Circuits Assembly articles from November 2004

Circuits Assembly archives from November 2004

An open letter to the president.(Caveat Lector)
November 1, 2004... Dear Mr. President: Congratulations on a tough win. I'm sure you were worried there for awhile, what with the never-ending questions about the economy and job losses, Iraq, your military service, terrorism, oil and energy prices, tumult on...

Legacy Electronics (legacyelectronics.com) named Apera Technologies (aperatech.com) as sales agent in Canada.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Legacy Electronics (legacyelectronics.com) named Apera Technologies (aperatech.com) as sales agent in Canada, responsible for its line of component products, including PCB subassemblies and DDR memory modules. Also, Ewing-Foley Inc....

AIM (aimsolder.com).(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... AIM (aimsolder.com) appointed Cluff and Associates as rep for solders and assembly materials in Colorado.

Asymtek (asymtek.com) added four teams of distributors to represent its line of automated fluid dispensing systems in China.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Asymtek (asymtek.com) added four teams of distributors to represent its line of automated fluid dispensing systems in China: D-Tek, headquartered in Taiwan, with offices in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Suzhou and Dongguan, China; Leeport, based in Hong...

SMT Resource Group (smtresource.com) and Encore Capital Leasing rolled out a leasing program for buyers of assembly equipment.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... SMT Resource Group (smtresource.com) and Encore Capital Leasing rolled out a leasing program for buyers of assembly equipment. The companies provide 100% financing and terms ranging from 12 to 84 months. SMT Resource Group sells and supports...

Gopel Electronic (goepel.com) has entered a strategic alliance under which Dansk System Elektronik (dse.dk) will offer design for test.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Gopel Electronic (geopel.com) has entered a strategic alliance under which Dansk System Elektronik (dse.dk) will offer design for test, test program generation development and turnkey solutions based on open integration standards in...

DEK (dek.com) has joined eight other companies in Dow Corning's (dowcorning.com) External Equipment Provider Alliance.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... DEK (dek.com) has joined eight other companies in Dow Corning's (dowcorning.com) External Equipment Provider Alliance. Dow Corning is streamlining integration of materials and equipment used in assembly and packaging. DEK was chosen for its...

Tin men: why Pb-free isn't free.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... Boston -- The combination of low supplies and raging demand is pushing tin prices to record highs. After lagging for years at an average of $4,000 or so per tonne, a year ago prices pushed past $5,000 and in May peaked above $10,000 before...

Molex Inc. (molex.com) acquired Incep Technologies Inc. (incep.com), which provides system-level approaches for power delivery, high-density packaging and thermal management.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Molex Inc. (molex.com) acquired Incep Technologies Inc. (incep.com), which provides system-level approaches for power delivery, high-density packaging and thermal management. The companies have partnered for past two years on power delivery for...

Nortek Automation (nortekautomation.com) launched a turnkey packaging line for electronics manufacturing.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Nortek Automation (nortekautomation.com) launched a turnkey packaging line for electronics manufacturing. The new line is geared for packaging digital media products such as secure digital, compact flash, multimedia cards, USB flash drive, DDR...

Newly founded Avo Photonics (avophotonics.com), specializing in RF and optical packaging, now offers design and manufacturing solutions for communications, military/aerospace and medical/industrial.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Newly founded Avo Photonics (avophotonics.com), specializing in RF and optical packaging, now offers design and manufacturing solutions for communications, military/aerospace and medical/industrial. A suite of modeling tools (RF, optical,...

Celestica Inc. (celestica.com) sold its Power Systems business to C&D Technologies (cdtechno.com) for $52.8 million in cash.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Celestica Inc. (celestica.com) sold its Power Systems business to C&D Technologies (cdtechno.com) for $52.8 million in cash. Celestica will continue to build certain power products for C&D for the next three years.

Dow Corning (dowcorning.com/electronics) has signed a joint development contract with Scotland's INVINT Ltd (invint.com), to develop a variety of new interconnect technologies.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... Dow Corning (dowcorning.com/electronics) has signed a joint development contract with Scotland's INVINT Ltd (invint.com), to develop a variety of new interconnect technologies. Under the contract, INVINT, which develops conductive polymer...

With the cost of a key constituent of fluxes rising sharply, Cookson Electronics Assembly Materials (alphametals.com) will hike prices for IPA-based fluxes.(In Brief)
November 1, 2004... With the cost of a key constituent of fluxes rising sharply, Cookson Electronics Assembly Materials (alphametals.com) will hike prices for IPA-based fluxes. Effective in October, Cookson raised IPA flux prices 70 cents per gallon, in response...

Seminar poll shows slow progress on Pb-free conversion.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... Boston -- A poll of more than 50 attendees of recent workshops on the business implications of lead-free manufacturing revealed just 18% of respondents actively working on alternatives to lead. [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] The vast...

Welcome back.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... Attendance was up--and moods were upbeat--at the Assembly Technology Expo in late September. See full story at circuitsassembly.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

BTU chief executive resigns, no reason given.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... North Billerica, MA -- Mark Rosenzweig, the top executive at BTU International stepped down Oct. 1, the company said, providing no rationale. Rosenzweig, president and chief executive, also resigned from BTU's board. BTU chairman Paul van...

John Waryold.(People)
November 1, 2004... John Waryold, a 44-year veteran of electronics manufacturing, has retired as VP and general manager at HumiSeal. He will continue to advise the company in a lesser role. Waryold was chairman of the task group responsible for most conformal...

Benchmark Electronics has split its chief executive and chairman roles.(People)
November 1, 2004... Benchmark Electronics has split its chief executive and chairman roles. President and COO Cary Fu will is now also chief executive. The current chairman and CEO, Donald E. Nigbor, remains chairman. CFO and treasurer Gayla J. Delly is now also...

Mike Tam.(People)
November 1, 2004... Tyco Electronics Automation Group promoted Mike Tam to marketing manager, Asia/Pacific. He was global application tooling division marketing manager. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Preco Electronics named Thomas Goehl test engineer manager.(People)
November 1, 2004... Preco Electronics named Thomas Goehl test engineer manager. He was in test engineering management at Glenayre Electronics. Also, Preco manager of quality systems Jason Janssen has been awarded a Six Sigma Black Belt.

Steve Shermer.(People)
November 1, 2004... Datacon named Steve Shermer product manager, North America, responsible for customer requirements, product positioning and technical sales support. Shermer was product development director for Amkor's Advanced Product Development Group. ...

Ron Huston.(People)
November 1, 2004... Advanced Circuits CEO Ron Huston was recognized by Fortune Small Business as one of the nation's best bosses for his innovative reward-based management practices. Six executives were picked from 210 nominees that excelled in employee tenure,...

Agere's 'Nickel' defense.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... Allentown, PA -- Agere Systems (agere.com) has discovered a mix of ingredients said to eliminate lead from component packages. The solution calls for adding a layer of nickel to tin over copper packaging. [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]...

Motorola qualifies Henkel Pb-free paste.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... Industry, CA -- Following three years of intensive evaluation Motorola has qualified a lead-free solder paste from Henkel Electronics. "I think the great advantage of this material is that it provides a very wide process window, which gives us...

Solectron, Plexus find extra capacity.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... San Jose -- Solectron Corp. (solectron.com) expects to take fiscal fourth-quarter restructuring charges of up to $25 million due to company shutdowns in Europe and North America. The company will also layoff 500 employees, the firm said in a...

Speedline awarded paste detection patent.(Industry NEWS)
November 1, 2004... Franklin, MA -- Speedline Technologies (speedlinetech.com) has been awarded U.S. patent no. 6,738,505 for a texture-based method of analyzing potential bridge defects on circuit boards during post-print inspection. The patent describes the...

A/V humming.(Market WATCH)
November 1, 2004... [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] Trends in the U.S. electronics equipment market (shipments only) % Change June July Aug. * YTD ...

Sept. manufacturing slightly slower.(Market WATCH)
November 1, 2004... Tempe, AZ -- The rate of growth in the manufacturing sector ticked down in September as customers shed inventories ahead of the holiday buying season. New orders slipped, but production increased as manufacturer inventory levels rose. ...

Industry market snapshot.(Market WATCH)
November 1, 2004... Book-to-bills of various components/equipment. April May June July Semiconductor equipment (1) 1.10 1.07 1.04 1.0 Semiconductors (2) 36.9% 40.3% 1.0% 1.1% ...

Report: Chinese EMS, ODM to surge.(Market WATCH)
November 1, 2004... El Segundo, CA -- Contract electronics manufacturing and ODM work will surge in China in the coming years, according to new research conducted by iSuppli Corp. Compounded annual growth will top 21% between 2003 and 2008 for each of the two...

Smart cars ahead?(Market WATCH)
November 1, 2004... The Intelligent Vehicle Highway Safety Act of 2004, a recently proposed law introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, could help stimulate adoption of intelligent vehicle technology sensing and control systems in U.S.-sold vehicles, says...

Is SiP haunted by the MCM ghost? Thanks to cellphones, stacked-die packages are ringing up gains.(On the Forefront)
November 1, 2004... Remember Mosaic Systems? How about Midway, Polylithics, Advanced Packaging Systems, UniStructure, Alcoa's thin film production line, ISA, Polycon, Texas Instruments' multichip module foundry, nChip or MicroModule Systems? These companies or...

Hisco: inventory hawks.(Talking Heads)
November 1, 2004... His Company (Hisco) is a distributor of electronics materials (adhesive, solder, flux and tape, to name a few). Founded in 1970 and privately held, Hisco (hiscoinc.com) also provides custom fabrication, warehousing and inventory management. ...

Could technology win World War III? Tomorrow's battlefields could resemble TV shows like BattleBots.(Emerging Technology)
November 1, 2004... Some political analysts are telling us that we are in the midst of World War III, the war on terror. True, America has been under siege for decades, but the events of Sept. 11, 2001, removed all doubt. Homeland defense and military actions on...

Getting in tune: your marketing goal: a quality value proposition aligned with the right target market.(Focus on Business)
November 1, 2004... The EMS market is seeing signs of recovery; one visible indicator is that its players are starting to spend money on marketing. But the simple act of ramping up marketing does not guarantee success. Talk to people engaged in selling EMS...

A supply-chain engineering solution: how "clusters" of linked world-class suppliers can create products in ways vertically integrated EMS firms cannot.(Virtual Manufacturing)
November 1, 2004... OEMs face market forces that require continually refreshed product lines, reduced research and development costs, reduced time-to-volume cycles and optimized supply chains to reduce the costs of acquisition and product support. Many OEMs have...

Decrease your BGA rework cycle time.(Assembly Insider: Special Advertising Section)(Advertisement)
November 1, 2004... BEST Your BEST choice in Solder Rework/Repair, Solder Training and Soldering Tools www.solder.net/stencilquik.asp StencilQuik[TM] patent pending BEST Inc. Call Today 847.797.9250

Hot bar soldering for flex circuits.(Assembly Insider: Special Advertising Section)(Advertisement)
November 1, 2004... Fancort Industries introduces micro-processor-controlled equipment that produces uniform and precise temperature distribution, fast heating and cool-down. The Pulse Heat Bonder and Soldering Systems offer a wide range of programmable profiles...

COMBICON THR terminal blocks.(Assembly Insider: Special Advertising Section)(Advertisement)
November 1, 2004... Want through-hole stability and reduced PCB board assembly costs? Phoenix Contact's COMBICON THR (Through Hole Reflow) terminal blocks and headers are engineered to withstand the heat of the SMT soldering process, eliminating the need for...

Pb-free reflow and rework: key findings of NEMI experiments on process differences--and changes required--for lead-free reflow and rework.(Cover Story)
November 1, 2004... How many heat cycles does an assembly see during lead-free primary attach and rework? What new temperature windows are observed in lead-free reflow and rework processes? What effect does elevated temperature have on components and boards? How...

Large format rework for eutectic and lead-free applications: how the combination of low-mass IR, stationary board fixturing and gantry reflow can eliminate warping.(Large Format Rework)
November 1, 2004... Boards range from less than 1 i[n.sup.2] to over 2 f[t.sup.2] in size and come populated with sensitive area-array packages and devices that also span a wide size range. When comparing lead-free solders and their relatively high melting...

Lead-free first-article inspection: typical process concerns associated with LF alloys for first-article OI and line qualification.(Optical Inspection)
November 1, 2004... Process, process, process: these words are at the forefront of lead-free implementation. Smaller process windows brought on by LF alloys put greater demands on soldering equipment and first-article inspection equipment and procedures. And...

Manufacturing effects on data retention of nonvolatile memory devices; can heat from wave or reflow soldering cause premature data loss?(Data Reliability)
November 1, 2004... Charge is stored on floating gates, and heat coupled with a loss of charge can cause a "bit-flip." Is this a significant problem? [TEXT NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] Many automotive electronics have flash-based microcontrollers in mission...

Profiling software.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Upgraded software for SlimKIC 2000 oven includes a temperature vs. time feature for profiling a variety of processes. Runs profiles and experiments for practically any thermal process. Measures temperatures from -150[degrees] to 1050[degrees]F....

Double-coated bonding adhesives.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... The 3189 and 3474 series of double-coated adhesive tapes bond to a variety of substrates, notably ether foam. Designed to bond dissimilar materials, applications include cushioning, acoustical absorption, vibration damping, equipment and...

Cleanroom cabinets.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Series 91SC storage cabinets are constructed with 16-gauge, cold-rolled steel and finished with baked enamel. Reportedly will not crack or harbor contamination. Come with five solid shelves in four standard sizes; custom sizes available. ...

Multi-job placement.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Autoplacer pick-and-place machine has over 300 feeders, to maximize flexibility and reduce or eliminate changeover time. Multiple jobs can be run without the need to stop to change feeders during production. Reportedly places components from...

Squeegee holder.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Permalex low-profile holder reportedly reduces paste sticking. Features enhanced geometry and reduced surface area for paste to stick during the printing. Design incorporates a reference point to ensure replacement blades are accurately aligned...

SMT placement.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... MX-Series SMT assembly systems for medium- to high-volume operations feature real-time vacuum monitoring. Each feeder stores part number, lot code and feeder pitch. Four-stage transport system results in faster processing of 8 X 12" boards;...

Thin wafer backgrinding.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Wafer Support System for semiconductor wafer backgrinding can produce wafers as thin as 20 [micro]m. Reportedly works with conventional grinders to produce thinner wafers at faster speeds and better yields. Includes both equipment and...

X-ray inspection.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... XiDAT XD7500 PCBA x-ray inspection system provides oblique angle views of up to 70[degrees] for positions 360[degrees] around the 18 X 16" inspection area. Inspects BGA and CSP devices. Filament-free, submicron x-ray tube said to provide...

Board loader.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... EVP-750 bare-board loader is designed for stacks of up to 170 PCBs, and passes boards from the line loader. Precision extruded aluminum framing with painted vanity panels; features include PLC, open architecture (front loading), load or...

All fluid' needles.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Disposable dispensing needles come in a range of standard and custom designs for dispensing virtually any type of fluid and dot size. Incorporate a helical thread that locks into a syringe and has a positive stop inside [+ or -]0.025" accuracy...

Backside die marking.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... WaferMark CSP200 marking system uses lasers to mark orientation and traceability information on each die on silicon wafers up to 200 mm. Automated, capable of high throughput and marks on a variety of wafer surface types. Marks dice as small as...

BGA bumping flux.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... WS-364 high viscosity, water-soluble flux is for BGA bumping and board-level attachment. Is said to be easy to clean using room-temperature water. Can be applied by pin-transfer or stencil printing, and has a wide process window. Halide-free,...

Two-component epoxy.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... EP34AN room-temperature curing epoxy adhesive/sealant features a thermal conductivity of 22-24 BTU/in/f[t.sup.2]/hr/[degrees]F. Physical properties are maintained even after long exposure to temperatures of 400[degrees]-450[degrees]F. Is...

High-density connectors.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... The high-density Power Mod connector family offers 3 to 30 circuits for straight PCB, right angle PCB, panel or cable mountings. Rated for 30 amps, features mechanical polarized UL94V-O housings for proper circuit mating. Up to four sequential...

Pb-free paste.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... GTS series of lead-free solder paste with-stands preheat temperature of up to 200[degrees]C for 120 sec. Reportedly does not require refrigeration for storage and transport, reducing handling care and cost. Soldercoat Co. Ltd,...

Wafer bump reflow.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Pyramax 98 solder reflow oven comes with an integrated flux coater and wafer handler for wafer bump reflow. Handles 200- or 300-mm wafers, and comes with an integrated robotic wafer handler and automated unloading station. Features forced...

Automatic printer.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... AuL2220 stand-alone, fully automatic printer with auto-unload is said to cut substrate handling for high-volume, fine-pitch production. May also eliminate bare-board and magazine loaders. Permits auto-transport to pick-and-place station. Can be...

Test floor monitor.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... TestScape Web-based dashboard tool provides real-time view of test-floor activity. Provides reporting and analysis of test floor performance based on monitoring and statistical data. Collects data from multiple ATE systems equipped with...

Low profile conveyors.(Product SPOTLIGHT)
November 1, 2004... Steel conveyors are low profile, and come in standard widths of 2" to 24" and lengths up to 144'. Come in standard, cleated, magnetic and angled frame formats, with end and center drives, and with or without adjustable guides and side rails....

Good bonds take time: inadequate reflow profiles cause weak joints and flex residues.(Process Doctor)
November 1, 2004... Even under normal thermal profiling, certain large-mass connectors require additional heat and time above liquidous. In this case study, we investigate whether residues had any effect on poor soldering performance. Using both ion chromatography...