Circuits Assembly articles from January 2002

Circuits Assembly archives from January 2002

Safety in numbers.(Editorial)(November Productronica show, Munich, Germany)(Editorial)
January 1, 2002... Alliance was the word du jour at the November Productronica show in Munich. Electronics manufacturing services (EMS) providers and equipment suppliers alike were teaming up with their own kind to best weather the economic storm we're in at the...

Web sites worth mentioning.(NETgain: the latest the Internet has to offer)
January 1, 2002... www.mfgmkt.com/welcome.html The Manufacturing Market Insider site links you to top contract electronics manufacturers and consulting and market research services. www.isssp.org Individual memberships to the International Society of Six...

This month's industry resources.(NETgain: the latest the Internet has to offer)
January 1, 2002... www.cpmt.org IEEE Components, Packaging, and Manufacturing Technology Society site offers transaction papers, conference proceedings, student resumes and job postings. www.ipc.org/html/fstraining.htm IPC link Offers e list of classes for...

Surveys and guides.(NETgain: the latest the Internet has to offer)
January 1, 2002... http://dmxweb.mfi.com/dmx/cabg_j/ The Circuits Assembly Buyers' Guide provides company services and contact information in 35 product categories. http://img.cmpnet.com/assembly/pdf/ surveys/pandp2001.pdf Circuits Assembly's 2001 Pick and...

Assembleon and Cookson announce alliance.(Industry News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Assembleon (Alpharetta, GA) and Cookson Electronics' Speedline Technologies (Franklin, MA) have joined forces to provide surface-mount technology manufacturers with equipment and integrated line solutions. The companies are announcing a...

Solectron announces agreement with Microsoft.(Industry News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Top electronics manufacturing services (EMS) provider Solectron Corp. (Milpitas, CA) announced recently that its Global Services business unit will provide after-sales service and support for the Microsoft Xbox[TM] video game console in North...

DuPont and Cambridge sign agreement.(Industry News)(DuPont Displays, Cambridge Display Technology )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... DuPont Displays (Wilmington, DE), a flat panel display developer, and Cambridge Display Technology (CDT, Cambridge, United Kingdom), a developer of polymer technology, have announced a strategic agreement to advance light emitting polymer (LEP)...

API taps component replacement market.(Industry News)(API Electronics)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... API Electronics (Hauppauge, NY), a provider of custom replacement parts, is finding a lucrative future in the past by providing the U.S. military with products almost impossible to find--obsolete electronic components for everything from M1...

Speedline announces distribution partner.(Industry News)(Speedline Technologies, Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Speedline Technologies, Inc. (Dreieich, Germany), a supplier of PCB assembly and semiconductor packaging equipment, has announced that GPS Technologies GmbH (New Isenburg, Germany) has been selected as Speedline's distributor for the German and...

Brady reports first quarter earnings.(Industry News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Brady Corp. (Milwaukee, WI), a manufacturer of identification and materials solutions, recently reported sales and earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2002, ending October 31, 2001. Sales for the quarter were $130 million, compared to...

PCB West 2002 issues call for papers.(Industry News)
January 1, 2002... CMP Media LLC (Atlanta, GA) has issued a call for papers for the eleventh annual PCB Design Conference West 2002, to be held March 18-22 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, in Santa Clara, CA. The conference will focus on information,...

Harting, Inc.(People)(Richard Mack named general manager of Electronic Business unit)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Richard Mack (pictured left) has been named general manager of Harting, Inc.'s (Elgin, IL) Electronic Business unit. He will assume profitability and operational responsibility for North American sales, marketing and distribution segments of...

GSI Lumonics, Inc.(People)(Alfonso DaSilva named vice president of worldwide service and support)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... GSI Lumonics, Inc. (Wilmington, MA) has appointed Alfonso DaSilva as the company's vice president of worldwide service and support. He will provide the company's customers with accessible and timely support and also plans to provide service via...

Elcoteq Network Corp.(People)(Lasse Kurkilahti named president)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Elcoteq Network Corp.'s (Espoo, Finland) board of directors has appointed Lasse Kurkilahti as the new president and chief executive officer of the company. Kurkilahti has previously held the positions of managing director and chief executive...

IMAPS.(People)(names Peter Barnwell president-elect)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... IMAPS (Washington, D.C.) has selected Dr. Peter Barnwell (pictured right) as president-elect of the IMAPS Executive Council for 2002. Barnwell is director, advanced technologies for Heraeus, Inc. (Conshohocken, PA), circuit materials division....

Motorola, Inc.(People)(Kevin Loosemore named president of Europe, Middle East, Africa)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Motorola, Inc. (Schaumburg, IL) has named Kevin Loosemore president of Europe, Middle East and Africa, replacing Fred Kuznik, who retired in June 2001.

Technical conference tackles industry issues.(APEX 2002 News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The APEX 2002 technical conference program is focused on the needs of engineers and managers in the electronics assembly industry and offers comprehensive information concerning all areas of the electronics assembly process. The main...

New courses offer variety.(APEX 2002 News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The IPC has announced a total of 64 professional development courses, including three special sessions on Saturday, January 19, 16 full-day courses on January 20 and 45 half-day courses taking place on January 20 and 21. According to...

CA and TFI partner to present awards.(APEX 2002 News)(Circuits Assembly magazine, Technology Forecasters Inc. merge awards programs)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The 2002 Service Excellence Awards for Electronics Assembly Equipment and Software Suppliers and the awards for Electronics Manufacturing Services Providers have now been combined into one awards program. Awards will be presented to winners...

Shirley, Mehlman to deliver keynote address.(APEX 2002 News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... The IPC (Northbrook, IL) has announced that Donna Shirley, former manager of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Mars Exploration Program, and Bruce Mehlman, U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary for Technology Policy,...

APEX and Expo may be co-located.(APEX 2002 News)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... In a recent conference call, IPC officials stated that the committees responsible for planning APEX and IPC Printed Circuits Expo have jointly asked the trade group to investigate co-locating the shows by 2005. The combined size of the two...

Parts shortages to come.(Market Watch)
January 1, 2002... Despite attempts to harmoniously work through the excess inventory that has plagued the market for a year, hostility continues to brew in the supply chain. Industry executives say original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are pitting everyone...

MEMS enter rapid growth phase.(Market Watch)
January 1, 2002... Microelectromechanicalsystems (MEMS) promise to revolutionize a multitude of product categories by uniting silicon-based microelectronics and micromachining technology, making possible the production of the complete system-on-a-chip. MEMS...

October book-to-bill.(Market Watch)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
January 1, 2002... October Book-to-Bill Sales Billed: Orders Booked: (percentage change) (percentage change) Aug. Sept Oct. Aug. Sept Oct. -36.5% -41.6% -47.5% -48.1% -56.1% -51.8%...

Solectron and NEC announce partnership plans.(Asia Watch)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Solectron Corp. (Milpitas, CA), a provider of global manufacturing and supply-chain management services, and NEC Corp. (Tokyo, Japan), a provider of development and manufacturing services, plan to enter an agreement under which NEC will...

Tecnomatix enters agreement with NMTronics.(Asia Watch)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Tecnomatix Technologies, Ltd. (Herzeliya, Israel), a provider of manufacturing process management (MPM) software solutions, announced that NMTronics India Pvt. Ltd. (Delhi, India), a subsidiary of Nichimen Corp. (Osaka, Japan), will resell...

Siix opens four new facilities.(Asia Watch)(in Thailand, Slovak Republic and two in China will assemble printed circuit boards)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Siix Corp. (Osaka, Japan), an electronics manufacturing services (EMS) provider to the consumer and industrial electronics and auto industries, has announced the opening of three new plants in Asia and one in Europe, These new plants n...

Elcoteq builds new plant in Beijing.(Asia Watch)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Elcoteq (Espoo, Finland) was announced that it will build a new manufacturing plant in China's capital city, Beijing. The plant will be located at the Xingwang industrial park, which, headed by Nokia (Espoo, Finland), is emerging as a large...

Flextronics to acquire stake in Orbiant.(Asia Watch)(Flextronics intends to expand Orbiant's current scope of operations by offering services to additional telecom operators and corporate customers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Flextronics (Singapore) will acquire 91 percent of The Orbiant Group (Sweden), a provider of services focusing on the design, operation, maintenance and management of telecommunications equipment and networks, from Telia (Sweden), a...

Defense electronics boosts advanced packaging: recent events have helped to increase the need for advanced packaging technology in military applications.(On the Forefront)
January 1, 2002... The Government Electronics and Information Technology Association (GEIA, Arlington, VA) estimates that the electronics content of the 2002 fiscal year U.S. defense budget will be $63.1 billion. While the use of advanced electronic systems in...

Remember Baby Bear! Just like Baby Bear's porridge from the classic tale, water used in the cleaning process should be neither too hot nor too cold.(Ask Les)
January 1, 2002... Q: I'm using a no-clean flux during wave soldering. I'm finding "flux stain" or "wet stain" on the boards--can such stains affect board quality? Since the flux is no clean, do the boards need to be cleaned? A: When using a no-clean flux,...

Placement capability: an update of IPC's Surface-Mount Equipment Characterization standard sets the record straight.(Standard Features)
January 1, 2002... Looking back at articles published in Circuits Assembly over the last couple of years, one in particular captured my attention and prompted me to give readers an update on a currently developing standard: IPC-9850, Surface-Mount Equipment...

Managing CSP underfill processes: the inherent slowness of underfill flowout can be masked to improve throughput.(Dispensing)
January 1, 2002... In handheld products like cell phones, camcorders, personal digital assistants (PDAs), global positioning system (GPS) units and mobile computers, chip-scale packages (CSPs) enable density and functionality in a small package. A CSP is...

Going mainstream with chip-on-board: successfully merging COB with surface mount requires controlling a new set of complex variables related to the wire bonding process.(Components)
January 1, 2002... Chip-on-board (COB) and integrated circuit (IC) packaging share a common heritage with roots entrenched deeply in the wire bonding process. Thereafter, any similarities end; the great divide between them is the subsequent steps and processes....

Improving the reflow process with SPC: a successful SPC program can identify potential problems in the reflow process, thereby reducing rework costs.(Soldering)
January 1, 2002... Statistical process control (SPC) is not a difficult concept. It simply states that every measurable phenomenon has a statistical distribution, so process performance can be monitored. However, many managers and engineers have experienced the...

0201s: an inspection nightmare? Both optical and x-ray inspection should be used to reduce scrap and rework in assembling 0201s.(Component Inspection)
January 1, 2002... In a world of cell phones, pagers and laptops, much discussion has centered on the challenges of assembly, as board densities increase and components become ever smaller. The growing popularity of area array devices such as ball grid arrays...

CCGA design variables and their effects on reliability: using full array, thin ceramic substrates and lidless packages can improve the thermal cycle fatigue life of CCGAs.(Components)
January 1, 2002... The ceramic column grid array (CCGA) package is used today in numerous applications because of its many advantages: high interconnection density; compatibility with standard surface-mount assembly techniques; excellent thermal and electrical...

2002 salary survey questionnaire.(Salary Survey)
January 1, 2002... Are you being paid enough, based on your knowledge and experience? Are your benefits average, above average or below average? You can find out by participating in Circuits Assembly's 2002 Salary Survey. By answering the survey questions, you'll...

Solutions in solder paste: new stencil developments make the BGA rework process more reliable.(Rework and Repair Depot)
January 1, 2002... No matter how much we attempt to streamline and automate the process, ball grid array (BGA) rework has been, and will likely always be, a mixture of art and science. The need for a predictable, repeatable process continually drives us to...

Swabbing it clean: how clean are your cleaning materials?(Process Doctor)
January 1, 2002... Recently, an instrument manufacturer found corrosion on the metal interconnects at the edges of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) after undergoing environmental testing. He wanted to know where the corrosive residues originated--inside or outside...

Manual Flash programmer first to offer network control.(Tech Watch)
January 1, 2002... A persistent challenge for electronics manufacturers is how to manage production when the firmware is always changing, In the race for product features, design engineers make frequent changes to the product firmware, and, to cut costs,...

Stereo-zoom microscope.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The Alpha stereo-zoom range microscope features a large, expanded pupil eyepiece that generates high-resolution images. The 38-mm viewing distance is as much as four times greater than that of traditional microscopes. The microscope also...

Wrist straps.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... Jewel[TM] line wrist straps provide a reliable path-to-ground with high-visibility colors. The straps feature a lifetime warranty on the wristband stud and on coil cord strain reliefs; a patented contoured banana plug spring that resists...

X-ray inspection system.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The FOX-160.25., a nanofocus x ray inspection system, provides total magnification up to 7,200x (2,400x geometric magnification) and features recognition of 500 nm (0.5 microns). The system can be used by PCB and semiconductor manufacturers to...

Aqueous cleaning system.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The CBW-218 OmniJet aqueous circuit board cleaner features all stainless steel construction, sustained high solution heat capability and a high-volume EDM spray bar, with greater GPM concentration per square inch, to clean densely configured...

In-line marking machine.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The Laser Marking Machine is fully enclosed and is equipped with a 10W C[O.sub.2] air-cooled laser and an industrial personal computer with Windows[TM] software. The system provides permanent laser-etched marking of almost any item, from PCBs...

Custom trays.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... Custom thermoformed trays can be designed and manufactured in one week or less. The trays are manufactured with intricate pocket detail. Utilizing an exclusive nitro tooling process, near injection-molded tolerances are provided. Closer...

Lead-free solder paste.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... LF217 lead-free solder paste alloy, Sn95.5/Ag4.0/Cu0.5, is designed as an alternative for tin/lead alloys in electronics assembly operations. The paste is specifically formulated to provide activity levels similar to tin/lead formulations. The...

Plastic packages.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... Open Cavity Plastic IC Packages eliminate substitute ceramic packages for prototype packaging. Prototypes can now be identical to the production part, both mechanically and electrically, accelerating the design evaluation process and improving...

Rework system.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The APR 5000 array package rework system offers repeatability, accuracy and thermal control needed for the safe and effective rework of current BGA, CSP, LGA, micro SMD, MLF and bumped chip component packages. Capable of handling boards up to...

Potting compound.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... New UV curing potting compounds, 960A/B and 961A/B, provide instant ultraviolet (UV) curing and can cure at room temperature to depths of 25.4 mm, or more, and in areas under components where the light does not reach. The products are designed...

Screen printing system.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... ProFlow[R] features a new dual chamber transfer head aimed at processes requiring high paste or adhesive deposition volume. Wiper options and an enhanced "paste low" sensor have also been added. The dual chamber transfer head optimizes the...

Actuators.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The Linear Motor Actuator (LMA) series actuators harness the speed, acceleration and accuracy capability of a linear motor and can be used with pick-and-place machines, gantry axes, shuttle stages, assembly machines or as a general-purpose...

Component placers.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The IR 500A and PL 500A offer a flexible solution for current ball grid array (BGA)/surface-mount device (SMD) rework demands. Even the most challenging devices can be soldered and de-soldered. With the PL 500A placer unit, precise alignment...

Stencil roll.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... Easy Rolls are made from high strength materials that are solvent resistant and highly absorbent. The product also features low lint levels and is available for both vacuum and non-vacuum machines. Properties are maintained even when wet. Most...

Counting scales.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... County counters and scales are microcomputer-based instruments that count taped radial, axial and surface-mount components (with added options). The County-S is a motorized counter for taped surface-mount components and features motion control,...

Automated inspection system.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The ESV-304 desktop automated optical inspection (AOI) system features two color CCD cameras, with different resolutions, to inspect various components on a board. The system also offers two programming methods: mouse-click or part library. The...

Flip chip fluxes.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... PK Series epoxy flip chip fluxes, designed specifically for the flip chip soldering process, deliver powerful, metal surface oxide cleaning activity and promote improved solderability during reflow. This flux then cures as an epoxy after...

Digital camera.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The FireView[TM]-1 Monochrome IEEE 1394 digital camera features low noise, high quality 1/3-in. CCD with 640 x 480 square pixel resolution, and high definition live video at 30 fps. The 1394 interface allows multiple cameras to be daisy-chained...

Depaneler.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The MINI-FINISH depaneler quickly and cleanly finishes the edges of boards in one operation. The machine will finish two sides (four edges) of a board in one pass and is also portable. Radoll Designs, Inc., Thomasville, GA Booth #727...

Forced convection oven.(APEX Product Spotlight)
January 1, 2002... The Phoenix series of ovens is used for industrial applications such as aging, curing, drying and testing. The redesign process of the oven line has focused on improved ergonomics, ease of operation, a shortened delivery time from order...