrial Electronics Services Inc. (iesgray.com) will break ground this month on a 40,000 sq. ft. building, the company's fourth building. The firm employs 67 workers and projects 2008 sales of $6.5 million, up...

Fine Line Stencil opens Memphis plant.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... COLORADO SPRINGS, CO--Fine Line Stencil (finelinestencil.com), a leading manufacturer of stencil products, has opened a stencil manufacturing facility in Memphis, the company said today. The site will meet demand for quickturn stencils, and...

MPC files for bankruptcy.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... NAMPA, ID--MPC Corp. (mpccorp.com), one of the world's largest PC makers, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company has been delisted from the NYSE and says it doesn't expect equity holders to receive any distributions in...

Cletronics to expand plant, staff.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... MEDINA, OH--Cletronics Inc., a small EMS company and manufacturer of coils and inductors, will add 12, 000 sq. ft. to its factory here as part of a $960,000 expansion. The company (cletronics.com) will hire three new full-time workers,...

Ayshire Electronics buys ACT plant in Corinth.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... CORINTH, MI--Ayshire Electronics (ayrshireusa.com) has acquired ACT Electronics' family here for an undisclosed amount. In doing so, Ayrshire saved the largest EMS factory in the US--some 350,000 sq. ft.--and the jobs of about 200 full-time...

Orbotech pulling out of assembly AOI biz.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... YAVNE, ISRAEL--Beset by losses, Orbotech (orbotech.com) in mid November announced plans to drop out of the PCB AOI equipment business and reduce its workforce by 15%. Starting in the third quarter, the company began scaling back its...

Nanowires ideal for EMS, say researchers.(Industry NEWS)
December 1, 2008... YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, NY--IBM (ibm.com) and Purdue University (purdue.edu) researchers have discovered tiny silicon nanowires might be ideal for manufacturing in computers and consumer electronics because the structures repeatedly form the same...

More storage in store.(Market Watch)
December 1, 2008... Trends in the U.S. electronics equipment market (Shipments only). % change July Aug' Sept * YTD Computers and electronics...

October manufacturing reaches new low.(Market Watch)
December 1, 2008... TEMPE, AZ--The manufacturing sector in October failed to grow for the third consecutive month, says the Institute for Supply management (ism. ws), While the overall economy concluded 83 consecutive months of growth. The manufacturing PMI...

Industry market snapshot.(Market Watch)
December 1, 2008... Book-to-bills of various components/equipment. May June July Aug Sept Semiconductor equipment (1) 0.78 0.81 0.83 0.81 (r) 0.76 (p) Semiconductors (2) 4.18% 5.91%...

Gartner: 2009 semi growth just 1%.(Market WATCH)
December 1, 2008... STAMFORD, CT--The economic crisis is having a significant impact on the semiconductor industry, as worldwide semiconductor revenue growth in 2009 is expected to be 1%, down approximately seven points from previous estimates, says Gartner Inc....

Report: communications production halved this year.(Market WATCH)
December 1, 2008... LOS ALTOS, CA--Although capital investment outlays will slow, the communications equipment industry will survive the economic downturn in reasonable shape, says Henderson Ventures (hendersonventures.com). Worldwide equipment production will...

Down market could boost EMS.(Market WATCH)
December 1, 2008... EL SEGUNDO, CA--EMS and ODM firms will continue to grow, albeit at a slower rate, during the current recession. In fact, research firm iSuppli (isuppli.com) believes a recession may offer opportunities, pointing to the 2001-2003 recession, when...

Metals index.(Market WATCH)
December 1, 2008... Price Per Lb. Date 11/12/07 8/4/08 9/8/08 10/6/08 11/3/08 LME Cash Seller and $7.64 $9.84 $8.68 $7.69 $6.35 Settlement for Tin LME Cash...

Why pride and outsourcing don't mix; Root problems tend to be everyday business issues. So why do some parties give up?(Global Sourcing)
December 1, 2008... Many of the less successful electronics manufacturing outsourcing relationships at their core have problem behaviors very similar to the age-old character flawks known as the Seven Deadly Sins. In the old days, when good character was...

A simple economic stimulus package: inspection can reveal post-print problems or help analyze DoEs.(Screen Printing)
December 1, 2008... It's predictable as the sunrise. When the economy struggles, efforts to optimize line yields and reduce manufacturing costs become, well, let's just say a bit more intense. I've been through many a slow cycle, and the cost-cutting pattern...

A few of my least favorite things: the industry's leading curmudgeon is back and ornery as ever.(Better Manufacturing)
December 1, 2008... Ed: It's December and the weather is turning cold in many parts of the land. Who better to warm things up than our favorite industry curmudgeon, Dr. Helmsley J. Zapfardt III? Like a tented via with flux trapped inside, I have to vent. Hey,...

The Plexus Rx: for its operational excellence and financial performance, Plexus is our first EMS company of the year.(Cover Story)(Company overview)
December 1, 2008... Quick: Name the best-performing publicly held EMS company. Jabil? Not anymore. Benchmark. Wrong again. Flextronics? Not even close. That would be Plexus. The 28-year-old EMS company has shown gross margins of 10.9% over the past three...

In memoriam: remembering friends and colleagues who passed away in 2008.(Retrospective)(Obituary)
December 1, 2008... Be it in global matters like finance and politics, or in more regional events within our industry, 2008 will be remembered as a year of transition. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] CIRCUITS...

HIP defects in BGAs; a study shows two significant factors are solder paste flux chemistry and BGA alloy ball wetting.(Solder Joint Reliability)
December 1, 2008... Head-in-pillow (HIP), also known as head-on-pillow or ball-in-socket, is a solder joint defect in which the solder paste deposit wets the pad, but does not fully wet the ball. This results in a solder joint with enough connection to have...

Pb-free solder wetting tests: a novel test vehicle and methodology for solderability evaluations.(Tech Tips)
December 1, 2008... We recently performed an experiment for a customer interested in comparing Pb-free solder wetting with varying temperature profiles and atmospheric conditions. To deliver and objective measurement of solder wetting (in addition to subjective...

Pushing test and testability up the chain: how a grassroots organization can help get mangers on board.(Test and Inspection)
December 1, 2008... Every company always looks to improve their bottom line, but I would venture to say doing so becomes even more important in times of economic turmoil. In the past few years, companies have embraced defect detection; even prevention and process...

Analyzing Pb-free defects using partial DoE; Optimal assemblies don't come about drop-in materials replacement.(Wave Soldering)
December 1, 2008... An important step in reducing and preventing defects during soldering is defining the correct process settings. It's a good practice to design proper experiments and analyze their results to help determine these settings. When the number of...

Electronics residues testing methods, part 2; This month's analysis: SEM and EDX.(Process Doctor)
December 1, 2008... Ed.: This continues a four-part series on typical analysis techniques and their pros and cons in regard to understanding electronics residues. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (also known as EDS or EDX) is an analytical technique used...

Head-in-pillow and hybrid solder pastes: the HIP epidemic proliferates, but the cure must not create new problems.(Pb-Free Lessons Learned)
December 1, 2008... Earlier this year I reported on the head-in-pillow epidemic affecting many assembly lines running Pb-free reflow processes ("HOP-ping Mad" July 2008). I postulated that a combination of circumstances was occurring simultaneously to create this...

White residue rings: what happens when paste residues and cleaning solvents are incompatible?(The Defects Database)
December 1, 2008... As debuted in these pages last month, the National Physical Laboratory's new interactive assembly and soldering defects database lists problems and solutions. The database permits searching and viewing of countless defects and solutions. Users...

The legend of the new marketing inks standard: released in may, IPC-4781 resolves longstanding test issues.(Standards)
December 1, 2008... Legend and marketing inks, marking pens, and ink stamp products are integral parts of PCB fabrication, yet industry has lacked a standard for the manufacture and testing of these products, some of which are known to cause long-term reliability...

Processes and outcomes: if a task is performed different ways, the process--and therefore the result--is unpredictable.(Getting Lean)
December 1, 2008... Why should people follow a process? So they can deliver a predictable outcome. And if the outcome is not adequate, we improve it. The right process will deliver the right results. And the right result is a predicable outcome. [ILLUSTRATION...

High-power Soldering and Rework system.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Metcal MX-5000 Series is coupled with 80W of power for quick response to load conditions with high levels of control. Is microprocessor-controlled; incorporates a built-in digital power indication display. Hand-piece choices include Advanced...

Self-cleaning squeegee.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Permalex Paste Manager runs on microprocessor-controlled torque actuators and reportedly resolves solder paste sticking to squeegees insides printers. Is said to achieve 90% cleaning action in 3.9 sec. for a 14" long squeegee. Runs on a variety...

'All axes' vision sensor.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Checker 252 vision sensor includes all inspection capabilities of the Checker vision sensor family, plus additional software sensors that verify height, width, and diameter and deliver pass/fail results on high-speed production lines. Mas...

Selective soldering with wave height measurement.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... mySelective 6748 selective soldering system now features a wave height measurement system. Ensures a specific predetermined wave height for every PCB by automatically adjusting the solder pump RPMs. Uses a laser-based sensor to detect, measure,...

Automated moisture analyzer.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... PMD300 moisture analyzer uses microwave resonance technology. Analyzes core and surface moisture content; data can be obtained automatically or manually. Temperature in the oven, air supply and conveyor belt speed can be automatically adjusted...

IDF plug-in for PCB123 v. 3.1.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Free intermediate data format plug-in is the first module for PCB123 based on Software Developer's Kit v. 3.1. Enables import of PCB designs for use in mechanical and electrical CAD systems in a bidirectional, neutral format within the...

200+ I/O LGA Connector.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... W-Series Matrix Connector is for interconnecting LGAs with 200 or more board I/Os. Reportedly eliminates need to solder or rework components. Is embedded with 300 to 2,000 gold-plated wires per c[m.sup.2] and provides a carrying capacity of 500...

2D Inspection for printers.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... 2D Inspection (2Di) V9 software tool monitors the print process. Is said to inspect boards or stencils to determine print quality. Identifies when stencil cleaning or paste dispensing is required, and prevents bridging, misalignment, stencil...

Ergonomic workbench.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Easy Lift has 20", Replace: = wdReplaceAll of adjustable work surface. Serves as a workbench, assembly station and adjustable desk. Table moves vertically and has a 250 lb load capacity. Comes standard with a 24X30" static dissipative...

Boundary scan I/O digital Module.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... CION Module/DIMM240 enables testing of all signal and voltage supply pins of Jedec-compliant DIMM240 sockets for DDR2 SDRAM. Several boards of the same or different types can be cascaded in a daisy chain configuration. All channels can be...

400-lb.loader/unloader.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... BlissLift now has a wider base for assembly applications. reportedly doubles the speed of repetitive load/unload tasks. Permits loading of 19" rackmount chassis into a 19" rack on a shipping pallet; legs straddle the pallete. Is said to be...

FPD, CRT display tester.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... U8101A display tester is for custom setups for visual testing of up to five major display formats. For testing FPD and CRT displays, and LCD panels in PC and TV manufacturing. Is said to support all major analog and digital interfaces and...

'Constant vaccum' pickup tip.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Stealth-Vac operates directly on 30 to 70 psi compressed air or nitrogen. The normally open vaccum pen contains a venturi vaccum generator. With compressed air supplied at the rear of the tool, the pickup tip is said to have constant vaccum...

Pb-free wave solder machine.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... C250 is 50"X30" and handles boards up to 10" wide in its adjustable corrosion-resistent finger convayor. Is equipped with automatic deflexing, IR preheating, air-knife cooling and a low-volume solder pot. Is available in single or dual wave...

Fast-setup selective soldering.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... Rhythm EX offers a selective soldering range of 24X24"; no manual rotation or adjustment is required. Offers closed-loop servo-driven x, y, and z-axis motion that articulates the solder wave and flux beneath the PCB. Designed for high-mix or...

Rework, re-solder unit.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
December 1, 2008... PC-controlled Martin "Expert" Pb-free rework station version 9.6 is said to automatically accomplish any stage of SMT repair, from removal to replacement, as well as the re-solder of BGAs, CSPs, [mu] BGAs and other SMDs. A high-res camera...

In case you missed it.(Technical Abstracts)
December 1, 2008... Cleaning "Cleaning Qualification Methodology for Inline Aqueous Assembly Process" Author: Steven Perng; sperng@cisco.com. Abstract; This assessment of the cleanliness of the area beneath a component uses an 8" * 9" * 0.093" test...