Circuits Assembly articles from June 2006

Circuits Assembly archives from June 2006

Fired up over Nepcon China venue.(Caveat Lector)
June 1, 2006... In April, at least 52 people died and more than 160 others were injured after a fire broke out at a trade show for makers of household and consumer electronics in Meerut, India, some 50 miles north of New Delhi. A leading factor for the...

Christopher Associates.(In Brief)
June 1, 2006... Christopher Associates (christopherweb.com) will distribute Mason Electronics' electrical test products in North America. Mason (masone.com/english) supplies universal grid electrical test systems from its plant in Shenzhen and other Asian...

Lightspeed Manufacturing.(In Brief)
June 1, 2006... Lightspeed Manufacturing (lightspeedmfg.com) added a third SMT line to its EMS facility in Methuen, MA. The company recently began shipping Pb-free assemblies.

Tyco Electronics.(In Brief)
June 1, 2006... Tyco Electronics' Global Application Tooling Division (tooling.tycoelectronics.com) will provide sales and marketing for PCB depanelers from GAS Automation of Germany.

Speedline Technologies.(In Brief)
June 1, 2006... Speedline Technologies (speedlinetech.com) will implement the ServoJet spray flux system from New Plateau Technologies on certain wave soldering systems.

Hover-Davis.(In Brief)
June 1, 2006... Hover-Davis (hoverdavis.com) appointed Electri-Rep (electri-rep.com) as sales representative in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska.

Valor Computerized Systems.(People)
June 1, 2006... Valor Computerized Systems named Ong Kay Huat as president of its Valor Far East subsidiary. Ong was formerly VP of Universal Instruments, responsible for sales and support in Asia. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Agilent Technologies.(People)
June 1, 2006... Agilent Technologies named Keith Barnes president and CEO of its semiconductor test subsidiary, Verigy Pte. Ltd., superseding Jack Trautman, who served as interim president of the Semiconductor Test business, and who was named senior advisor.

DEK France.(People)
June 1, 2006... Pascal Puis was named DEK France operations manager. He joined the company in 1998, and was previously production manager for stencils. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Report: there's no 'we' in 'WEEE'.(Industry NEWS)
June 1, 2006... WASHINGTON, DC -- The U.S. Commercial Service, an arm of the U.S. Department of Commerce, has reportedly stated that companies are turning in competitors that have not yet registered for the European WEEE Directive. Although some nations, such...

Graphite circuitry: 'wave' of the future?(Industry NEWS)
June 1, 2006... ATLANTA -- A study of how electrons behave in circuitry made from ultrathin layers of graphite--known as grapheme--suggests the material could provide the foundation for a new generation of nanometer-scale devices that manipulate electrons as...

Korea drafts RoHS rules.(Industry NEWS)
June 1, 2006... SEOUL -- Korea in March submitted its version of the RoHS and End-of-Vehicle Life (ELV) laws to the World Trade Organization. Anything electrical or electronic (as well as parts) is covered, as are autos. While restricted materials have not...

Southern hospitality.(Industry NEWS)
June 1, 2006... Attendees at the Atlanta SMTA Expo in April visit EMA Design Automation, one of the more than 80 exhibiting companies. The event also included two keynote presentations, a 10th anniversary celebration and a charity raffle. [ILLUSTRATION...

Shop talk.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... Trends in the U.S. electronics equipment market (shipments only). % Change Jan. Feb. (r) March* YTD Computers and electronics products ...

Manufacturing activity up in April.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... TEMPE, AZ -- Economic activity in the manufacturing sector grew in April for the 35th consecutive month, while the overall economy grew for the 54th consecutive month, the Institute for Supply Management (ism.ws) reported. The PMI manufacturing...

Industry market snapshot.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... Book-to-bills of various components/equipment. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. March Semiconductor equipment (1) 0.93 0.93 0.97 1.01 1.04 Semiconductors (2) 7.2% 6.8% 7.0%...

ECA order index dipped in March.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... ARLINGTON, VA -- The monthly electronic component order index compiled by the Electronic Components, Assemblies & Materials Association (ec-central.org) took a slight dip in March after three months of steady upward movement. The 12-month...

IT spending indicators looking up.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... FRAMINGHAM, MA -- IT and business executives said IT spending would rise 7.5% in the next 12 months, IDC (idc.com) found in its monthly poll, taken in April. The research firm's own April 28 forecast for U.S. IT spending predicted 5.8%...

Global Q1 PC shipments up 13.1%.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... STAMFORD, CT -- Worldwide PC shipments totaled 57 million units in the first quarter, up 13.1% over a year ago, according to preliminary statistics by Gartner (gartner.com). U.S. PC shipments beat projections due to strong home desktop...

W. Europe not taking to handhelds.(Market WATCH)
June 1, 2006... LONDON -- First-quarter shipments of mobile devices grew 25% year-over-year in Western Europe, to 3.2 million units, said IDC (idc.com). Handhelds dropped 21% versus a year ago, while converged devices "disappointed" at 43% growth. The firm...

Managing the project: the Work Breakdown Structure is key to bringing it home on time and on budget.(Focus on Business)
June 1, 2006... Good project management helps to successfully manage a unique or one-off event that involves complexity, time or substantial resources. The key to success in project management is the Work Breakdown Structure. No matter what area or function of...

'Waging' war on pricing myths: models to understand the true cost of building product.(Global Sourcing)
June 1, 2006... Is it cheaper to build products headed for the North America market in China... or in North America? An audacious question, many would think, based on all we know (or think we know) about China's low labor cost structure. But it is one Charlie...

'A machine is not a process': it is the poor craftsman who blames his tools.(Screen Printing)
June 1, 2006... Over the past several months I have visited a number of customers. The primary purpose of my visits is to attempt to help them improve their solder paste printing process quality and cycle time performance. One thing I have observed during...

Apocalypse RoHS now! Our guru returns, with wisdom on environmental politics and conspiracies.(Better Manufacturing)
June 1, 2006... "It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine."--R.E.M. Ed.: It's the 11th Hour and counting to July 1, when the RoHS Directive goes into effect. Who better than our good friend and colleague, Dr. H. J. Zapfardt, to see us...

Producing RoHS-compliant assemblies at SMC: a case study of how one EMS company made the switch.(RoHS Transition)
June 1, 2006... Ed.: For the complete article please visit circuitsassembly.com/cms/content/view/3350/ Successful management of the RoHS-compliant initiative requires engineers from both the OEM and the EMS provider to work together to identify...

After the fire; Catastrophic loss and the value of good contingency planning: one EMS provider's story.
June 1, 2006... On Dec. 22, 2005, at 4:50 a.m., the phone rang. On the other end came one of the worst messages a manufacturing executive could receive: "The factory is burning." Two hours later, Fawn Electronics' facility in Elm City, North Carolina was...

Just for show: despite talk of crackdowns, the show floor reveals IP pilfering is alive and well.(Nepcon China Recap)
June 1, 2006... If you've never walked the Nepcon China trade show, here's what you have missed: * Boatloads of attendees. * Scores of vendors (some of whom actually paid for their booths). * The potential to buy watches, jewelry and other...

Reflow profiling of power PCBs: create a profile that takes thermal density variance into account.(Soldering Tips)
June 1, 2006... Ed.: For the complete article please visit circuits assembly.com/cms/content/view/3348/ Developing a reflow profile for high-power PCBs requires the same procedure as for other boards. The challenge in creating a proper thermal profile for...

Should pallets still be used in wave soldering? It is a reliable technique conducive to high volumes and short cycle times.(Wave Soldering)
June 1, 2006... Among the many reasons we are seeing increased use of pallets in wave soldering is miniaturization. While even more SMT is introduced into board designs, through-hole components remain situated in-between. For mixed technology boards, selective...

Using SPI to identify root causes: early inspection can resolve end-of-line defects tied to printing errors.(Test and Inspection)
June 1, 2006... Paste printing plays a key role in the quality of Pb-free manufacturing as the print process provides a vital foundation for the remainder of the SMT assembly process. To deal with post-reflow joint-related issues, it is crucial hat...

One month to go: are we ready? Key questions about true costs, reliability and enforcement remain unanswered as the July deadline approaches.(Countdown to Pb-Free)
June 1, 2006... Ed.: For the complete article please visit circuitsassembly.com/cms/content/view/3349/ The RoHS Directive goes into effect in the EU next month, and the big question is, Are we ready? Since January 2003, when the directive was passed, the...

Flux and ball placement platform.(Product PREVIEW)
June 1, 2006... With DirEKt ball placement, the inline Europa uses flux imaging to deposit flux precisely at each interconnect site. A Galaxy system then uses a fully enclosed ball transfer head to guide each solder ball to the surface of the stencil and seat...

No-flow underfill.(Product PREVIEW)
June 1, 2006... NF260 no-flow underfill enhances CSP reliability by addressing joint cracking due to brittle Pb-free alloys and reduced joint size due to miniaturization. Integrates with existing SMT processes; can be processed in typical Pb-free reflow...

Pb-free die attach adhesive.(Product PREVIEW)
June 1, 2006... Hysol QMI536NB can be used on all levels of a stacked die, enabling packaging specialists to qualify a single material. Nonconductive PTFE-filled paste exhibits low resin bleed and fast cure capability. Said to enhance reliability on solder...

Pb-free packaging materials.(Product PREVIEW)
June 1, 2006... TSF-6851 halide-free water soluble tacky soldering flux is an aggressive paste flux for an array of Pb-free interconnect applications such as flip-chip attach, sphere or ball attach, rework/repair of CSPs, BGAs, SMDs or high-temperature Pb-free...

Dual-lane dispenser.(Product PREVIEW)
June 1, 2006... Axiom X-1022 maximizes throughput during multi-pass underfill operations. Increases units per hour produced in high-volume applications such as flip-chip and CSP underfill. Parallel processing on two lanes offers continuous dispensing....

'Eyepieceless' microscope.(Product PREVIEW)
June 1, 2006... The Mantis microscope has no eyepiece, providing freedom of head movement, and permits the wearing of glasses or contact lenses. Features shadow-free LED cold illumination, both surface and substage, and a greater working distance for...

In case you missed it.(Technical Abstracts)
June 1, 2006... Materials "Low Outgassing Materials for Electro-Optic and Electronic Systems" Authors: Bill Riegler, Steve Bruner, Rob Thomaier, Katie Young; billr@nusil.com. Abstract: This paper explores the need for low outgassing, thermally...