CircuiTree articles from September 2008

CircuiTree archives from September 2008

Nanotech, energy, and snake oil.(My Line)
September 1, 2008... Nanotech is still a media darling though it predates good old alchemy. Ancient red stained glass cathedral windows used nanogold. And we've been using nanocarbon in tires since the 1920s--and that's okay, but don't sell us old as new. Energy is...

Correction.(Correction notice)
September 1, 2008... In the July issue of CircuiTree, Figure 3 in Intelligent Design (pg. 29) was incorrect. Please see the correct figure online under our archives section at www.circuitree.com.

Demand for locally designed ICs heats up in China.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... According to iSuppli, although China's semiconductor purchasing boom is cooling down, the nation's demand for locally designed chips is heating up (as reported by DigiTimes). iSuppli predicts domestic consumption will rise by more than 60...

IPC releases PCB industry results for June.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Bannockburn, Ill. -- IPC released the June findings from its monthly North American PCB Statistical program. Between June 2007 and June 2008, rigid PCB shipments were up 2.9 percent and bookings were down 4.5 percent. Rigid PCB shipments...

Rohm and Haas increases investment in Taiwan with expansion of Asia-Pacific Manufacturing Facility, reports second quarter results.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Hsinchu, Taiwan -- Rohm and Haas Electronic Materials, CMP Technologies, is increasing investments in its Asia-Pacific Pad Manufacturing Facility located in Hsinchu, Taiwan. The investment is aimed at accelerating the company's capacity...

Merix announces fourth quarter results.(Industry Review)(Financial report)
September 1, 2008... Beaverton, Ore. -- For Q3 FY 08, Merix Corporation reported a loss from continuing operations of USD 3.5 million or USD 0.17 per diluted share on revenue of USD 87.6 million, compared to a loss from continuing operations of USD 80.1 million or...

IC design houses and distributors talk up Olympic demand.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Taipei -- According to DigiTimes, some IC houses and distributors were predicting notable growth in July because many handset and consumer electronics manufacturers have begun to build up inventory leading up to the 2008 Olympics in China....

Dow acquires Rohm and Haas.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Midland, Mich. -- Dow and Rohm and Haas made a definitive agreement under which Dow will acquire all outstanding shares of Rohm and Haas common stock for USD 78 per share in cash. This acquisition will make Dow the world's leading specialty...

3M has record quarter.(Industry Review)(Financial report)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... St. Paul, Minn. -- For Q2 FY 08, 3M achieved record sales for the sixth consecutive quarter. Second quarter sales were USD 6.7 billion, a 9.7 percent year-over-year increase. Net income was USD 945 million, or USD 1.33 per share, compared to...

RJR Circuits named top 50 Minority Owned Company in Colorado.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Denver -- RJR Circuits, Inc., was named a Top 50 Minority Owned Company in Colorado; RJR was ranked 30th. RJR has been recognized as a Top 50 Minority Owned Company since 1995.

Mania Belgium announces continuity of PCB plotter and software sales and support in Europe.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Ghent, Belgium -- Mania Belgium (formerly known as Barco), the photoplotter and software division of the Mania group recently bought by ESO, set up continuing sales and customer support for its products in Europe; the company's first priority...

SEMI posts June Book-to-Bill ratio of 0.85.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... San Jose, Calif. -- According to SEMI's June 2008 Book-to-Bill Report, North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted USD 1.03 billion in orders in June (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 0.85. The...

Endicott president and CEO receives Entrepreneur of the Year Award.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Endicott, N.Y. -- Endicott Interconnect Technologies, Inc.'s president and chief executive officer James J. McNamara received the 2008 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the advanced technology solutions category for the Upstate...

iNEMI makes recommendations for managing Pb-free alloy alternatives.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Herndon, Va. -- The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI) outlined a set of recommendations to help the electronics industry manage Pb-free alloy alternatives; these recommendations support the guidelines developed by the...

Photovoltaic market passes 4 Gigawatt level.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... San Jose, Calif. -- According to Electronic Trends Publications (ETP), the capacity of photovoltaic modules (panels) sold in 2007 exceeded 4 GW. This is nearly a 30 percent year-over-year increase; ETP predicts the market will grow to nearly 17...

Calumet celebrates 40th anniversary.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Calumet, Mich. -- Calumet Electronics entered its 40th year of manufacturing hi-reliability PCBs, where every board is built in its Michigan facility. Calumet's financial strength is continually rated at 4A1 by D&B, and product realization is...

Steve Williams' book on lean available as free eBook download.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... CircuiTree columnist Steve Williams' new book on lean, Survival Is Not Mandatory: 10 Things Every CEO Should Know About Lean, is available as a free eBook download at www.survivalisnotmandatory.com. Williams is a 32-year veteran in the...

Flextronics reports record first quarter results.(Industry Review)(Financial report)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Singapore -- For Q1 FY 09, Flextronics reported record net sales of USD 8.4 billion, a 62 percent year-over-year increase. Record adjusted operating profit for Q1 FY 09 increased 83 percent year-over-year to USD 280 million, while adjusted...

Cadence reports USD 329 million in second quarter revenue.(Industry Review)(Financial report)
September 1, 2008... San Jose, Calif. -- Cadence Design Systems, Inc., reported Q2 FY 08 revenue of USD 329 million; this is down from USD 391 million in for Q2 FY 07. On a GAAP basis, Cadence recognized net income of USD 5 million, or USD 0.02 per share on a...

Advantest president and CEO named to SEMI International board of directors.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Tokyo -- Advantest Corporation's president and chief executive officer, Toshio Maruyama, was elected to the SEMI International board of directors. Maruyama has been in the test and measurement industry for over 35 years, and prior to being...

Hon Hai reports sales increase for June.(Industry Review)(Financial report)
September 1, 2008... Taiwan -- For June's nonconsolidated unaudited sales, Hon Hai reported a 14.21 percent single-month year-over-year increase to NTD 107.481 billion. Accumulated unaudited sales for the first six months of 2008 increased 20.51 percent...

TTM Technologies installs XACT PCB Gemini registration system.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Tyne & Wear, U.K. -- TTM Technologies Inc. installed the XACT PCB Gemini-X Linear Plus Registration System. With XACT PCB's Gemini-X Linear Plus Registration System, TTM has a new level of registration control and prediction of inner layer...

Intel reports record second quarter.(Industry Review)(Financial report)
September 1, 2008... Santa Clara, Calif. -- Intel Corporation announced record second-quarter revenue of USD 9.5 billion; this is a 9 percent year-over-year increase. Intel also reported operating income of USD 2.3 billion, net income of USD 1.6 billion, and...

Zuken's CADSTAR solution sales doubled in America last year, thanks to Tropical PCB Design Service Inc.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Munich and Westford, Mass. -- Sales of Zuken's CADSTAR PCB design solution doubled in 2007-2008, and Zuken named Tropical PCB Design Services Inc. the American CADSTAR Distributor of the Year to recognize this triumph. According to Jeroen...

CCL prices stable despite weak demand from PCB clients.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Taipei -- According to DigiTimes, prices for CCLs remain stable, although demand from PCB clients has yet to see a seasonal upturn. CCL makers expect Q3 FY 08 sales to grow only 5 to 15 percent, weaker than recorded for previous high seasons....

SMT manufacturers to enhance product range in response to demand from Medical Device Industry.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Palo Alto, Calif. -- According to Frost & Sullivan, high demand for reliable and flexible equipment from the medical device market encouraged SMT equipment manufacturers to develop highly advanced machines. Aspects such as accuracy, parts...

Valor and i-PULSE sign OEM agreement to deliver advanced NPI solution.(Industry Review)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Tokyo -- i-PULSE Co., Ltd., of the Yamaha Motor Group, established an OEM agreement with Valor Computerized Systems Ltd. to deliver a complete CAD-to-Machine NPI solution for i-PULSE assembly machine users; the solution is based on Valor's...

Orbotech to acquire Photon Dynamics.(Industry Review)
September 1, 2008... Yavne, Israel -- Orbotech Ltd. and Photon Dynamics, Inc., signed a definitive agreement for Orbotech to acquire Photon Dynamics. Orbotech will pay USD 15.60 per share in cash for all of the issued and outstanding shares of Photo Dynamics'...

Fine lines in high yield (part CLVI): defect problems and defect prevention in development.(Tech Talk)
September 1, 2008... Irecently reviewed my files on defect problems associated with the development of dry-film photoresist and found some that I had not yet discussed in Tech Talk. At the same time I noticed a short report on the use of the development process to...

Back to basics part 20-design features that provide tear resistance.(Flexible Thinking)
September 1, 2008... Flexibility is the obvious primary benefit of using flexible circuits. This important feature allows for elements of an electronic system to be moved relative to each other either dynamically, such as one might find in a disc drive read-write...

New halogen-free materials their time has finally arrived.(Cover story)
September 1, 2008... After more than 10 years of market analysis, cost analysis, and many false starts, it now appears that the electronics industry is finally serious about going green; and by going green I mean going halogen free. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

The fun never ends, especially in the summertime.(IPC Issues and Answers)(Column)
September 1, 2008... It was a busy summer, especially on the environmental front. In June, IPC hosted a meeting in Brussels to address industry concerns with the Oko-Institut report on the proposed expansion of RoHS substance restrictions. In addition to members of...

PCB and package convergence.
September 1, 2008... Although it's been rather quiet lately, the constantly asked and seemingly charged question on the future of PCB has been whether PCB and chip design will merge into a single technology or not. This time I will steer clear of that question and...

You don't have to strain yourself over marking issues.(Ask the Flexperts)(Interview)
September 1, 2008... Q: Is a bead of strain relief required at every rigid flex interface on a rigid flex circuit? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A: Strain relief is a very common feature on rigid flex circuits. The most common material for this application is a...

Single-digit global market growth--but no electronics recession.(Market Outlook)
September 1, 2008... Although 2008 is a slow growth year, we are now into the summer/autumn busy season without a disaster. By mid-year, the seasonal upturn signs were becoming apparent. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In June, global semiconductor shipments were...

Enhanced version of Circuit-Space from DesignAdvance.(Technical Product Spotlights)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... DesignAdvance[R] Systems, Inc.'s Circuit-Space[R] v2.2 is an enhanced version of the EDA solution that allows the user to have bidirectional communication between layout and a (PDF) schematic. This feature now gives designers and engineers...

UMC and Mentor offer series of analog/mixed-signal and RF foundry design kits.(Technical Product Spotlights)
September 1, 2008... UMC and Mentor Graphics Corporation partnered to offer a new series of analog/mixed-signal and RF foundry design kits (FDKs). The FDKs contain comprehensive and validated building blocks at the transistor device level, helping IC designers to...

Mentor Multimedia solution for Nucleus OS and Inflexion Platform.(Technical Product Spotlights)
September 1, 2008... Mentor Graphics Corporation's Inflexion Platform[TM] Multimedia Feature Pack for Nucleus[R] OS is a new paradigm for manufacturers of mass market consumer electronic devices to bring advanced audio and video capabilities to their products. The...