Printed Circuit Design & Manufacture articles from October 2003

Printed Circuit Design & Manufacture archives from October 2003

Circuit-Wise omitted?(Letters: our readers respond)(Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 2003... I THINK THAT we were bigger (over $45 million) than Amp-Akzo in 1994 ("Partners Profit," August 2003). Today, it's hard to get true revenue numbers split from EMS companies. Thanks for your comments and coverage. Steve Mettler ...

The weakest link.(Letters: our readers respond)(Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 2003... REGARDING CURRENT HANDLING on inner traces ("Currents and Conductors," May 2003), while it is true that board material has a lower thermal resistivity than air, the heat from an innerlayer must still go through the outerlayer and finally into...

Don't forget the basics.(Letters: our readers respond)(Letter to the Editor)
October 1, 2003... I WAS PLEASED to read Peter Bigelow's column ("Embracing Those in Our Employ," August 2003). In my opinion, he is right: Sometimes the basics are forgotten. I would add that more stories of this nature would be encouraging to those who, like...

Manufacturing recovery continues.(Market Watch)
October 1, 2003... TEMPE, AZ -- U.S. manufacturing grew in August for the second straight month, further paving the way for a recovery, according to a monthly survey taken by the Institute for Supply Management (ism.ws). The August PMI, a measure of growth,...

Gartner ups 2003 IC growth to 11.2%.(Market Watch)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... STAMFORD, CT -- Following a healthy second quarter and cautious optimism over seasonal demand, the worldwide semiconductor market appears to be continuing its recovery, according to Gartner Inc. (gartner.com). The research firm forecasts...

Telematics: promise, but problems.(Market Watch)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... OYSTER BAY, NY -- Telematics OEMs must return to the drawing board and refocus on vehicle-specific services on order to overcome a current lull, says new research from ABI (alliedworld.com). Instead of cutting-edge vehicle-centric services,...

Industry market snapshot.(Market Watch)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... INDUSTRY MARKET SNAPSHOT Book-to-bills of various components/equipment. APRIL MAY JUNE JULY Semiconductor equipment (1) 0.90 0.90 0.93 0.97 Semiconductors (2) ...

Boardtalk: PCD&M readers give their news.(Around The World / Design)
October 1, 2003... "Going forward, what will the North American board shop specialize in?" We'll be pioneers of materials, driving tougher specifications and roadmaps. We will be recipe shops; [our] forte will be communicating with the customer. --Greg...

Mentor tool gets 'in sync'.(Around The World / Design)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... WILSONVILLE, OR -- Mentor Graphics (mentor.com) in August rolled out the latest version of its FPGA BoardLink tool, which automates the integration of FPGA and PCB design processes. The tool's automated synchronization updates the pin-out...

Data format 'Offspring' sprung.(Around The World / Design)(Offspring data transfer format being evaluated)
October 1, 2003... NORTHBROOK, IL -- A new format for the transfer of electronic data is undergoing final scrutiny and this time it just might gain long-awaited industry acceptance, says the organization behind it. Offspring, the byproduct of years of debate...

Mentor's Rhines says recovery underway.(Around The World / Design)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... WILSONVILLE, OR -- The chairman of Mentor Graphics (mentor.com) thinks a recovery is underway as orders at the EDA software supplier have picked up in three straight quarters. Wally Rhines, chairman and chief executive of Mentor, said in an...

Gold rush.(Gold Circuits Electronics Co. has moved some PCB production to Suzhou, China)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Gold Circuits Electronics Co. has moved its PCB production lines for four to eight layer boards to its plant in Suzhou, China. The plant has a capacity of 1.5 million [ft..sup.2] per month.

Closed doors.(Nippon Electric closes PCB plant in Shah Alam, Malaysia)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Citing low demand, Nippon Electric will shutter its PCB plant in Shah Alam, Malaysia, in October and layoff 700 workers. Nippon Electric is a JV between Nippon Steel and Chemical and Kyoden Group.

Moving day.(Actel moves to Mountain View, CA)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Programmable logic supplier Actel Corp. has relocated its worldwide headquarters from Sunnyvale, CA, to a larger, 157,000 [ft..sup.2] facility in nearby Mountain View.

'Not guilty'.(Electro Scientific Industries will defend patent suit)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... ESI will "vigorously defend" a patent suit brought by competitor GSI Lumonics. Both companies make laser-drilling equipment.

Calling Perry Mason.(investment firms investigated)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Massachusetts officials are threatening to sue several investment firms for reportedly inflating the prospects of DDi's stock. Lehman Brothers paid an $80 million fine in April for its role in five cases of alleged stock manipulation. It denies...

TTM in play.(files for 10 million share public offering)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... TTM Technologies has filed for a public offering of 10 million shares of common stock, worth roughly $100 million.

Adding at Insight.(high tech analytic tools added at Insight Analytical)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Insight Analytical (insightanalytical.com) has added optical profilometry, FTIR spectroscopy and ellipsometry tools to its analytical and chemical lab. The company performs surface and chemicals characterization, process/design verification and...

Snap shot.(Edos Holding has taken over Photochemie)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Edos Holding has taken over Photochemie, a Swiss PCB maker.

Gul takes wing.(Wuxi plant construction resumes)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Gul Technologies has resumed construction on a plant in Wuxi with a capacity of 1 million [ft..sup.2] per month. By 2004 75% of the company's PCB capacity will be in China.

Foiled again.(Kingboard Copper Foil is adding 200 tonnes per month capacity to its foil plant)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Kingboard Copper Foil is adding capacity of 200 tonnes per month to its foil plant.

Synertronix no more.(printed circuit board plant closes)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Ionics Inc. in August announced the closing of its PCB making unit Synertronix Inc. due to "continuing depressed" market conditions.

Name change.(Electronic Manufacturing Services has changed its name to Avatar Electronics)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Electronic Manufacturing Services has changed its name to Avatar Electronics. The firm is headquartered in Villalba, Puerto Rico.

Alloy verdict: 'no difference'.(Around The World / Manufacturing)(lead-free alloys perfom similarly)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... NORTHBROOK, IL -- Recent analysis of three lead-free alloys found no "statistically significant" difference in performance. The tin-silver-copper alloys underwent standard industry tests for melt characterization, wetting balance response and...

Sanmina-SCI goes green.(Around The World / Manufacturing)(to meet European environmental regulations)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... SAN JOSE -- Sanmina-SCI (sanmina.com) is implementing a RoHS (Reduction of Hazardous Substances) program in all its facilities. "We are actively working with our customers and suppliers to assure that they are in accordance with the...

C.A. Picard on the move.(Around The World / Manufacturing)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... COSTA MESA, CA -- C.A. Picard (capicard.com) will move production from its facility in California to its Michigan plant and upgrade its equipment there. All registration equipment and components currently manufactured at C.A. Picard Production...

Taconic takes La Verne laminates plant.(Running Product At Newly Acquired Plant)
October 1, 2003... LA VERNE, CA -- Taconic (taconicadd.com) in August began coating its proprietary line of prepregs at the former Synthane Taylor laminate facility, which the company acquired Aug. 25. The 90,000 [ft..sup.2] plant, which sits on a five-acre plot...

Kingboard offers $27m for Microline.(Merging Asian PCB Shops)(offer made for Suwa International outstanding shares)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... HONG KONG -- Kingboard Chemical Holdings (kingboard.com) has made a $26.9 million cash offer to buy all outstanding shares of Suwa International Holdings. Suwa is the owner of PCB maker Microline Circuit. The buyout would be financed...

Mild improvements.(Earning Reports)(electronic components industry)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... MILD IMPROVEMENTS Earnings Reports REVENUES (1) COMPANY Q2 2003 Q2 2002 Ansoft $10.7 $9.3 Camtek $6.4 $6.1 Coretec C$17.7 C$17.3 Ddi ...

Wise releases GerbTool update.(Around The World / Manufacturing)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... NEWBURG, OR -- Wise Software Solutions has released version 13 of the company's GerbTool CAM software. The latest version introduces fully automatic soldermask and paste optimization/generation features. The tool now supports an array of...

Events.(Happenings)
October 1, 2003... EVENTS OCTOBER 6-10 electronicAmericas Sao Paulo, Brazil. Contact: munichtradefairs.com 7-10 Adavanced Technology Workshop & Exhibition on Optoelectronics Device Packaging Bethlehem, PA. Contact...

DKN Research.(Faces)(Robert L. Turunen appointed vice president)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... DKN Research, an engineering and packaging R&D firm, named Robert L. Turunen vice president, responsible for R&D service, engineering support, consulting, market research and introducing technologies for North American companies. He has...

Park Electrochemical.(Faces)(Murray Stamer appointed chief financial officer and senior vice president)(Steve Schaefer appointed senior vice president, technology)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Park Electrochemical (parknelco.com) promoted Murray Stamer to chief financial officer and senior vice president. Stamer, who has been with Park since 1989, has been senior VP, finance and interim CFO since March 2001. He also was assistant...

Lenthor Engineering.(Faces)(John Rolle appointed director of quality)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Lenthor Engineering (lenthor.com) named John Rolle director of Quality, responsible for ISO certification and military qualification programs. He has 10 years of fabrication experience. Lenthor designs and manufactures flex and rigid-flex...

Merix Corp.(Faces)(Kevin McClelland appointed director of quickturn operations)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Merix Corp. (merix.com) named Kevin McClelland director of quickturn operations, a new position. McClelland has over 20 years experience in circuit board manufacturing with Multek and most recently as senior vice president of operations, West...

RD Chemical.(Faces)(Louis Quinones appointed sales and technical service representative)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... RD Chemical (rdchem.com) named Louis Quinones sales and technical service representative, responsible for southern California. He has extensive knowledge of PCB manufacturing and experience in process chemicals applications.

Spectra-Physics China.(Faces)(Dr. Baining Liu named operations director)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Spectra-Physics China (spectra-physics.com) named Dr. Baining Liu as operations director. Dr. Liu has been with Spectra since 1998.

Rogers Corp.(Faces)(Robert Wachob appointed chief executive to replace retiring Walter Boomer)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Rogers Corp. (rogerscorporation.com) promoted Robert Wachob to chief executive effective April 1, 2004. He succeeds Walter Boomer, who is retiring. Wachob has been Rogers' president and chief operating officer since April 25, 2002, and will...

Viking Test Services (vikingtest.com) sold a Microcraft Emma flying probe tester.(It's A Deal)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Viking Test Services (vikingtest.com) sold a Microcraft Emma flying probe tester to Paragon Circuits (paragoncircuits.com).

Adeon Technologies BV (adeon.nl) sold a Fujifilm Electronic Imaging Ltd.(It's A Deal)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2003... Adeon Technologies BV (adeon.nl) sold a Fujifilm Electronic Imaging Ltd. (ffei.co.uk) FineTrak FT300 series laser photoplotter to Cirtron PCB Services (cirtron.co.uk).

Valor Computerized Systems (valor.com has sold its Trilogy 5000 NPI engineering software to Nu Visions Manufacturing.(It's A Deal)
October 1, 2003... Valor Computerized Systems (valor.com has sold its Trilogy 5000 NPI engineering software to Nu Visions Manufacturing (nvems.com).The program validates incoming BOM and AVL files.

Short supply: most shops have lost technical muscle, a gap that the shrewd supplier will fill.(Power Selling)
October 1, 2003... FOR THOSE WHO sell equipment, services, film, chemistries, etc., this one's for you. It's no secret that the past few years have been very rough, not just for board shops but also the companies who sell to them. We all feel the squeeze....

How may I be of service? What 'service' means depends upon who is asked.(ROI)
October 1, 2003... SO WHY, EXACTLY, is it called the "service" industry anyway? No, I'm not talking about the EMS or IMS industries, but rather, what's traditionally considered the true service sectors; i.e., plumbers, electricians, airlines, financial services...

Does your design need HDI? HDI is more expensive process, but overall product cost can be lower thanks to fewer layers and smaller boards.(high density interconnect beneficial in some applications)
October 1, 2003... The drive to produce more handheld applications is well documented, but Mother Nature plays a big role in determining the other drivers. As chip signal rise times decrease due to smaller gate geometries, the resulting signals are more...

Decoupling strategies for PCBs: there's more to good decoupling than flooding your board with capacitors. The light caps and smart layout are essential.(Digital Design)(printed circuit board components and design)
October 1, 2003... It's no secret that most digital devices demand a high peak current as circuits switch immediately following a clock edge (FIGURE 1). For example, a 100 MHz device with an average current draw of 4 A may actually require 20 A of current during...

PCB directions: don't lose your way. Use these guidelines and stay on course.(No Myths Allowed)
October 1, 2003... IF WE ARE in Kansas and we want to drive to San Jose, the most important guideline is to head west on I-70. If we want to go to Austin, we head due south on I-35. When we start our trip, a map of the U.S. and a compass are the only navigational...

Via modeling for high-speed simulations, Part 2: a method for creating via models and integrating into a network topology for high-speed PCB simulations.(Interconnect Strategies)
October 1, 2003... Part 1 appeared in the September issue. It is available online at pcdandm.com. AT LOW FREQUENCIES and slow rise times, a via can have negligible impact (4) on PCB transmission lines; however, at high frequencies and fast rise times the...

Drivers and material sets: in the first of a regular column, we take a look at the embedded materials landscape.(Getting Embedded)(Column)
October 1, 2003... THIS IS THE first in a series of monthly columns on embedded passives, embedding discrete passive components and functions (primarily resistors and capacitors) directly into the PCB structure. I want to introduce myself, let you know what...

Preventing hole-wall pullaway: the first steps to take to ensure good electroless copper adhesion.(The Plating Rack)
October 1, 2003... ONE OF THE most aggravating problems (besides voids) associated with the metalization process is the issue of hole-wall pullaway (HWPA). Simply stated, HWPA is an area or areas within the PTH exhibiting a lack of adhesion of the electroless...

Multek's variation reduction initiative: implementing a quality system across multiple facilities is an enormous task. How a Top 10 PCB company developed its statistical-based defect elimination and cycle-time reduction program.(Defect Elimination)(part one of a two part series)
October 1, 2003... In the past few years Multek has embarked on a quality initiative that has made it a significant leader in merging PCB manufacturing with statistical-based quality. At a time when many organizations fell in love with Six Sigma, Ben Robinson,...

Going to the show.(PCB East Preview)
October 1, 2003... Conference: October 20-24, 2003 Exhibition: October 21-22, 2003 Holiday Inn Boxborough Woods, Boxborough, MA Exhibit Hours: Tuesday, October 21, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Wednesday, October 22, 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. FREE EVENTS The following...

Photomask/ink coater.(Off the shelf: machines materials tools systems software)
October 1, 2003... Prism 100 ultrasonic coater is for applying photoresists, conductive inks and other coatings to circuit boards. Uses a Y-axis spray head and X-axis conveyor and handles in-line or batch mode operations. Is also configurable by application. Has...

Free design tool.(Off the shelf: machines materials tools systems software)
October 1, 2003... PCB123 software for two- end four-layer boards includes a schematic and layout tool. Said to track manufacturing cost in real time and generate symbols and components during design phase. Includes batch autorouter, built-in design rules, over...

FPGA automation.(Off the shelf: machines materials tools systems software)
October 1, 2003... FPGA Boardlink automates the integration of FPGA and PCB design. Said to permit "fracturing" of symbols into smaller, more manageable symbols that can be schematically represented and grouped by functionality or design team boundaries....

High-speed punch.(Others Of Note)
October 1, 2003... The F252-RTR film puncher is designed for 250 mm roll-to-roll lines, More com0act than previous 500 mm models, thanks to a reduction of movable pads, improved control software, and reductions in punch-movement. Said to require just 0.3 sec, per...

Si conductive adhesive.(Others Of Note)
October 1, 2003... The Bisco EC-2000 electrically conductive solid silicone conductive adhesive is said to be the softest available electrically conductive elastomeric material. Comes in wide, continuous rolls, has low compression force defletion and is...

Short tail connectors.(Others Of Note)
October 1, 2003... PC/104 one-piece, 104-position connectors are available with solder short tail contacts and are for use in modules where PCB stacking is not required. Can be installed via reflow soldering and do not require press-fit processing. Comply with...

Specctra syntax checker.(Others Of Note)
October 1, 2003... MakeDO E performs offline batch syntax checking of DO files for the Specctra autorouter. Permits entire DO file to be batch-checked in a single review. Outputs error reports and flags errors for real-time correction. Permits creation and...

CSM tool suite.(Others Of Note)
October 1, 2003... PartNavigator 3.0 is said to provide quick deployment of high-performance component supplier management, integrates preferred Darts, preferred suppliers and internal systems in 22 million device reference CAPS database. Speeds component...

RF/microwave EM tool.(Others Of Note)
October 1, 2003... HFSS v.9 3D electromagnetic design and analysis tool is for designing RF and microwave components, antennae end arrays, high-speed ICs, PCBs and IC packages. Integrates into existing EDA and MCAD design flows. Enables parametric design entry of...

Will the new data transfer spec 'fly'?(Our Line)(Gerber data transfer still the industry mainstay)
October 1, 2003... THE fruit flies have taken over my kitchen. There they sit, perched delicately on the windowsills, the cabinets, the faucet. And apparently they like wine, too: A dozen or so are roosting on that half-empty bottle (a 1998 Joseph Phelps cabernet...