Global SMT & Packaging Magazine | March 2016 by Scott A. McPherson

www.globalsmt.net

Volume 16 • Number 3 • March 2016 • ISSN 1474 –0893

The Global Assembly Journal for SMT & Advanced Packaging Professionals

IMPROVING LIVES WITH

TECH Autonomous Vehicles at CES Managing Material Costs EMS Business Competition Rework & Repair Staffing Stencil Nanocoatings

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Contents

Volume 16 • No. 3 March 2016

Global SMT & Packaging is published monthly by Trafalgar Publications Limited.

COLUMNS 2 Editorial

The journal is FREE to qualified professionals and is available by subscription at a cost of $180 for the current volume (twelve issues).

Battle of the Giants

Periodicals postage paid at Rahway NJ. Postmaster send address corrections to: Global SMT & Packaging, PO Box 7579, Naples, FL 34102.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means; electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written consent of the publisher. No responsibility is accepted for the accuracy of information contained in the text, illustrations or advertisements. The opinions expressed in the articles are not necessarily those of the editors or the publisher. ISSN No. 1474-0893 © Trafalgar Publications Ltd Designed and Published by Trafalgar Publications Ltd Printed by Presstige Printing, Bonita Springs, FL

BY TREVOR GALBRAITH

46 Custer and Custer-Topai 2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016 BY WALT CUSTER AND JON CUSTER-TOPAI

56 Stoten

Tech that Actually Improves Lives

BY PHILIP STOTEN

F E AT U R E S 16 The Disruption Battle for the Autonomous Vehicle – the Big Story from CES 2016

BY GUILLAUME GIRARDIN AND PIERRE CAMBOU, YOLE DEVELOPMENT

20 A Practical Guide to Managing Material Cost Impact

BY BEN KHOSHNOOD, PRESIDENT, INOVAXE CORP.

26 Staying Power in the Fiercely Competitive EMS Business

BY BJORN DAHLE, PRESIDENT, KIC

30 Rework & Repair – No Substitute for Experienced Staff

BY BOB WILLIS - REWORK EXPERIENCE CO-ORDINATOR

34 Stencil Nanocoatings Are Not Just for Fine Pitch Anymore Cost estimator tool demonstrates cost and productivity savings

Download this issue to your mobile device

BY EDWARD HUGHES AND MARIO GATTUSO, ACULON

38 Surface Pretreatment: A Vital Prerequisite for Successful Copper Plating!

One green acid cleaner for all kinds of HDI and MLB substrates

BY RAMONA S. MERTENS, DR. ECKART KLUSMANN, HENNING HÜBNER – ATOTECH DEUTSCHLAND

58 Interview Rick Ertmann, Alpha Assembly Solutions

IN EVERY ISSUE 6 Industry News If you don’t already have one, search for a QR code reader app in your smartphone’s app marketplace. Then use it to scan the code above & download this magazine issue right to your phone. www.globalsmt.net

54 International Diary 60 New Products 64 Association & Institute News

58 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Battle of the Giants

EDITORIAL EDITORIAL OFFICES

Battle of the Giants

TREVOR GALBRAITH

here is an epic battle taking place at the very top of our industry. Foxconn (Hon Hai Holdings) is negotiating hard to acquire the troubled Japanese consumer giant, Sharp Electronics for a reported $5.6 billion. Sharp has had a very troubled history in recent years. Only six years ago it was the global number one in the manufacture of solar cells for the photovol-

taic industry. Both its solar cell and solar battery businesses have been in freefall and severely damaged by the vagaries of the policy-driven pv industry. However, the company does possess some unique and market-leading technologies in the smartphone LCD industry, including flexible OLED screen technology that would be extremely attractive to Apple and Samsung, among others. Not surprisingly, the Japanese gov-

Foxconn is negotiating hard to acquire the troubled Japanese consumer giant, Sharp Electronics for a reported $5.6 billion.

ernment is reluctant to lose this technology to a foreign takeover and they are supporting a competing offer from Innovations Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) to buy the assets of Sharp and combine them with Hitachi, Toshiba and SONY to form a wholly-Japanese

owned rival to the Korean display giant LG Electronics. As part of this consortium, Sharp’s creditors, Mizuho and Mitsubishi UFJ banks are to offer $2.5 billion in debt relief, but needless to say they are privately more attracted by the cash offer of Foxconn chairman, Terry Gou. Foxconn, while playing their cards close to their chest, can see two major benefits to the deal. First, they acquire the market-leading LCD technology, helping secure their business with Apple and Samsung. Second, they acquire the Sharp consumer brand. This would enable Foxconn to leverage on the considerable technological capability it has amassed over the years as a contract manufacturer, to launch its own range of consumer products. Terry Gou has given Sharp chairman, Kozo Takahashi until February 29th to accept his offer. No doubt the result will be known by the time you receive this magazine. – Trevor Galbraith Editor-in-Chief editor@globalsmt.net

2 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Europe Trafalgar Publications Ltd. Globals SMT & Packaging Crown House, 72 Hammersmith Rd, Hammersmith, London, W14 8TH, UK Tel: +44 (0) 207 559 1467 Fax: +44 (0) 207 559 1468 E-mail: news@globalsmt.net Website: www.globalsmt.net United States Trafalgar Publications Ltd. Global SMT & Packaging PO Box 7579 Naples, FL 34102, USA Tel: +1 (239) 245-9264 Fax: +1 (239)-245-9268 Asia Trafalgar Publications Group Pvt Ltd M-161/1 G.L. House, Gautam Nagar Behind India Oil Bhawan New Delhi –110049 Office: +86 351 652 3813 Fax: +86 351 652 0409 Editor-in-Chief Trevor Galbraith Tel: +1 (239) 245 9264 ext. 101 US Cell: +1 (239) 287 5401 Fax: +1 (239)-245-9268 Skype: Treva-1 editor@globalsmt.net Managing Editor Tel: +1 (239) 245-9264 x108 mg.editor@trafalgarmedia.com China Editor Lu Shuzhen lshuzhen@trafalgarmedia.com Southeast Asia Technical Editor Raymond Foo rfoo@trafalgarmedia.com Billing Tel: +1 (239) 245-9264 x106 accounts@trafalgarmedia.com Web Developer Leista Burnett Tel: +1 (239) 245-9264 x 105 lburnett@globalsmt.net ADVERTISING Europe Trevor Galbraith Tel: +1 (239) 245 9264 ext. 101 UK Mobile: +44 (0)7584 072926 Cell: +1 (239) 287 5401 tgalbraith@trafalgarmedia.com Americas, Southeast Asia – India, Singapore, Korea & Malaysia Sandy Daneau Tel: +1 (239) 234-1600 Skype: sdaneau.1 sdaneau@globalsmt.net China, Taiwan, Japan & Hong Kong Paul Chen Tel: +86 2154049130 pauljc7777@hotmail.com www.globalsmt.net

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Industry News – Americas

I NDUST RY N E WS ZESTRON Americas introduces Steve Williamson

■ Rudolph is positioned to capture the early adopters of the emerging advanced packaging panel lithography market.

Rudolph JetStep lithography system selected Rudolph Technologies, Inc. announced that a outsourced assembly and test facility (OSAT) has placed an order for the JetStep Lithography System for the semiconductor advanced packaging industry’s first panel manufacturing line. The JetStep S Series Lithography System was selected after a thorough evaluation of competitive offerings, and will be used for next-generation fan-out processing on rectangular panels. The system is scheduled to ship in mid-2016. Mike Plisinski, Rudolph’s chief executive officer, stated, “We view the move from reconstituted wafers to chips-on-panels as a logical and necessary transition in the advanced packaging industry as product volumes increase. We are pleased that our lithography and panel solutions are able to play an integral role in this transition and look forward to partnering with these early leaders.” According to Yole Dèveloppement’s November 2015 report, Status of PanelLevel Packaging & Manufacturing1, the demand for lower cost with higher performance has driven the semiconductor industry to develop innovative solutions. One new approach to reducing overall cost is to switch from (round) wafers to a larger-size panel format. Yole describes the cost advantages and economy of scale benefits as key enablers propelling the growth of fan-out, interposers and embedded die panel packages. www.rudolphtech.com

6 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

ZESTRON is pleased to announce the addition of Mr. Steve Williamson as the new Regional Sales Manager. In his role, Mr. Williamson will focus on growing ZESTRON’s product and services business while expanding the current customer base in the Eastern American and Canadian regions. “Mr. Williamson is an excellent addition to our sales team,” says Eric Strating, Director of Sales. “The addition of Mr. Williamson reinforces ZESTRON’s commitment to providing our customer base with the highest quality, technical solutions, services, and personnel in order to meet the ever increasing challenges of precision cleaning applications.” www.zestron.com

■ Yamaha’s new website.

and a streamlined learning curve for operators, since there is only one GUI (Graphical User Interface) on all Yamaha machines. The new web site is accessible via a wide range of devices including smartphones and tablets. www.yamaha-motor-im.com

Steven Suzuki joins Dymax as global account manager

■ ZESTRON’s new Regional Sales Manager, Steve Williamson.

Yamaha IM America launches new, interactive web site Yamaha IM America announces the launch of a new, interactive, easy-to-navigate web site at www.yamaha-motor-im. com. The new site provides easy navigation and in-depth information about Yamaha’s Trusted Technology, including Yamaha’s state-of-the-art Total Line Solution, comprised of printers, mounters, dispensers, and inspections machines operated on a single unified software platform, Yamaha Y-Fact. Y-Fact provides major benefits to customers, includinghigher efficiency, accurate programming

Dymax Corporation is pleased to announce the appointment of Steven Suzuki as Global Account Manager for the Western Region. In his new position, Steven will report to Stephen LaCroce, Managing Director of North America, and will be responsible for the achievement of sales growth and coordination of all support activities and projects at Dymax’s Strategic Global Accounts, both directly and through Dymax personnel worldwide. Prior to joining Dymax, Steven was a Global Account Manager for Apple products at Laird Technologies Inc., located in San Jose, CA. He graduated from San Diego State University, located in San Diego, CA, with his B.A. in International Business. www.dymax.com

Ventec International Group appoints Chris Alessio Ventec International Group is delighted to announce the appointment of Chris Alessio as Vice President Sales & Operations for the company’s North American operation. As second in command alongside Jack Pattie, President of

www.globalsmt.net

Industry News – Americas

Ventec USA, Chris will be responsible for building upon, creating and implementing overall sales operations strategies for the North American markets that support Ventec’s global business objectives. Chris brings over 25 years of sales operations experience and an in-depth understanding of customer requirements gained during his successful career working with PCB design companies, EMS’s and OEM’s. Chris joins Ventec from Hunter Technology, where he was VP of Sales & Programs and successfully doubled company revenue in just 18 months and facilitated the company acquisition by Sparton Corporation. www.venteclaminates.com

MET Stencil Launches NanoSlic Gold Stencil MET Stencil announces the launch of the NanoSlic Gold stencil. NanoSlic is the world's most advanced stencil coating technology for improving solder paste printing. “We are pleased to announce

that we have been licensed by FCT Assembly to sell this coating to the US market.” said Fred Cox, President of MET Stencil. “Stencil users will immediately see the benefits in their print.” The new NanoSlic Gold stencil is the next generation of stencil technology developed to address the increasing demands confronting the electronic assembly industry. The NanoSlic Gold coating is based on a proprietary application process that coats both the underside of the stencil, and the aperture walls. This robust coating is hydrophobic, oleophobic, and “fluxophobic”. It improves solder paste release. NanoSlic Gold is thermally cured and is a permanent coating. The NanoSlic® technology significantly improves solder paste transfer efficiencies for small apertures resulting in higher yields and less rework. In addition, NanoSlic® minimizes bridging and reduces underside cleaning. This technology can be easily evaluated and is compatible with current assembly equipment and processes. www.metstencil.com.

APEX

■ Atlantech’s Nagy Bayoumi.

Inovaxe finalizes rep agreement with Atlantech Inovaxe announces the appointment of Atlantech, Inc. as its newest manufacturers’ representative. Atlantech will

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Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Industry News – Americas

represent Inovaxe throughout Eastern A, DE, W. VA, MD, NC, SC, GA, AL, TN, MS. Margy Khoshnood, Inovaxe’s VP of Sales, commented, “We are excited to partner with Nagy and his team, plus being part of Panasonic’s Total Solution offering will add additional strength for us to penetrate the marketplace with our InoAuto Smart cart products.” www.inovaxe.com

Mentor Graphics’ open manufacturing language Mentor Graphics Corporation announced the launch of the Open Manufacturing Language (OML) initiative that directly addresses the longstanding need and urgent calls from the industry for a printed circuit board (PCB) assembly-specific Internet of Manufacturing solution. For the first time, IT teams, solution providers, and equipment providers can easily integrate shop-floor data to create or enhance added-value manufacturing execution solutions based on a single, normalized,

vendor-neutral communication interface. This minimizes development and support effort while ensuring optimum data accuracy, timeliness and completeness. Use of the OML standard supports numerous industry needs and challenges including the practical realization of the Internet of Manufacturing, Industry 4.0 and Smart Factory 1.0 concepts, as well as the automated collection of full traceability data including routing and compliance enforcement. “The OML standard is a key technology and contributor for the Internet of Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 in PCB assembly. It’s our pleasure to work with the OML community,” stated Jordan Jiang, President / GM of iEi Integration Corp. “iEi looks forward to involvement with OML to assist with utilization through the offering of quality design and manufacture services. We are excited about seeing OML launched and are looking forward to the business opportunities and benefits that it will undoubtedly bring to the whole industry.” OML creates an operational hierarchy

through which neutralized information is exchanged between manufacturing processes. This includes detail of any shop-floor event in the areas of process performance, materials setup and consumption, traceability, process results and parameters, process control (pokayoke), and quality information from test, inspection and repair proc esses, both automated and manual. OML resolves numerous issues in automated and manual processes that previous formats could not address. The OML standard, introduced by Mentor Graphics, is based on more than 15 years of experience in the development of shop-floor interfaces. The standard will be available through an open community on www.OMLcommunity.com. The community will provide support and management of new revisions. “We are very excited to be among the first members of the OML community,” stated Ian Ticehurst, Senior Corporate MIS Manager, Hana Microelectronics Public Co., Ltd. www.mentor.com

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Industry News – Europe

INDUST RY NEWS

■ Ventec UK has purchased an additional Yow Shi Diamond Blade saw.

Ventec International expands UK operations Ventec International Group is increasing its UK cutting & drilling capability by investing in new manufacturing equipment. Ventec UK has purchased an additional Yow Shi Diamond Blade saw to increase its cutting capacity to meet an anticipated increase in demand for cut to size back and entry materials in the UK following the recent announcement of Ventec’s intention to merge with TMT Trading GmbH. In addition, the Aerospace-Standard UK manufacturing & distribution center in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire will be adding drilling capacity to allow for these materials to be supplied with tooling holes where required. This is the latest step in a phased and strategic investment plan that Ventec is implementing across its global network of service centers. www.venteclaminates.com

technology leader in the automotive sector. For the formerly family-run Büchele Group, this step opens up access to the internationally oriented distribution structure of Würth and the Würth Elektronik eiSos Group. Belonging to the Würth Group in the future will also mean even more extensive investment in technology and product development, thus creating security for customers, the company and its employees. Setting its sights on global market and technology leadership with the purchase, Würth Elektronik iBE aims to further expand its position as a market and technology leader in the field of electronic EMC components and inductors for automotive applications. www.we-online.com

New partner for France and Tunisia The market for thermal processing solutions in France and Tunisia is growing steadily and shows a strong trend. Competent advice and intensive on-site support are essential in order to establish itself on the market. With the company DILECTRO, founded in 1996, SMT relies

■ DILECTRO’s Anthony Fresneau.

on a strong and experienced partner in the electronic industry. Anthony Fresneau of company DILECTRO explains the reasons for the partnership: “The last years the "voids" became a serious topic of discussion and we didn't really have solutions for our customers. The cooperation with the company SMT, for which I always heard good feedbacks about their experiences and equipments especially the vacuum technology, makes me very

Würth Elektronik iBE aquires Büchele Group Würth Elektronik iBE GmbH, headquartered in Thyrnau near Passau (Germany), is part of the Würth Elektronik eiSos Group – a leading European manufacturer of passive and electromechanical. As a specialist for customized EMC components and inductors for automotive applications, Würth Elektronik iBE has been a preferred partner of the automobile industry for over 30 years. With the merger, Würth Elektronik iBE further strengthens its position as a market and

10 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

■ Rainer Schätzl (Geschäftsführer Würth Elektronik iBE GmbH), Thorsten Jordan (Geschäftsführer Würth Elektronik iBE GmbH), Martina Kissling (Geschäftsführerin Büchele Unternehmensgruppe), Erwin Büchele (Geschäftsführer Büchele Unternehmensgruppe), Thomas Schrott (CEO Würth Elektronik eiSos Gruppe), Oliver Konz (CEO Würth Elektronik eiSos Gruppe).

www.globalsmt.net

Industry News – Europe

delighted, from now being part of the SMT Team. We are going to be able to bring solutions and strong support to our customers in France and Tunisia.” "By the cooperation with DILECTRO we can react more quickly to the demands and expand our distribution network. We are glad to have found a reliable and powerful partner and look forward to working together”, said Florian Graf, Senior Sales Manager Europe of SMT. SMT Thermal Discoveries headquartered in Wertheim was founded in 1987 and is a manufacturer and global supplier of equipment for thermal processes. www.smt-wertheim.com

Microtronic GmbH starts its 35th year stronger than ever Microtronic GmbH, a sales specialist of microelectronics, announced that 2016 marks its 35th year in business. Microtronic was founded in 1981 and is based near Munich, Germany. Ernst J. M. Eggelaar, President of Microtronic, commented, “With our focus on quality and test (Sonix, Akrometrix, our LBT210, our new ConTTest, etc.) as well as soldering (AIM, solderability test, squeegees, rework equipment, etc.), we have a well-rounded business setup. As a company, we are stronger than ever and we are excited to enter our 35th year in business.” With 35 years’ experience, Microtronic is the microelectronics leader in Europe and offers a wide range of products and services to the microelectronics industries. The company offers regular training courses on various topics through in-house training or can arrange for specific employee training courses on request to suit specific needs. Microtronic’s customers include companies who require added solderability test, ultrasonic microscopes, circuit board repair systems, welding systems, solders and solder pastes. The company offers centralised pricing to its customers with the added benefit of unparalleled delivery times. www.microtronic.de

Continuing in their commitment to excellence, Smtxtra is proud to announce the award of ISO 9001:2008 certification. The ISO 9001:2008 quality management standard was developed and published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and establishes an effective quality management program for various types of companies. Important components of ISO 9001:2008 include customer satisfaction

and establishing processes for continuous improvement, items that Smtxtra values highly. Quality Manager Elizabeth Martin stated “We worked very hard to gain this accreditation, ISO9001:2008 provides a tried and tested framework for taking a systematic approach to managing our organization's processes so that we consistently offer the best product that satisfies customer’s expectations”. www.smtxtra.com

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Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016 Pub produit FI-Apex.indd 4

16-01-20 16:06

Industry News – Europe

■ Ernst J. M. Eggelaar, President of Microtronic.

Mycronic acquires RoyoTech and Kognitec Mycronic AB (publ), has acquired 75 percent of RoyoTech Digitalelektronik

12 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

GmbH and has an option to acquire the remaining 25 percent. At the same time Mycronic acquires 100 percent of Kognitec Vertrieb and Service GmbH. Both companies are based in Höhenkirchen, Germany. RoyoTech develops and manufactures the SMD Tower – an intelligent storage solution of electronic components. Kognitec is distributing the SMD Tower in parallel with Mycronic to the SMT market globally. Mycronic has marketed the SMD Tower worldwide since 2008 and is RoyoTech’s main distributor and largest customer. The storage concept was originally developed in close collaboration with German customers in 2004. Today there are approximately 1,000 SMD Towers installed at customer sites globally. The acquisition secures the rights to a strategic product already part of Mycronic’s SMT portfolio. RoyoTech is a private company founded in 1991, based in Höhenkirchen in Germany, and has ten employees. www.mycronic.com

Key-Tech Electronic Systems Ltd. uses Yamaha Machines Key-Tech Electronic Systems Ltd. has announced availability of manufacturing services using two Yamaha Z:LEXYSM20 modular surface mount machines with an operating speed of 90,000 chips/hour. A built-in smart recognition system reduces operator input, placing unconventionally shaped components accurately and efficiently without compromising on quality. The machines deliver high-speed

■ Key-Tech Electronic Systems Ltd. uses two Yamaha Z:LEXYSM20 modular surface mount machines.

www.globalsmt.net

Industry News – Europe

assemblies of multisized components on a greater scale, meeting demanding turnarounds. From miniaturized components to large assemblies, the machines supply both small and medium-sized enterprises and high turnover clients with technology in the oil and gas, subsea, nuclear, military, medical, security, scientific, industrial, and retail markets. www.key-tech.co.uk

Henkel expands partnership with Ellsworth Adhesives Henkel Adhesive Technologies’ longtime business relationship with global distributor Ellsworth Adhesives has grown to now include Moldman Systems LLC, which was acquired by Ellsworth Corporation in 2014. Henkel previously worked with Moldman Systems’ low pressure molding equipment through its former owner, but the new ties to Ellsworth Adhesives significantly expand worldwide sales and support opportunities. “For years, the combination of Henkel’s TECHNOMELT low pressure

Ellsworth Adhesives Europe awarded by the NQA ■ Henkel’s TECHNOMELT materials are a fast, low pressure alternative to conventional potting processes.

molding materials and Mold-Man equipment has delivered a fast and effective alternative to conventional potting processes,” explains Henkel Global Product Manager Circuit Board Protection, Art Ackerman. “Now backed by Ellsworth Adhesives’ expansive global network, electronics customers around the world will have greater access to this novel encapsulation solution.” www.henkel.com/electronics

Ellsworth Adhesives Europe is pleased to announce its achievement of ISO 14001 : 2004 Certification, awarded by the NQA. ISO 14001 : 2004 is an international standard for Environmental Management Systems. The attainment of this certificate confirms that Ellsworth Adhesives Europe is committed to sustainable development and is actively seeking to reduce the environmental impact of its business with the implementation of environmentally conscious policies and processes. Such measures taken by Ellsworth include the active encouragement of recycling amongst its workforce, customer base and supplier

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Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Industry News – Europe

network, minimisation of waste, pollution prevention, educating staff on environmental issues and promoting environmental awareness, compliance with environmental laws and adherence to guidance issued by the Environmental Agency. The Ellsworth Adhesives’ environmental policy can be read in full on the company website. John Henderson, Managing Director comments “At Ellsworth Adhesives Europe we treat our environmental responsibilities with the utmost seriousness. We acknowledge the potential effect of our operations on the environment, and have been committed to monitoring and improving our ecological performance and impact. To have been awarded ISO 14001 Certification, cements our efforts in this area and provides assurance to our customers of our sustainability.” Ellsworth Adhesives achievement of the ISO 14001:2001 standard comes just after it was awarded AS9120 Certification in January of this year. The company also has ISO 9001:2008 Certification, giving it a total

14 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

of three quality standards, all awarded by the NQA Certification Authority. www.ellsworthadhesives.co.uk

Pulse Electronics launches new transformer series Pulse Electronics Corporation expands its high isolation gate drive transformer line with a new surface mount series using its patented Sidecar package. The PH9400 series provides isolation in MOSFET and IGBT drivers in industrial applications such as motor drive circuits and solar inverters and for power supplies for a range of medical devices. This series offers a SMT alternative to the existing THT P058xx series while increasing the volts-second capability by up to 300%. Compact construction allows for a larger core to be used, thereby increasing the volts-second capability, while reducing the size and increasing the creepage distance by 50% in comparison to the existing THT solution. www.power.pulseelectronics.com

Fisnar Europe appointments new Product Line Manager Fisnar Europe, manufacturer of fluid dispensing systems and equipment, is pleased to announce the appointment of Robert Campbell as Product Line Manager. Robert comes to Fisnar Europe with a wealth of knowledge and experience of the Dispensing Equipment industry, having spent the past six years working at Nordson EFD in various Sales Management roles. As Product Line Manager, Robert will be responsible for driving and developing the Fisnar product line and will seek to align the company’s product offering more closely to the needs of the European market. In addition to managing the Fisnar Europe product line, Robert will also be responsible for supporting the European distribution network. Robert will report directly to John Henderson, Managing Director, who comments “We are delighted to have Robert on board as a new member of

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Industry News – Europe

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Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

The Disruption Battle for the Autonomous Vehicle – the Big Story from CES 2016

The Disruption Battle for the

Autonomous Vehicle – the Big Story from CES 2016 BY GUILLAUME GIRARDIN AND PIERRE CAMBOU, YOLE DEVELOPMENT

t became clear to the Yole Développement team at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the start of 2016 that the Autonomous Vehicle industry is a battlefield. Thanks partly to our recently published report, “Sensors and Data Management for Autonomous Vehicles”, we can tell you where the front lines are. In our report, we highlighted that the market for sensor modules for autonomous cars is expected to grow from $3B in 2015 to more than $35B in 2030. Car manufacturers and tech companies are therefore watching this business closely. Peak hype was reached last week

when car makers took over CES. People thought they were attending some kind of rebranded Automotive Show. This is not just a one-time thing – car makers’ presence grows every year. In our last report we called the automotive industry “the next consumer electronic market”. Automotive is one of the most complicated markets. It combines low margins, long life cycles, complex industrial chains, risk, and high levels of regulation. It is torn by three revolutions at once: Electrical Vehicles (EVs); Autonomous Driving (AD); and the car-sharing movement. These revolutions are felt in three large industries: car

manufacturing; Silicon Valley’s Internet business; and semiconductors. Key car-sharing players are Uber, Lyft, and Didi Kuaidi, valued at over $50B, $5.5B and $16.5B respectively. Their movement changes the automotive industry landscape, fulfilling a new type of “on-demand” role. General Motors has invested $500M in Lyft. Didi Kuaidi, the Chinese service, has announced that it has provided a billion rides in China alone. The sharing economy is transforming the way we use transportation – and traditional car makers have clearly understood the threat. Tesla is prominent in EVs, disrupt-

EVERYWHERE/PARTIAL AD VS SOMEWHERE/FULL AD

(Source: Sensors for Autonomous Vehicles and Data Management report, Yole Développement, October 2015)

16 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

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ing both the energy and automotive industries, and now targeting AD in its future vehicles. It has recently presented some features, including autopilot and cars that come when called, that should set the standard for the whole industry. Autonomous driving is also important for Silicon Valley companies like Google and possibly Apple. The promise of reducing the number of crashes, pollution and traffic, and allowing in-car entertainment and/or productivity is definitely exciting. There are two different sensor-related strategies in AD. Almost all automotive sensor technologies are racing toward maturity, except Lidar, which is attracting large investments to accelerate its development. Yole’s research lays bare the technical choices made by traditional companies and newcomers related to the two main strategies among ultrasonic sensors, shortrange or long-range radar, Lidar, dead reckoning sensors and data management. The real bottleneck is currently in the upper layer of the system, namely embedded data processing and management. These functions are still under construction, with emerging players like MobilEye, and Nvidia providing advanced electronic control units (ECUs) that are challenging established players like Toshiba or Infineon. • Everywhere/Partial AD is an incremental sensing approach embraced by traditional manufacturers. It relies on high sensitivity sensors combined with low-resolution maps, and then improves map quality using the sensors embedded on each vehicle. This solution allows partial automation in every situation as a ‘first step’. • Somewhere/Full AD is exploited by Google and Baidu, based on 3D localized maps with high levels of detail, down to centimeter accuracy. The maps are combined with fewer sensors than Everywhere/Partial AD, often using Lidar. This solution allows full automation in specific environments and will work very rapidly, however it requires hard work to keep the maps updated. In the Everywhere/Partial approach, the car’s numerous sensors attempt to provide complete external awareness. This is extremely complex and expensive, and so

18 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

the automation level will only rise gradually. In the Somewhere/Full approach, mapbuilding sensors will be very precise and expensive but used in limited numbers. It is relatively easy to build a full automated vehicle by combining them with detailed original maps, although this constrains where AD can happen. Both approaches will increase the number of sensors embedded in each vehicle sold. Yole projects that overall market volumes will expand ninefold, from 120M units in 2015 to over 1B units in 2030. This provides massive opportunities for sensor manufacturers and the semiconductor industry. Some AD features will attract huge customer interest, and the market will evolve accordingly. Car manufacturers must now get closer to their customers to identify which AD functions will wow them. Traditional car manufacturers must quit their comfort zone and many of them, like Toyota, Volkswagen, GM, Ford and Nissan, will have to compete with emerging actors like Tesla, Google, and probably Apple. Cars will no longer be traditional mechanical, fuel-powered, and high-powered electronic vehicles. They are evolving into electrical-powered, ultra-sensitive machines that can anticipate many critical situations thanks to their sensors, high-level processing units, deep learning software and high connectivity levels. The obstacles are not so much technical, but regulatory. Even though US companies are pushing their government, a global agreement is a very

long time in the future. AD will be a truly disruptive technology. Looking back at previous disruptions, radios did not replace theaters and TV did not kill radio. We cannot fully understand how AD will disrupt the automotive industry yet, but one thing is certain: This revolution will not kill the car we know. Instead, it will open new applications and increase mobility. Current car enthusiasts and dreamers of autonomous flying cars alike will have their share of the future. Guillaume Girardin works as a Market & Technology Analyst for MEMS devices and technologies at Yole Développement, the "More than Moore" market research and strategy consulting company. Guillaume holds a Ph.D. In Physics and Nanotechnology from Claude Bernard University Lyon 1 and a M.Sc. in Technology and Innovation Management from EM Lyon School of Business. In 1999 Pierre Cambou joined the imaging industry. He had earned an Engineering degree from Université de Technologie de Compiègne in parallel to a Master of Science from Virginia Tech in 1998. More recently he graduated from Grenoble Ecole de Management’s MBA. Pierre took several positions at Thomson TCS which became Atmel Grenoble in 2001 and e2v Semiconductors in 2006. In 2012 he founded the start-up Vence Innovation (now called Irlynx) in order to bring to market a disruptive Man to Machine interaction technology. He joined Yole Développement, the "More than Moore" market research and strategy consulting company, as Imaging Activity Leader in 2014.

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CHARTS: YOLE DÉVELOPPEMENT

Title

A Practical Guide to Managing Material Cost Impact

A Practical Guide to Managing

Material Cost Impact

hen you ask the EMS management team what is the material impact on their business, they typically respond by adding up the number of people that work in the stockroom, and those involved in kitting and material stock return, plus shipping and receiving. For so many years we did not pay attention to, or totally understand, the business impact of the material acquisition and handling costs. The more EMS providers get squeezed out of their profits from the vise grips of distributors and end customers, the more imperative it is that the industry totally focuses its attention, not only on the supply chain, but also on how material is delivered, handled, and managed in the operation. It is time to send in the armies of black belt, lean six sigma Ninjas to work, and provide the Western hemisphere EMS providers with more hope to compete globally. When bottlenecks are removed and automation is fully implemented, locally manufactured product is most cost effective.

Background Many years ago, I was running a high mix, low to mid volume EMS business, and like everyone else surprise shortages were driving the million dollar SMT lines to screeching halts. It was often that the sound of cha-ching would stop, and everyone, and I mean everyone, was dealing with trying to find the part that was supposed to be in the factory, but was nowhere to be found. The program managers, material staff, purchasing, production staff, and I, would get hourly calls from the customer who wanted to know the status of their desperately needed job. We would look everywhere, and no one seemed to have the answer as to where the part was placed. My purchasing manager would raise her right hand and swear that she brought the part in. All this would take place while the SMT

20 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

BY BEN KHOSHNOOD, PRESIDENT, INOVAXE CORP.

line was shut down waiting for us to find the penny part. This is so common that the EMS industry added a phrase to our lexicon: “Surprise Shortages.” In one instance when we finally found the part, it was placed on top of a shelf because the part needed to go directly to the floor when it arrived, and there was no specific bin assigned for the part. Sound familiar?!!! Also, by the time we found the missing part, reordered it, and paid for an overnight shipment, we were now late on the demanding customer order, and overtime was in place to get the assemblies out ASAP. And then to top it off, my management team was meeting with a high-speed SMT equipment manufacture to order another line, so that we could meet customer demands! It dawned on me then, “What if we never had surprise shortages? What if we could pull the kits instantly and accurately? What if the feeder set-up crew could find parts in seconds? What if?, What if?, What if?!” The answer was painful and enlightening. We could have exceeded our customer demands with one less line. The existing staff could have supported the increase in volume of the business

threefold without adding any more staff. My buyers would have had more time to strategize material deliveries and negotiate prices more effectively. My program managers were not material expediters and could have provided a lot more customer service. The overtime would have been far less, the cash flow would have improved, the material costs would have come down, my staff would have had more time to prevent the excess and obsolete inventory build-up, and our profit would have soared. So what is the answer? A fresh look at how we deal with material kits and inventory! When the Six Sigma revolution started to improve quality, in the 80’s, we were not setting goals to improve by 10%. Drastic change was required, not incremental improvements. Today, this means the traditional shelves and bins need to go, Metro carts and Home Depot shelving and bins are no longer the best way to store your parts. Close your eyes and envision a factory where the right amount of material arrives when you need it, and is placed in a location that, within a few seconds, can be picked up, and loaded into a feeder without human error.

■ Figure 1. Flow chart of a typical factory after the parts are received and moved to the stockroom.

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A Practical Guide to Managing Material Cost Impact

Improving Material Operation Let’s try to map out a standard material handling operation. The flow chart of a typical factory after the parts are received and moved to the stockroom looks something like this as shown in Figure 1. This operation could take anywhere from 4-10 minutes per component in a typical stockroom with bins and shelves. There are many different methods that have been jerry-rigged to help with finding parts quicker or making the reordering process faster, such as Kanban, dual bin systems, weighing the parts, folder style reel holders, reels in bags hanging from racks, etc. There are also many methods (contraptions) that have been put together to hold the reels in a kit, so that they can be identified when moved to the feeder loading station, such as a peg board with long pegs, wire divider metro rack carts, manila folders and file cabinets, etc. Recently, a number of products have been introduced to help automate stocking and kitting processes. Typically, this type of equipment is large robotic systems with low reel storage counts per cubic foot, an expensive elephant in the room with a high installation cost. These robotic systems retrieve one reel at a time, taking sometimes more than 30 seconds per reel, which is much faster than a typical 4 to 10 minute retrieval time. There is only one company from the US that has introduced a non-robotic system that can detect the presence and absence of a reel in its single package, single location storage system with the ability to light up the location of the parts to be identified. This system is blazing fast, easy to use, mobile, and has the highest cubic foot density for the storage of reels. The InoAuto, by Inovaxe can hold over 1,100 reels in a 44"L x 15"W x 64"H space. It lights up all the parts in your kit, making them instantly available and reducing your kitting time from hours to seconds. The next area that has a lot of opportunity for non-value added labor reduction is the feeder setup operation. The operator typically generates a feeder setup sheet and goes through the stacks of reels the stockroom put together in order to find the right parts in order. If you really think about it, the stockroom takes a relatively organized stockroom and creates a disorganized pile of parts when they create a kit. Now the operator must locate these parts one by one and make sure they will

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■ Figure 2. Typical process chart for loading feeders on the SMT machine.

■ Figure 3. Typical process chart for reloading feeders on the SMT machine.

not mistake the one Ohm resistor for a 100 Ohm resistor. The only reasons I can think of why a stockroom does this are: 1. They want to ensure the parts are there, and the stockroom parts match the system inventory. Somehow we believe that if we place the parts behind a locked door, the part counts miraculously become accurate. 2. The parts are far away from the SMT area. Companies justify this because they carry too much inventory and traditional storage shelves have too much wasted space to place the inventory next to the SMT lines. 3. The parts are expensive and need to be behind closed or locked doors. Due to the cost of components, many compa-

nies store them behind locked doors. During allocation periods, some parts do need to be protected because of their demand and or high dollar value. Regardless, in each company, there are only a handful of parts that should be totally locked up. All of this creates extra work, which is prone to human error and mistakes that result in a labor intensive material handling operation. Figures 2 and 3 outline a typical process flow chart for loading feeders and reloading the feeders on the SMT machine. The Metro racks and standard shelving cannot do too much to streamline the above process. The robotic systems and Inovaxe’s InoAuto system can eliminate

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

A Practical Guide to Managing Material Cost Impact

■ Figure 4. Flow chart showing reels returned to stock after a kit has passed through the SMT line.

the flow chart operations highlighted in yellow. The challenge with the robotic equipment is their size, which makes it impractical to place stock right next to the machines on which they are needed. The Inovaxe smart carts are ideal for point of use inventory storage because they can hold over 3300 reels in an 11’L x 1.25’W x 5.3‘H space. One of InoAuto’s clever features is that it can identify the parts you need in their feeder order. It can also identify the parts you need before a reel runs out on a feeder. The ROI on this type of automation can pay back the investment in less than six months in many cases. This product substantially improves the efficiency and throughput of loading the feeders, and running the SMT line. The next area with significant opportunity for improvement is returning reels to stock after the kit is finished going through the SMT line. I call it the material “black hole”. Figure 4 shows a typical flow chart of this operation. The return of parts back to stock can often cause the most problems. Typically the job is done, the pressure of meeting demand is reduced, and returning parts may have to wait until the material people are not very busy, so they have enough time to count parts and finding bin locations. This is a time consuming and slow process for a typical shelf and bin operation. In the case of using vertical or carousel storage systems, the problem is the bottleneck. The input and output is typically through one person and the bottleneck can back up returns. It will take anywhere between 4-10 minutes per reel

22 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

to count the inventory correctly, find the location, and place the parts in the bin. This is where the problem starts, as the parts that are not returned may be needed on another job, and, in some cases, they are all in a pile. Finding a particular part number in the pile is like finding a needle in a haystack. This operation typically gets the least attention because everyone is working on new jobs. This is also the area in which, depending on the way WIP is accounted for, you may buy the same parts that you have in the pile, because you need it in your new job, and your MRP has lost track of it. Now, this has created more work for buyers to bring the parts in, and the program manager has to determine when you can ship the product

and call the customer to reschedule the delivery, of course, after expediting the part. Are they a true program manager, or an expensive expediter?! All of this also effects the accounting process, as the operation has to buy more material, juggle the vanishing cash flow because of the increase in inventory, and process more invoices. Not to mention, the line has been sitting idle waiting for the parts to arrive. The robotic storage system can provide a good solution for the part return process, as long as travel time and size is not important. The InoAuto smart cart is an extremely effective tool for this process as well. Returning parts to bins takes less than three seconds and, in many cases, part counts can be adjusted automatically by the machine software. Now let’s look at the spaghetti chart of the material process before automation and streamlining. Figure 5 is a typical presentation of the material flow through a SMT factory. One can get dizzy looking at this chart! The irony is when you create the spaghetti chart with the effect of the material flow throughout the other factory operations; program management, purchasing, production, test, etc. doesn’t look very messy and actually looks very streamlined. The other irony is that we are paying every day for all of that busy, inefficient work. We deal with simple “big box store” shelving and Metro carts, and will not even think to budget for complete automation

■ Figure 5. Spaghetti chart for material handling in a typical SMT operation.

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A Practical Guide to Managing Material Cost Impact

■ Figure 6. Spaghetti chart for material handling in a SMT operation using InoAuto.

of this mess and bring all of that wasted cash to the bottom line. One way to help bring those wasted dollars to the bottom line is to use 21st century equipment to streamline the process. Figure 6 is one representation of a material spaghetti chart with substantially fewer noodles. In the new process map your reels are stored at the point of use in a smart cart line InoAuto, next to the SMT line. Upload a pick list or a BOM to the smart cart computer and it will light up the location of each part in your kit and now you can get them in seconds versus hours. You can receive the parts in picking order by locating the parts one at a time, as the LED will blink one at a time, indicating one location for each one of the feeders. After the job is done, remove the reel from the feeder, scan the part number, and place it in any empty location on the cart. It is as easy as that, and as it looks in the chart above. Let those wasted dollars be invested into your growth, your customers’ and employees’ satisfaction, and your shareholders’ delight.

Conclusion Managing your cash, sorry, but your material is one of the most important parts of running a manufacturing operation. The human error mistakes, material bottlenecks, and inventory inaccuracies will have a broad effect on the health of your business. The impact of problems in the material department can be felt in customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, cash flow, revenue growth, and profitability. The traditional method of handling material, at first glance, appears adequate

24 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

and low cost, but, the spaghetti chart of the material operation shows how expensive it really is. Because life goes on and in many cases painfully, more capacity for SMT lines, better software to run the ERP, more Metro racks with typical bins and some with bar code locations continue to be the practice and unfortunately, win the budgetary decision. Think ROI, not just the cost of smart cart vs. standard shelves and bins. Before you send out the black belt lean ninjas to fight the material challenge, make sure they are familiar with the latest material handling systems, or you may end up with more jerry-rigged contraptions. To win the race for survival, growth and profitability, companies must give the highest priority to the material operation and material handling tools. More SMT lines, faster machines, or new ERP software are not the only, or even the best, answers to achieve their business goals. Fortunately, there are now a number of solutions that can help electronics manufacturers to streamline and take control of the material black hole. These are robotic storage systems if you are an OEM or have limited part numbers, and money is no object, and the smart cart (InoAuto from Inovaxe) if your needs are easy to use, and a fast, flexible, small foot print, with a ROI of less than one year. For more information, contact Ben Khoshnood, President, Inovaxe Corp., 260 S.W. 12th Avenue, Deerfield Beach, FL 33442; 954-531-1363. ben@inovaxe.com www.inovaxe.com

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At Mycronic, we are committed to developing solutions that improve efficiency for your entire operation. We go beyond the assembly line and eliminate bottlenecks throughout the factory. With our 360 degree approach to SMT manufacturing, we help bridge your performance gaps and bring real value to your business. We call this Mycronic 4.0 – a highly automated, intelligent factory for just-in-time production. Let’s meet and discuss your production challenges, and how we create the factory of the future – already today.

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Staying Power in the Fiercely Competitive EMS Business BY BJORN DAHLE, PRESIDENT, KIC

ith a level playing field in terms of access to talent, technology, knowhow, infrastructure, and financial resources, how can an EMS company build a successful business year after year, decade after decade? There may not be a magic formula that works for everybody in this fiercely competitive business. As a matter of fact, having a differentiated strategy relative to the competitors is one opportunity for success. With the ever-growing pricing pressure is there any alternative to penny pinching? In my opinion, not only are there successful alternatives to penny pinching, but they are necessary for long-term success. The teachings of a competitive strategy led by Michael Porter states that in a commodity market there is only one long-term winner. That is the lowest cost leader because he can lower the price until everybody else leaves the business. So unless you are the Walmart or Amazon of the EMS business, you may want to consider a differentiation strategy. One EMS in the St. Louis area has used a number of successful strategies, some of which are counterintuitive, that have led to a successful business since 1963. There may be lessons to learn when dissecting Siemens Manufacturing Co. Inc.’s strategies. (No relation to Siemens AG, the multinational conglomerate). The first striking revelation about Siemens Manufacturing Co. is that it does not specialize in any specific industry segments or applications. As illustrated in Figure 1, Siemens Manufacturing Co. serves numerous industries. According to Director of Business Development Mike Siemens, a diverse spectrum of clients provides less volatility in demand since various industry’s segments tend to be countercyclical to others. A growth in some industry sectors often compensates for downturn in other segments. There is always a risk of being every-

26 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

thing to everybody, which usually leads to being nothing to anybody. There is also a concern that by gearing up the factory to satisfy the most demanding customers, such as the automotive sector, expensive solutions go unappreciated by the less demanding clients. But what if we could look at this strategy in a different light? Are there best manufacturing practices valued by a wide variety of industry segments that also reduce production costs? Before the 2008 industry downturn, Siemens Manufacturing Co. implemented a lean manufacturing practice to run its operation more efficiently at a lower cost. This was a company-wide initiative that proved hugely beneficial over time. Let’s drill down to a specific process and analyze how the company operates. President John Siemens III states that because the pick-and-place machines do a great job, the company focuses more on the reflow and screen printing processes where there is room for improvement. Operational Excellence Manager Kelli Lubenkov believes that the RoHS thermal process is critical due to the narrow process window brought on by the heat tolerances of some of the components. The company has established the practice of profiling every new, unique PCB assembly before starting production. Additionally, previously run PCB assemblies are profiled after production line changeover to verify that the oven is ready to process the assembly in spec. This is an expensive practice because it leads to additional production downtime as well as an extra labor cost associated with technicians performing such a timeconsuming manual task numerous times daily. EMS companies in North America tend to produce a large variety of assemblies in a high-mix/low- to medium-volume production environment. Siemens Manufacturing Co. is no different, with up to half a dozen changeovers per line per day. Client benefit is obvious in terms

of better quality products that carry its

■ Figure 1: Siemens Manufacturing Co. Inc.’s client industry composition

name and reputation. However, such an expensive practice contradicts the trend towards lower cost. Siemens Manufacturing Co. takes a holistic view to running their factories efficiently. Verifying that the reflow oven is ready for an in-spec reflow reduces cost associated with rework and scrap. The company recently was reminded of the cost of poor solderability when it acquired another EMS company. Before implementing the best manufacturing practices at this facility, $7,000 worth of assemblies were scrapped due to incorrect reflow. All this profiling downtime is costly, and part of lean manufacturing is to seek out opportunities for improvements. The company wanted to significantly improve the time it takes to dial in an oven for a new assembly, as well as to speed up profiling after oven changeover. The first step was to acquire prediction software that would identify the most appropriate oven recipe for a new assembly. With literally billions of possible oven recipes, the old-fashioned, manual “trial and error” approach was wasting time. Also, the manual tweaking of the oven recipe depends on operator skill, and it tends to lead to oven recipes that are not optimized for quick oven changeover. While the new oven setup software eliminated the trial and error approach, it still relied on running manual profiles.

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Staying Power in the Fiercely Competitive EMS Business

Siemens Manufacturing Co.’s second step was to invest in a KIC automatic profiling system (Figure 2). Once the automatic system has been programmed, oven changeover is a simple matter of loading the product file, and the automatic system will notify the operator the instant the reflow oven is ready to run the next assembly in spec. Not a moment of unnecessary downtime is sustained. The 2-6 manual profile runs per oven per day for existing assemblies, along with the associated production downtime, are now a thing of the past. Mike Siemens estimates that with 7 lines their factory now saves a total of 5 hours and 15 minutes downtime per day, which represents a daily saving of $1,000. The calculations are based on the following representative numbers for Siemens: • Automatic profiling is saving at least 15 minutes per changeover. • $190 per hour cost of downtime ($90 labor, $100 machine time) • Average 3 changeovers per day on 7 lines. _____________________________________ • 10x3x7= 315 minutes per day • 315/60*$190= $997.50 per day savings

Another benefit is that during the production run, every PCB is profiled automatically, and adherence to the relevant process window is verified. John Siemens stated that there are opportunities for the oven to drift out of spec during a given production run. One example may be an upstream stoppage that leads to a temporary empty oven followed by a wave of tightly spaced PCBs. Such thermal loading may lead to changes in the PCB profile. Other opportunities for profile variations during production may include facility exhaust system changes, human error and more. With KIC, the reflow quality becomes consistent and free of operator influence. This is an example of a win-win situation where the client is ensured a high-quality product (from the thermal process perspective) and full thermal process traceability, while the new reflow technology reduces cost in scrap, rework, production downtime and even electricity use. (Case studies indicate a 15% electricity use reduction opportunity for each reflow oven with the use of oven setup software.) The same investment in lean manufacturing and smart oven technology

28 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

■ Figure 2. Siemens Manufacturing Co. invested in a KIC automatic profiling system to increase production line utilization, and to save both time and money.

also supports Siemens Manufacturing Co.’s other core strategy characterized by an intense focus on customer support. Clients appreciate flexibility, quick response time and fast time to market. The reflow oven prediction software enables a faster NPI and the automatic system offers process documentation, traceability and peace of mind. Siemens Manufacturing Co. is even setting up a factory in Mexico, not motivated by reducing production cost, but by being able to better serve its many clients that now are located in Mexico. Running a lean and flexible factory offers an opportunity to accept projects that few other contract manufacturers can handle. According to Sales Manager Lisa Boland, the flexibility allows the company to react faster and to take on different sized projects, all the way down to small client. As a result, Siemens Manufacturing

Co. has won several contracts over the years with little to no competition due to the difficulty in accommodating clients’ requirements while staying profitable.

Conclusion The intensely competitive EMS industry makes the old adage unacceptable: “There is never enough time to do it right, but there is always enough time to do it twice.” Defects are simply too expensive and “doing it right the first time” is the new strategy. Investing in the right technology and strategy can lead to the best of both worlds: happy customers and higher profits. For more information about KIC, contact Bjorn Dahle, president, at KIC, 16120 Bernardo Center Dr., San Diego, CA 92127; 858-673-6050. bdahle@kicmail.com www.kicthermal.com

■ Figure 3. Siemens Manufacturing Co.’s smart reflow oven.

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From placement to through hole to dispense to odd-form to inspection to board handling to routers to laser markers to material management towers and carts to end-of-line to various complementary software solutionsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; all integrated in an award-winning MES solution (847) 637-9600 PFSAmarketing@us.panasonic.com www.panasonicfa.com ÂŠ 2015 Panasonic Corporation of North America. All rights reserved.

Rework & Repair - No Substitute for Experienced Staff

Rework & Repair –

No Substitute for Experienced Staff

he rework and repair of printed board assemblies need special skills and equipment if it is going to be conducted in a professional manner. There are many very skilled staff who repair boards on a daily basis using the most sophisticated tools or relying on tricks of the trade with basic equipment. Rework can be conducted without impacting the reliability of a product and has been demonstrated in

■ Test Boards used in the Rework Experience.

the past provided it is done correctly. Many people think that rework reliability is based on just the solder joints; however, if we look at potential failure modes there are also surrounding components and the printed board substrate. Any company in the electronics industry, particularly contract manufacturers, should have a world class capability with the tools and skills well defined to meet current and future customer challenges. Many of the component removal and replacement methods are outlined in IPC 7711/7721 and there are specialist training providers who teach operators these techniques so a product can be repair on site or in the field. In reality, however, most product failures are returned to base for component level replacement, particularly fine pitch and area array products. It should be fully understood by management that some soldering technicians do

30 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

BY BOB WILLIS - REWORK EXPERIENCE CO-ORDINATOR

not make great repairers. It’s not that they have a lack of interest but simply some take more easily to rework and have a real pride in perfection. The author has been asked to train staff in PCB track level and component level repairs; on many cases it was clear that they just did not have the patience, this leads to frustration and poor results. For the first time we have created the opportunity to experience all the most demanding rework challenges in the industry with our Rework Experience exhibition feature area at SMT Germany 26-28th April. Visitors can watch experts rework boards featuring area array, fine pitch, underfill and conformally coated boards and ask their advice on your repair challenge. Our latest Experience feature area will provide procedures and practical hands support for your biggest challenges in a real live environment plus the opportunity to win IPC standards and guidance documents. We have been organising special feature areas for many years but this is the first based on rework, repair and Inspection with members of IPC. IPC have been running their Hand Soldering Challenge successfully for many years, a competition to find the best hand soldering operator using a through hole and surface mount test board. The author’s concept was to design a simple test board incorporating fine pitch, area

Meet the Rework Experience Team at SMT Nuremberg 2016 and Take the Rework Challenge.

array and bottom mounted components to further test an operator’s skills. The board design below features components that are widely used in industry today and in many companies the skills to rework these parts is a necessity. The board used in the Experience is 1.6mm laminate with gold over nickel surface finish. The design could easily be adapted with more layers to increase the thermal demand and the challenge. However, when a process for rework is considered or defined during New Product Introduction (NPI) the difference in pre-heat, reflow and dwell time should have been defined for a specific rework station before being used With advanced component design comes other challenges to production staff, the removal of conformal coating before rework and the possibility of underfill or component staking being used on area array components to enhance operational reliability. A world class repair facility and staff should be able to deal with any combination of materials and components. The aim of the challenge is the oppor-

■ One option for replacing PQFP packages or PBGAs is dip paste, a product developed for package on package assembly but has been proven very successful for standard rework.

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tunity to rework and repair one board which features one Plastic Quad Flat Pack, Plastic Ball Grid Array, Chip Scale Package and Quad Flat No Lead packages. The rework operations are conducted in line with accepted standards and meet the inspection criteria in IPC 610 class 3. The time taken to finish the exercise is also important in the judging process. We hope to incorporate the use of convection and IR rework systems typically used in industry but allow participants to use the tools, methods and materials of their choice to meet the inspection criteria defined in IPC 610 class 3. If we look at the four component types, they can be soldered to the boards and reworked using different techniques. In many companies this is defined by engineers; however, if a better and faster technique becomes available the process should be re-examined. It is also the case that not all companies have the correct tools but this is where the experience of the staff is invaluable The following are methods used in the industry to solder or rework parts. The methods in a company may vary

32 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

but it is always worth trying new techniques to enhance skills and possibly improve the process: PLASTIC QUAD FLAT PACK

• Individual leads are soldered manually with wire and a soldering iron • Leads are drag soldered using liquid flux and solder wire • Dip solder paste is used on the leads then the joints are reflowed with IR or convection PLASTIC BALL GRID ARRAY & CHIP SCALE PACKAGE

• Solder paste is applied to the substrate, component placed & reflowed • Flux gel is applied to the PCB or solder spheres, component placed & reflowed • BGA is dipped into dip solder paste, placed & reflowed • Print paste with plastic stencil, place part and reflow Rework of QFN devices often use a mini stencil to print standard leadfree paste on to the package terminations before placing the part and

reflowing in place: QUAD FLAT NO LEAD

• Solder paste is applied to the substrate, component placed & reflowed • Solder paste is printed on to QFN, component placed & reflowed • Solder paste is printed on to QFN & reflowed. Gel flux on QFN pads, placed & reflowed For further information on the BGA, Fine Pitch, Underfill & Conformal Coating Experience at SMT Germany 26-28th April: www.mesago.de/en/SMT/For_exhibitors/ Rework_Experience_Area/index.htm If you would like to feature materials and equipment in the Experience please contact Lars Wallin: LarsWallin@ipc.org For a list of the materials and equipment that may be considered when setting up your onsite advanced rework center email Bob Willis: bob@bobwillis.co.uk

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Stencil Nanocoatings Are Not Just for Fine Pitch Anymore

Stencil Nanocoatings

Are Not Just for Fine Pitch Anymore Cost estimator tool demonstrates cost and productivity savings

t has long been believed that SMT stencil nanocoatings were needed to help release solder paste from small apertures, which is 100% correct. They have also often been considered an option of last resort due to their hefty prices relative to the cost of the stencil itself, which, conversely, is 100% incorrect. While we are delighted to have many leading edge customers like Qualcomm use our technology on every stencil, all too often we hear “Oh, we use your nanocoating on hard to print boards” or “Yes we use your nanocoating on pitches .5mm and smaller.” The reality is that the self-assembling monomer (SAMP) nanocoating affords many more benefits to the stencil printing operation than simply release on small features. It has been shown to reduce wipe frequency, improve print definition and decrease variation in deposit volumes. While some polymer nanocoatings can cost more than the stencil itself, NanoClear coatings cost PCB assemblers an average of $25 to $50 per stencil, depending on whether the users opt to apply it themselves or to have the stencil supplier do it for them. In most cases, the cost of the nanocoating can be paid back in hard savings in less than 200 print cycles alone. That payback does not take into account the increased capacity generated by less down due to less paper changes; nor does it consider the better print definition! So as quality guru Philip Crosby would say, “Quality is free”! Now we hear you sounding like characters in the Jerry Maguire movie: “SHOW ME THE MONEY!” So to demonstrate the cost and productivity improvements, we enlisted Chrys Shea, of Shea Engineering Services, to apply her knowledge and experience to develop a cost savings estimator tool. The Excel workbook she created helps calculate the average cost of SMT defects and under wiping consumables, and translates those

34 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

BY EDWARD HUGHES AND MARIO GATTUSO, ACULON

Rework and Consumables Cost Calculator

■ Figure 1. Cost Calculator sheet.

to cost savings per print, annualized cost avoidance, and additional production availability. Here’s how it works: The workbook, which is available for download from our website at www.aculon.com has two tabs. One calculates the costs of both simple and complex rework, and the cost per wipe of paper and solvent. The other calculates the payback and additional uptime. The numbers are all input directly by the user to allow them to play “what if ” scenarios. The workbook is completely transparent; there are no locked cells, hidden formulas or assumptions. To use the cost estimator, begin with the Cost Calculator tab shown in Figure 1. “Simple Rework” is considered a repair that can be performed with hand tools like soldering irons, solder vacuums or wick. “Complex Rework” is considered a repair that requires a rework machine. Notice that machine cost is not included in the calculation because they vary among facilities, original cost and age. Only average labor, benefit and overhead rates are required. These figures can easily be accessed with a phone call or email to an operation’s accounting department. The time requirement for complex repair should consider the removal and replace-

ment or shielding of nearby components, and the time to clean, redress and reprint pads, as well as reball BGAs and/or reprint area array devices. The average labor rate for complex rework is usually higher than that of simple rework because of the higher skill level required. The cost of paper and solvent, if not already known to the user, can be accessed by contacting either the purchasing department or the supplier. The stencil printing engineer using the spreadsheet should also know the length of the roll, advance length per pass, and number of passes in a wipe cycle. The length is written on the roll’s label, and the advance length and number of passes in a cycle are usually programmable parameters in the printer itself. The sheet comes with default values for typical North American operations in the white cells, but each entry can be changed to reflect the user’s own scenario. The user can accept the defaults or input their own values. The spreadsheet then applies the inputs to determine the cost of simple and complex defects, and the cost of wiping consumables. The calculated values in the yellow cells are then automatically fed to the Savings Calculator

www.globalsmt.net

Stencil Nanocoatings Are Not Just for Fine Pitch Anymore

Cost Savings of NanoClear SMT Treatment Enter information into the white cells; calculations appear in yellow cells.

■ Figure 2. Savings Calculator sheet.

tab, shown in Figure 2. The left column of the Savings Calculator sheet is broken down into three categories: Quality, Productivity, and Cost Reduction. In the Quality category, the user inputs the current first pass yields and the projected first pass yields. This presents an excellent opportunity to try different projections and instantly see the results. The user also inputs the percentage of defects that are simple and complex, using the same criteria as the Cost Calculator tab. Also similar to the Cost Calculator tab, the user inputs data in white cells and the calculated numbers appear in the yellow cells. The labor savings for reduced rework are shown directly beneath the Quality section. In the Productivity section, the user inputs the current number of prints before wiping and the projected number. The projected number may be based on NanoClear trials, or estimated. Estimates generally range from 2X for frequent wiping (every 1-3 prints) to 1.5X for less frequent wiping (every 10 or more prints). Again, multiple inputs can be tried to quickly assess the cost savings for different scenarios. The yellow cell shows the percent wipe reduction, and the savings per print are shown directly beneath the section. The Cost Reduction section requires no inputs; they are simply the calculations for labor and consumables costs that were determined on the Cost Calculator tab. They remind the user what figures

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resulted from the Cost Calculator inputs and were used in determining the savings in the previous two sections. The right column of the Savings Calculator requires just a few more simple user inputs: the cost of NanoClear and its application, if an application cost is anticipated. It uses the total quality and productivity savings per print to calculate the number of prints required to pay back the cost of the NanoClear and any associated application fees. The payback is generally within a few hundred prints. Finally, the Annual Savings section

projects the yearly savings using the input number of prints per hour, number of production hours per week and the calculated savings per print. The “Bonus Section” – or the number of additional line uptime hours due to less wiper roll changes - is calculated from the inputs on the number of roll changes per week and the time required to change the roll. It is based on the concept that because the printer is the first process in the line, downstream processes stop and wait on a roll change to resume producing. Shea has three main comments on the creation of the calculator: “First, we needed to make it as simple and straightforward as possible, which is why we took machine cost out of the equations. Investigating asset values and depreciation schedules are usually beyond the scope of CALCULATOR OBJECTIVES 1. Simple 2. Customizable 3. All Calculations Transparent

the traditional process engineering role. Of course, engineers can add these figures and calculations if they want to. “Second, we wanted to make it ‘currency-neutral’ to avail it to all regions of the world. While it is currently formatted in USD, it can easily be used with Euros,

Benefits of NanoClear SMT Stencil Treatment

■ Figure 3. NanoClear benefit matrix.

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Stencil Nanocoatings Are Not Just for Fine Pitch Anymore

RMB, Rupees, Baht, or any other global currency unit. “Finally, we were committed to making the calculations completely transparent. By not locking any cells or hiding any formulas, users can easily see how the results are computed and customize any parts of the sheets to best fit their operation.” She continues to comment “The biggest challenge of the three goals was the first.

Many cost calculations include equipment values and indirect labor reductions, which can present challenges to quantify. I consulted with an international manufacturing finance director on the topic and followed his guidance to remove these factors. Because the NanoClear has such a low acquisition cost, these inputs are really not necessary to realize a fast payback period.” Again, because of the

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straightforward nature of the spreadsheets, engineers can add these factors at their own discretion. A third tab in the workbook is a benefit matrix to help engineers estimate the improvements that NanoClear will afford their process (Figure 3). Like the calculation sheets, it breaks down improvements by quality, productivity or cost reduction. It classifies the level of improvement as measureable or substantial based on population density, component mix or component type. A final note on the NanoClear cost calculator is that it provides an excellent tool to help engineers cost justify other production items, like higher quality papers that don’t require as much usage, solvent wipes to improve print quality, and SPI systems or printer improvements based on defect cost. The calculator can be downloaded directly from the Aculon website, from the Global SMT website or from www. sheaengineering.com If the ability to reduce costs, improve quality and enhance productivity do not get an engineer on the nanocoating train today, then it is only a matter of time. SMT stencil technologies have always evolved in response to manufacturing demands. Sometimes the costs or “newness” of enabling technologies have slowed their adoption rates, but eventually they go mainstream. For example, it took a while for the industry to move from chemically etched to laser cut apertures, from generic stainless steels to specialty alloys, and from single thickness foils to multilevel steps, but the technologies all gained acceptance as they became more proven and less expensive. The earlier adopters enjoyed competitive advantages that the lagging, later adopters missed. SAMP nanocoatings aren’t new; they were first introduced over 5 years ago and have been used around the world to improve a broad variety of stencil printing processes. But unlike other process improvement technologies, they never required a back-breaking cost premium to improve performance. In fact, their low cost, ease of use and quantifiable cost savings has made them easy to adopt, and their popularity is growing on a daily basis. We encourage you run the numbers yourself, and we look forward to seeing you on the Nanocoating train very soon!

www.globalsmt.net

Surface Pretreatment: A Vital Prerequisite for Successful Copper Plating!

Surface Pretreatment: A Vital Prerequisite for Successful Copper Plating! One green acid cleaner for all kinds of HDI and MLB substrates BY RAMONA S. MERTENS, DR. ECKART KLUSMANN, HENNING HÜBNER – ATOTECH DEUTSCHLAND

Introduction

n order to successfully run through the entire electrolytic copper plating process, more steps than only the electrolytic copper deposition itself has to be considered in order to receive a good result. A typical process flow for electrolytic copper plating includes the following steps seen in figure 1. The first step consists of the cleaning sequence. It is required in order to prepare the substrate surface for metal deposition, i.e. in detail to ensure copper adhesion and uniformity, removing impurities from the surface such as finger prints or resist residues. Thus it provides overall wetting of the finest structures for all following steps. The cleaning sequence

38 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

■ Figure 1: Electrolytic Copper Plating Process.

is followed by the optional etch cleaner process step which creates a defined micro-roughened surface for optimum copper to copper adhesion. After that the acid dip conditions the substrate and finally copper can be deposited within the copper plating step. The proceeding reduction in lines and spaces within the PCB industry requires improved pre-treatment for cleaning and wetting of all structures to ensure void free copper deposition.

diffuse in water and adsorb at interfaces between air and water. Surfactant micelles help to clean surfaces from hydrophobic residues if they have stronger adsorption forces than the surface residue to the panel surface:

Step 1 - Micelles absorb the surface residue.

Pretreatment Mechanism The acidic pretreatment process prior to pattern plating includes beside cleaning an wetting two basic functions. The desoxidation of copper surface and neutralisation of e.g. dry film developer residues. 1. Desoxidation of copper surface:

Step 2 - Residue cracks and gets lifted from surface.

CuO + 2H+ → Cu2+ (bulk) + H2O 2. Neutralization of dry film developing: OH- + H+ → H2O CO32- + 2H+ → CO2 + H2O →

CupraPro S8 is a new acid cleaning pretreatment which is designed to offer high flexibility for the substrates to be pretreated. Pretreatment by acid cleaners is a vital process step in order to grant successful copper plating within the PCB production. The described pretreatment is intended for multiple use, i.e. for MLB as well as HDI applications in hoist type equipment. This fact offers a tremendous flexibility to PCB manufacturers. This article describes a novel high performance pretreatment which cleans and activates the electroless copper layer on a biodegradable basis without harming the dry film.

Main component of cleaners are surface active substances. Ionic, amphoteric or non-ionic surfactants such as alkoxylated fatty alcohols can be used. They have a hydrophilic group – its water soluble head – and a hydrophobic group, i.e. their tail which is not water soluble. Surfactants

Step 3 - Residue gets suspended in “pseudo”-micelle. ■ Figure 2: General cleaning mechanism

The additives used in cleaner formula-

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Surface Pretreatment: A Vital Prerequisite for Successful Copper Plating!

Problem Statement Possible contaminations can be caused by fingerprints through temporary storage of the boards. The touched parts show a greasy film which by all means has to be removed before taking further steps within the copper plating process. Otherwise a proper copper deposition will be inhibited. Another inhibitor can be an oxide layer when the boards were exposed a certain period of time to the ambient air. The reaction with the air oxygen immediately causes a passivation of the sensitive electroless copper layer.

Requirements

■ Figure 3: Advanced designs need enhanced pre-treatment.

tion should result in a medium-low foaming acid cleaner providing a high stability of formulation and concentrate.

Manufacturing Trends Process reliability has become a major factor for PCB manufacturers whilst board designs are becoming ever smaller, finer, sophisticated and delicate. By that the probability of voids occurring during the production process and thus the scrap rate becomes higher than ever before. Hence nowadays it is even more vital to have process security granting void free deposits. This requirement is supported if the pretreatment of a substrate is effected correctly. Unfortunately this topic does not always obtain reasonable attention by PCB manufacturers, which can be one of the reasons why downstream electrolytic processes lead to defective results. Misleadingly the plating process itself is blamed for those defects, although the root cause in the majority of cases lies in the insufficient pretreatment of the substrate. With the appropriate cleaning, scrap rates may be reduced. A good pretreatment done with the optimum acid cleaner will set the course for a smooth process flow of all downstream process steps. Most important for manufacturers is that pretreatment can be done in a rapid and reliable manner, without leaving residues which cause voids in the copper deposit. For sufficient cleaning

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it is vital to grant a comprehensive wettability of the board including smallest vias. This ensures the activation of the electroless copper layer without leaving out any geometry which is the current market requirement.

The new cleaner should fulfil the requirement to give fast wetting even in complicated structures, especially in through holes. It should be flexibly applicable without any compromise. Apart from excellent cleaning, fast, reliable and good wetting without leaving any air bubbles in the holes is one of the requirements. Many of the conventional cleaners have problems fulfilling this requirement. As the EU is demanding biodegradability and compliance to certain norms, biodegradability and also minimum waste water became also important. The challenge was to develop a green cleaner which reliably gives wetting and cleaning to finest designs, reaching all holes, lines and spaces for panel and pattern plating applications. On the one hand the cleaning effect had to be very good and at the same time foaming has to be controlled. The new cleaner should have more and better benefits than the existing ones in order to complete the acid copper plating process and increase the plated product quality. During its development, it was benchmarked in lab scale tests against standard Atotech acid cleaners as well as against competitor cleaners and has shown excellent results.

Pretreatment Development ■ Figure 4: Typical foaming behaviour of cleaner – foam collapses quickly.

Therefore the new developed acid cleaner is well suited for MLB, Automotive as well as HDI applications. The multiple applicability is another benefit for manufacturers who produce many products, as they need only one cleaner.

An R&D project had been started to develop an acid cleaner with improved performance compared to the existing products in the market whilst also meeting the new regulations in the European Union. The used surfactants have to be biodegradable based on European legislation according regulation (EC) No 648/2004. An increasing number of countries

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Surface Pretreatment: A Vital Prerequisite for Successful Copper Plating!

■ Figure 5: Comparison of finger print removal effect of CupraPro S8 and other conventional

■ Figure 6: Static surface tension

cleaners.

comparison.

have similar environmental legislation controlling on pretreatment processes. In particular this also applies for acid cleaners for metal working applications including electronics applications. According to European regulations no cleaner product is allowed to be used that contains nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPE) or perfluoro octane sulfonates (PFOS). These important surfactants are widely used also in cleaner products on a worldwide basis. At the same time the cleaning performance had to compete against that of the existing product containing NPE and PFOS. The following properties have to be fulfilled: • Improved cleaning performance judged by removal of finger prints from the substrate surface prior to copper plating • Removal of oxide layer and thus activation of electroless copper • Effective and rapid wetting of all structures particularly for high aspect ratio through holes and BMVs • Removal of resist residues on developed track areas but no resist undercut for pattern plating applications • Optimum preparation of all substrates to ensure best possible copper to copper adhesion and uniformity • Acceptable foaming properties • Conform to EU legislation for acid cleaners, i.e. free of NPE and PFOS and biodegradable Initial screening of surfactants took into account the water break characteristics, the capability to remove finger print marks from a copper surface as well as

40 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

the foaming ability. Out of the possible replacements surfactants have been chosen which also have the lowest surface tension of 27.1 mN/m. The new acid cleaner has been formulated using this biodegradable surfactants in compliance with the EU norms. The first tests have been made in the Berlin Tech Centre to compare directly the new product with existing products under same conditions. The test of capability to remove finger prints from surfaces has successfully been passed. The test was made on a hull cell foil which had been marked with different finger prints and then plated for 20 minutes at 1.5 A/dm² in standard copper electrolyte. Comparison was made with the cleaners after cleaning for 5 minutes. The new cleaner was tested at different temperatures finding a broad process window with excellent cleaning performance. Within upscaling tests series at a Tech Centre in Guangzhou/ China, the new cleaner has been compared to his predecessor. The results in this up-scaling have shown that the new cleaner is at least equivalent to the former cleaner in terms of fingerprint. The surface tension is one of the important characteristic properties of a cleaner. The developed acid cleaner – CupraPro S8 – has been benchmarked in lab scale tests against standard in-house acid cleaners as well as against competitor cleaners. The results of the new cleaner were excellent as it is shown in the graphic below. The described static surface tension or interfacial tension is the timeindependent value of the surface tension

within the thermodynamic equilibrium in contrast to the dynamic surface tension which is related to a certain surface age. The reason for the necessity of both measurements is the fact that detergents cause a reduction of the surface tension due to their adsorption on the phase boundary. After a certain period of time, a thermodynamic equilibrium between surface concentration of the surfactant and their concentration in the volume phase occurs. The static surface tension thus is the value measured in that equilibrium state. In contrast to that the dynamic surface tension changes during the time elapsed and thus gives a better indication of the actual wetting speed of a substance. During the qualification phase the static surface tension, dynamic surface tension and analytical data were monitored as well as the influence of replenishment dosing. The static and the dynamic surface tension are main variables describing the wetting capability and wetting speed of a cleaner. The results are: • The analytical data indicates that the replenishment procedure by measuring the total acid concentration works fine. • The low static surface tension could be controlled stable during production. • The dynamic surface tension performance is slightly reduced over one month production. Nevertheless after less than 10 seconds the surface tension becomes almost independent from bath age. Subsequently after developing the new cleaner, a qualification could be

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B E CO M PATIBL

Surface Pretreatment: A Vital Prerequisite for Successful Copper Plating!

was to lead the change to green plating technologies to reach finally • a non-Carcinogenic, non-Mutagenic and non-Reproductive toxic, i. e. CMRfree • a NPE-free, • PFOS-free, • toxic heavy metal free (e.g. Pb, Hg, Cd), chemical environment. With the developed cleaner we go one step further in this direction. It is biodegradable and fully compliant to European legislation. Thus it is compliant with international environmental laws and norms. On top of that its use leads to cost reductions regarding recycling and refeeding to the ecological circular flow.

Economical Aspects

■ Figure 7: Dynamic surface tension comparison.

successfully completed at a customer in the UK. During one month of production, several properties of the cleaner have been evaluated on different test panels as well as on production panels. The new cleaner proved its excellent results compared to the European standard predecessor. The qualification of the cleaner has shown that there are no performance problems with the new cleaner under production conditions. It demonstrated that it is equivalent or better than the established predecessor while fulfilling

all European legislations. The customer was very satisfied with the cleaner performance in production and successfully uses the new cleaner since then. By that the development phase was successfully finalised. CupraPro S8 has shown superior or at least equivalent results in all tests so far to the existing cleaners however with the significant difference that the new process is compliant with European legislation. Performance Results at a glance • Outstanding cleaning performance • Effective and rapid wetting of all structures, especially high aspect ratio through holes and BMV’s • Good copper activation and easy rinsing of cleaner • Very low dry film attack for best pattern plate results

Equipment

■ Figure 8: SEM picture of dry film after cleaning with CupraPro S8 shows smooth treatment of dry film resist and excellent removal of residues. No sign of beginning dry film delamination.

42 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

The developed cleaner shows optimum performance if used in vertical hoist type equipment. All the positive attributes such as extraordinarily good cleaning performance and fast wetting are adjusted for vertical hoist type equipment.

Environmental Aspects One of the goals for the development

Through the positive wetting and cleaning attributes, the use of the mentioned cleaner significantly reduces drag out and thus minimizes waste water. It also reduces bound capital costs caused by high stock inventory as a manufacturer can use this universally applicable cleaner for many applications. Hence PCB manufacturers do not need separate cleaners for each type of product. The developed cleaner is the solution for many types of application.

Conclusion The new developed cleaner is the perfect pretreatment compromise regarding cleaning effect, rinseability, low surface tension and acceptable foaming: • CupraPro S8 demonstrated better cleaning performance prior to copper plating in terms of removal of finger prints, oxide layer and other residues. • During the plating process the dry film side walls were well wetted. No voids by air bubbles even in high aspect ratio through holes could be detected. No sign of any dry film lift-off or delamination was found, giving no risk of undercut. • Very fast wetting speed, proven by dynamic surface tension measurements. Through holes and micro vias wetting is excellent. • Even with one month old CupraPro S8, the wetting of blind micro vias showed

www.globalsmt.net

no voids caused by poor wetting, also no skip plating of blind micro vias was observed. • Green, biodegradable cleaner which is compliant with European legislation according regulation (EC) No 648/2004. • Cost savings through reduced drag out and thus minimized waste water. This optimum combination of benefits grants a reliable surface preparation of all kinds of substrates for subsequent plating processes. REFERENCES 1. Kenny, Stephen/ Magaya, Tafadzwa/ Molon, Stephanie (2011): Leading the Change to Green Plating Technologies 2. Kanani, Nasser (2009): Electroplating, Basic Principles, Processes and Practice. 3. Manahan, Stanley E. (2013): Fundamentals of Environmental and Toxicological Chemistry – Sustainable Science. 4. Hofmann, Hansgeorg/ Spindler, Jürgen (2010): Verfahren in der Beschichtungs- und Oberflächentechnik: Grundlagen – Vorbehandlung – Oberflächenreaktionen – Schichtabscheidung – Strukturierung – Prüfung 5. Atotech, Products, Electronics, Panel and Pattern Plating, Vertical Cleaners: http://www.atotech.com/en/products/electronics/ panel-pattern-plating/vertical-systems/pre-treatment.html 6. Atotech, Corporate Sustainability: http://www.atotech.com/corporate/sustainability.html

AUTHORS Apart from her study background in Industrial Engineering, Ramona S. Mertens has been working in- and outside Germany for several renowned global players. She attained professional experience within the steel, photovoltaics and industrial automation fields as Marketing, Project and Product Manager before she joined Atotech’s Product Management for Panel and Pattern Plating. Dr. Eckart Klusmann studied Chemistry at the Heinrich-Heine-University in Düsseldorf. He received his PhD in Physical Chemistry. After his thesis he started working with Atotech in 1997 developing a PECVD process for metallization of polymeric dielectrics. He changed to the business unit for electrolytic plating processes for PCBs and worked as manager for nickel and gold plating. Currently he is working for R&D in this business unit focusing on cleaner development. Henning Hübner studied Industrial Engineering at Technische Universität in Berlin, majoring in Chemical Engineering. Starting in 2007 he gained a wide-spread knowledge and expericence regarding electroplating processes within Atotech in an internationally focussed environment. As an expert in the Panel and Pattern Plating field, in 2013 he was promoted as Global Product Manager.

44 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

www.globalsmt.net

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2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016

C U S T E R A N D C U S T E R -T O PA I

2015 Wrap Up

with Thoughts for 2016

2015 finished with global electronic equipment sales down 0.7% in Q4’15 vs.Q4’14 when consolidated at fixed 2014 exchange rates but down 5.4% at fluctuating exchange (Chart 1). Weaker currencies conversion to stronger dollars significantly impacted the financial results of multinational companies when their revenues were converted to U.S. dollars.

underlying demand in most markets will create only modest growth at best. 2016 looks to be a challenging year.

On a fluctuating exchange basis 4Q’15 was difficult for the entire global electronic supply chain as only datacom and medical electronics and large EMS companies saw sales grow versus the same quarter in 2014 (Chart 2).

MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS

Semiconductor shipments also began to decline at year-end with Asia flat and N. America, Europe and Japan dropping sequentially from November to December (Chart 3).

Smartphone shipments increased 5.7% y/y to 399.5 million units in 4Q’15. –IDC

Taiwan-listed ODM companies as a group reported a very modest 0.2% sales increase in 2014 when expressed in local currency (NT$) but were down 4.4% in 2015 vs. 2014 when converted to US$ (Chart 4). Due to a combination of normal seasonality and Apple’s December cut back on iPhone orders, September 2016 finished quite weak for the ODMs with January 2016 down 15% versus January 2015 and down 21% sequentially from December 2015 (Chart 5).

End Markets Worldwide IT spending is forecast to grow 0.6% y/y to $3.54 trillion dollars in 2016. –Gartner

WALT CUSTER AND JOHN CUSTER-TOPAI

NETWORK EQUIPMENT

Cloud IT infrastructure revenue grew 23.0% y/y to $7.6 billion in 3Q’15. –IDC Passive optical network equipment market revenue will grow at a 20.7% CAGR from US$24.8 billion in 2014 to US$163 billion by 2023. –Transparency Market Research FLAT PANELS

Combined shipments of devices (PCs, tablets, ultramobiles and mobile phones) are expected to increase 1.9% y/y to 2.4 billion units in 2016. –Gartner

China’s smartphone shipments grew 11.5% q/q to 119 million units in 4Q’15. –Digitimes Research

India’s mobile phone production is expected to reach 500 million units by 2018. –Department of Telecom COMPUTERS & PERIPHERALS

Notebook shipments are expected to fall 2.5% y/y from 157.4 million notebooks in 2015 to 153.5 million units in 2016. –Digitimes Research

Curved LCD TV panel shipments are expected to grow from 6.1 million units in 2015 to 12.5 million in 2016. –Sigmaintell Consulting

Large area LCD market will grow from 738 million units in 2015 to over 820 million by 2019. –Technavio LCD monitor shipments declined 10% y/y to 123 million in 2015. –Digitimes Research

LCD TV shipments are expected to increase 3.3% y/y to 222 million sets in 2016 after falling 0.6% in 2015. – TrendForce

Notebook panel demand fell 12% y/y in 2015 to 176 million units. –IHS

EMS sales were less volatile. A group of large EMS companies had 2015 revenues increase 1.5%. Foxconn is included for comparison. Growth varied significantly by company (Chart 6). Excluding Foxconn, 4Q’15 revenues were up 1% and the combined “guidance” of six public domestic EMS companies was for a 0.9% increase in the first quarter of 2016.

PC shipments declined 8.3% y/y to 75.7 million units in 4Q’15. –Gartner

Smartphone display panel shipments are expected to grow 7% y/y from 1.82 billion units in 2015 to 1.95 billion units.

Tablet shipments dropped 13.7% y/y to 65.9 million units in 4Q’15. –IDC

AUTOMOTIVE

Enterprise solid-state drive market will grow at over 7% CAGR to USD 10 billion by 2020. –Technavio

Automotive blind spot detection market will increase at an over 21% CAGR to more than US$ 3 billion by 2019.

As we have moved into 2016 the exchange rate impact should be minimal as we will be comparing 2016 to 2015 rates but the

3D printing spending will grow at a 27% CAGR from nearly $11 billion in 2015 to $26.7 billion in 2019. –IDC

Automotive wiring harness market will expand from US$ 39.7 billion in 2015 to

46 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

–WitsView

–Technavio

www.globalsmt.net

2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016

Exchange Rate Impact on US$ Denominated Consolidated World Electronic Equipment Sales Quarterly Revenue Growth Converted to US$ @ Fixed 2014 vs Fluctuating Exchange

US$ 39 billion in 2016 and US$ 40.2 billion in 2017. –evertiq

ROBOTS

–ABI Research

Humanoid robot market is expected to grow from ¥1.7 billion in 2014 to ¥24 billion in 2020. –Fuji Keizai WEARABLES

Smartwatch, bracelet sales will reach 100 million units in 2016. –Digitimes Wearable electronic devices sales will increase 18.4% y/y from 232 million units in 2015 to 275 million in 2016. –Gartner Wireless-charging-enabled wearable products shipments reached 23 million units in 2015. –HIS EMS, ODM & RELATED ASSEMBLY ACTIVITY

AEM Suzhou sold its plating business to Jiangsu Yunyi Electric. BB Electronics was sold to an investor

group consisting of representatives from management and the board. BenQ Materials is constructing new

facilities for producing medical products that will go into production in 2017.

15 % Growth

Consumer drone shipments will increase at a 30.4% CAGR from 4.9 million units in 2014 to over 90 million by 2025.

Impact of strong US$ Global growth @ constant exchange but loss @ fluctuating exchange

10 5 0 Fixed

-5 -10

Fluctuating

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 2010

2011

2012

2014

2015

Global model based on regional shipment indices ■ Chart 1

Global Electronic Supply Chain Growth 4Q'15 vs. 4Q'14 (preliminary) -15 Electronic Equipment Military Business & Office Instruments & Controls Medical Communication Internet Computer Data Storage Automotive Consumer SEMI Equip Semiconductors (SIA) Passive Components PCBs Component Distributors Large EMS (excl Foxconn) ODM Process Equipment Materials Rigid & Flex Laminate

-10

-5

-7

-14

CO-EL of Italy added three Yamaha SMT

lines to its 3,500 M2 facility in Mozzate, Italy.

2013

-7 -7

-3 -9

-7

-8 -9

-5 -5

-8

-6

-2 -2 -2 -2

-5

% US$ Change US$ equivalent at fluctuating exchange; based upon industry composites including acquisitions

■ Chart 2

Compal set up a smartphone factory in

New Delhi, India.

Computrol purchased two MV-7 OMNI 3D In-Line AOI machines from MIRTEC. Corintech added a Europlacer

pick&place machine in Fordingbridge, Hampshire. Creation Technologies achieved ISO

13485 certification in all of its business

www.globalsmt.net

units across the USA, Canada, Mexico and China.

Enics Slovakia received ISO 27001:2013

Ducommun

EPE added a Nordson Dage XD7600NT Ruby FP X-Ray system and a Pillarhouse Jade MKII selective soldering machine.

...named Doug Groves, CFO and Kevin Wright VP of Strategy and Business Development. ...sold its Pittsburgh, PA. (formerly LaBarge) PCBA busin ess unit to a private investment group for $38.5 million.

certification.

Fabrinet hired Hong Hou as Exec VP

and CTO.

Flex entered into a product development

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016

Total Semiconductor Shipments to an Area Monthly Shipments - Reporting Firms Asia Pacific

$ Billions

20.0 18.0 16.0

Japan

14.0

N America Europe

12.0

Asia-Pac

10.0 8.0 6.0 4.0 0.0

Jan Jun Nov Apr Sep Feb Jul Dec May Oct Mar Aug Jan Jun Nov Apr Sep Feb Jul Dec May Oct Mar Aug Jan Jun Nov Apr Sep Feb Jul Dec May Oct Mar Aug Jan Jun Nov Apr Sep Feb Jul Dec May Oct Mar Aug Jan Jun Nov

2.0

15 16

SIA website: www.sia-online.org/ ■ Chart 3

Large Taiwan ODM Providers 2014 vs. 2015 Sales ($M) Foxconn (Hon Hai) Pegatron Quanta Computer Compal Electronics Wistron Asustek Computer Inventec Chimei Innolux Lite On Technology Total

2014 139,032 33,632 30,566 27,909 19,534 15,747 14,376 14,145 7,611 302,551

2015 141,202 38,224 31,726 26,685 19,631 14,875 12,456 11,469 6,828 303,094

2015/2014 Growth % +1.6% +13.7% +3.8% -4.4% +0.5% -5.5% -13.4% -18.9% -10.3% +0.2%

Source: Company data, NT$ converted at constant avg 2015 exchange (31.75 NT$ = 1US$) Consolidated company sales; 2015 up 0.2% in NT$ but down 4.4% in US$

Foxconn Electronics increased produc-

tion of robot Pepper for SoftBank at its factory in Yantai City, China.

Foxconn Electronics’ investment arm, Icreate Investments acquired 10.7% stake in Katerra for US$51 million.

48 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

GPV International was acquired by

Schouw & Co. for DKK 400 million (EUR 53.6 million). Hanza merged its production units in

Tartu and Aruküla, Estonia.

Inventec Appliances increased overall

production efficiency by over 20% and reduced the workforce at its factories in eastern China from 21,000 employees to 17,000-18,000 with addition of automated production lines. Jabil

...acquired South African energy solutions provider and systems integrator, Inala. ...is celebrating 50th anniversary. Key-Tech Electronic Systems added two fully automated Yamaha Z:LEXYSM20

modular surface mount machines.

■ Chart 4

and manufacturing partnership with Enable Injections for wearable medical devices.

Zhengzhou, China had a fire which did not cause any production impact. ...laid-off 480 people in Indaiatuba, Brazil, which produces mobile phones for Sony Mobile, due to low demand. ...plans to double capacity at its Andhra Pradesh facility to 2.5 million smartphones a month by year-end 2016. ...started mobile handset production in India for Oppo. ...subsidiary, FIT turned its consumer electronics manufacturing base in Jiangsu, China into a technology tourism factory. ...subsidiary, Socle Technology and Sequans Communications began developing LTE products for IoT/ M2M apps. ...bought Macquarie APTT Management from Macquarie Group. ...is shifting toward advanced technologies, such as big data and smart robots. ...was the largest patent applicant in Taiwan in 2015.

Foxconn/Hon Hai

...set up smartphone-use cover glass production lines in Henan Province, China. ...expanded production of parts for PCs, set-top boxes and IoT in India. ...subsidiary Ennoconn invested US$57.3 million for 49% stake in Kontron Canada. ...subsidiary FIT bought Avago’s optical module business. ...iPhone-manufacturing facility in

Kitron relocated its Norway facility from

Hisøy to Kilsund and consolidated its Swedish operations to Torsvik.

Libra Industries’ Dallas facility com-

pleted audits for ISO 9001:2008, AS9100 and ISO 13485-2012. Lite-On Technology plans to focus 2016

operations on cloud technologies, LED lighting, automotive electronics, biomedi-

www.globalsmt.net

2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016

Taiwan ODM Companies Composite Sales of 11 Large Manufacturers

cine and industrial automation. facility in Billerica, Massachusetts.

1,200

New Kimpo Group plans to expand

1,000

production capacities in the Philippines and Brazil in 2016. Newbury Electronics purchased an

Antares 700 X X-ray reference hole drilling machine. Note AB appointed Stefan Hedelius,

President and CEO.

Partnertech closed operations at its Norwegian subsidiary, PartnerTech AS. Pegatron opened a repair and mainte-

nance service center in Japan for smartphone devices (primarily Apple iPhones).

NT$ (Billions)

800 600 400

Jan 2016 down 15% vs. Jan 2015 and down 21% sequentially from Dec 2015

200 0

Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan May Sep Jan

MC Assembly moved into a 58,000 SF

Company Financial Releases

15 16

■ Chart 5

Large Global EMS Providers

Probe Manufacturing changed its name to Clean Energy Technologies.

2014 vs. 2015 Sales ($M)

Quanta Computer

Quicktronics Group acquired Elcon in Horsens and renamed it Quicktronics Scandinavia.

Asustek Computer, Chei Mei, Compal Electronics, Foxconn, Chimei Innolux , Inventec, Inventec Appliance, Lite On Technology, Mitac International, Pegatron, Quanta Computer, Wistron, Chei Mei Display replacing Chei Mei & Innolux Display 3/10 & later

PPI-Time Zero acquired New Age EMS.

...began mass production of second-generation Apple Watch. ...increased investment in subsidiary, ThinkTech (Brazil) by US$27.2 million. ...was the largest notebook ODM in 2015 with 43.3 million notebooks shipped.

Calendar Year

Hon Hai (Foxconn) Flextronics Jabil Circuit Sanmina-SCI Celestica Benchmark Elec Plexus Venture Mfg. Sypris

Taiwan Singapore USA USA Canada USA USA Singapore USA

Total

2014 138,765 26,920 15,969 6,439 5,631 2,797 2,509 1,945 355

2015 141,717 24,598 18,557 6,238 5,639 2,541 2,606 1,928 153

2015/2014 Growth % +2% -9% +16% -3% 0% -9% +4% -1% -57%

201,331

204,291

+1.5%

Saline Lectronics purchased a

StorageSolutions Fortress (ISM2000XL) unit from Juki. Scanfil completed acquisition of Partnertech.

Sources: Company data Local currency converted at fluctuating exchange ■ Chart 6

Director and promoted Karen Heath to Supply Chain Director.

and a Nordson ASYMTEK Quantum Q-6800 dispensing unit for encapsulation.

SVI (Austria) acquired Seidel Electronics Group Companies.

VirTex Enterprises hired Rick Polansky

President and CEO following resignation of Cary Wood.

TPV closed its TV and monitor manufac-

Speedboard Assembly Services

Valtronic purchased a Kurtz North America HR600 hybrid rework system

Wistron invested in a KISS-101IL in-line selective soldering system from ACE Production Technologies.

SMTC

...(Dongguan, China) received ISO 13485 certification for medical devices. ...appointed Roger Dunfield, CFO. Sparton named Joseph Harnett, Interim

appointed Martin Bullimore, Operation’s

www.globalsmt.net

turing plant in Jundiai, Brazil.

as Sr. VP of Business Development.

Zentech Manufacturing named Greg

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016

Large U.S EMS Providers Composite of 6 Public Companies Revenue, Net Income & Inventory

Revenue

25.0

+1.0%

Income

20.0

MFLEX was acquired by Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing. Nippon Mektron Mektec deployed Orbotech DI and AOI systems in mul-

Inventory

15.0

tiple factories.

10.0

Nova Drilling added an advanced UV/ CO2 laser drill from Nano System.

5.0 0.0

PCi purchased two flying probe testers from CLTech.

-5.0 -10.0

perimeter polishing machine.

Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 Q3 Q1 2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015 2016

Benchmark+Pemstar, Celestica, Flex+Solectron, Jabil, Plexus, Sanmina

Printline A/S (Odense, Denmark) was acquired by Jörgen and Flemming Buhl, Jette Grinderslev and Lars Baun. Quadrivio acquired the majority of

Somacis for €100 million

■ Chart 7

Rodgers Director, Business Development / Delaware Valley region.

duction engineering solution into its West Chicago facility.

Zober Industries (Croydon, PA)

AT&S established partnerships with Adapt Electronics and Schillinger Associates to expand PCB sales support

achieved ISO 13485:2003 quality certification for contract manufacturing of medical devices.

in U.S.

Sumitomo formed a JV with Alpine Electronics in Poipet, Cambodia to

produce circuit boards used in car navigation systems for Japanese manufacturers in Thailand. TTM Technologies had an industrial fire

in Costa Mesa that burned a manufacturing warehouse.

Zollner opened a production plant in

Bay Area Circuits added an Accu-Score

PCB Fabrication

Calumet Electronics became certified to process Isola’s I-Tera MT40 laminate materials.

Materials & Process Equipment

Cambridge America rented a 5,600 SF facility in Branford, Connecticut to expand PCB business.

–Research in China

Cartago, Costa Rica.

Global FPCB market grew 3.4% y/y to about USD13.4 billion in 2015 and is expected to expand another 2.2% y/y to USD13.7 billion in 2016. –Research and Markets

AS-100-MAX V-scoring machine.

Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Philippines’ combined PCB revenue growth was most likely flat, at around $1.6 billion in 2015. –Dr. Hayao Nakahara

Canadian Circuits appointed Jack Driver

Thai PCB industry generated about $2.5 billion revenue in 2015.

duction facility in Petach Tikvah, Israel.

–Dr Hayao Nakahara

Vietnam’s PCB revenue was approximately $960-1,000 million in 2015. –Dr. Hayao Nakahara

American Standard Circuits integrated an Orbotech Paragon 9800 LDI system, Sprint 120 Inkjet system and an InPlan

and InSolver impedance solver pre-pro-

50 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Sales Representative for U.S. Southwest.

Eltek purchased a Diamond 8 solder mask system from Orbotech for its pro-

Enzmann closed its small batch produc-

tion facility in Geretsried, Germany.

Gul Technologies (Jiangsu) added an Orbotech InCAM and InPlan pre-pro-

duction solution.

Lab Circuits installed a Pluritec Inspecta

Combo X-ray drilling and display unit and a Shoda Techtron flash cutting and

China’s AOI market for PCB industry reached RMB4.9 billion in 2015. Electronics conformal coating market is estimated to grow at a 5.99% CAGR from USD 1.7 billion in 2014 to USD 2.4 billion by 2020. –Research and Markets Europe electronics adhesives market will grow at a five-year 7.85% CAGR from $709 million in 2014. –Research and Markets

LED production equipment market is expected to grow at a 5% CAGR to US$1.5 billion by 2019. –Technavio Quantum dot market will grow from USD 306 million in 2014 to 4.6 billion by 2021. –Radiant Insights, Inc. AIM Solder’s Mexico Sales Coordinator

www.globalsmt.net

2015 Wrap Up with Thoughts for 2016

Fabiola Nuñez and Latin America Sales Manager Rodrigo Cacho were appointed SMTA Mexico Chapter Officers.

lead its technical support team in Ashbyde-la-Zouch, Leicestershire.

Fisnar Europe appointed Robert

Alpha selected Yamaha YCP10 high-

Electrolube hired Alistair Little for the

position of Global Business Technical Director for resins division.

HumiSeal expanded sales, support and

performance compact printer for key laboratory facility in New Jersey. China National Chemical acquired KraussMaffei Group from Onex. Cobar Solder Products

...relocated its sales office to South Carolina ...began producing SN100C wire and bars in the U.S. and solder paste and fluxes in Mexico.

versary in 2016.

ESI introduced RollMaster roll-to-roll

material handling system for automating flex printed circuit manufacturing. European Space Agency commis-

Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris

plans to step down by mid-2017, following the DuPont merger. Dymax Steven named Steven Suzuki,

Europlacer Americas is celebrating

Electrolube appointed Jade Bridges to

manufacturing operations in Pune, India. Insulectro

Emil Otto is celebrating its 115th anni-

sioned four European tech companies to develop an additive layer manufacturing breadboard machine capable of 3D printing electric circuit boards within the International Space Station.

Global Account Manager for U.S. Western Region.

Campbell, Product Line Manager.

10-year anniversary in 2016.

Fischer Technology opened a sales

office in Livonia, Michigan.

...hired former Isola OEM Sales Manager, Leena Gulia as a Technical Sales Manager. ...promoted Norm Berry to Director of Laminates and OEM Marketing in the Sales and Marketing Group. inTEST combined electrical and mechan-

ical product segments to form new entity, EMS Products Division. Isola

...named Jeff Waters, President and CEO. ...former plant (and equipment) in Elk Grove, California were put up for sale. Juki Automation Systems

...hired Greg Brown as Selective Solder Applications Engineer. ...promoted Jose Carlos Rodriquez to

See us at IPC APEX Expo 2016 March 15-17 Las Vegas Convention Center Booth 3010

www.globalsmt.net

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

International Diary

Sales Manager, Mexico. Keysight Technologies and Tsinghua University established an EDA

Laboratory for Information and Communication System Design.

TestEquity established a Canadian sub-

sidiary in Montreal.

Ventec International Group appointed

Mark Nemecek, Technical Sales Engineer. Yamaha

Koh Young sold its 1000th in-line AOI

ity in San Diego, California.

...IM America launched new, interactive web site at www.yamaha-motor-im.com ...integrated Aegis FactoryLogix software with its Programming PTools. ...IM Europe appointed Andreas Grünewald, Application Engineer / Inspection Solutions AOI AXI. ...introduced its YSi-V 12M TypeHS 3D inspection machine for assembled high density circuit boards.

Mek (Marantz Electronics) introduced an

ZESTRON Americas appointed Steve

system.

LPKF Laser & Electronics launched

a new laser drilling and cutting system specifically tailored to flexible circuit industry. Manncorp purchased an 18,000 SF facil-

ISO-Spector, inline 3D topographical & imaging AOI.

Williamson, Regional Sales Manager.

Mycronic purchased RoyoTech and Kognitec.

Semiconductors & Other Components

North Branch Capital acquired Circuit Check from Tonka Bay.

Global semiconductor industry sales decreased 0.2% y/y to $335 billion in 2015. –SIA/ WSTS

NuSil appointed Charles Kummeth to

Technology Board of Directors.

Orbotech received an order for seven

Emerald UV laser drilling systems from a leading Japanese manufacturer of ceramic-based electronic components and solutions. Rockwell Automation acquired MagneMotion. Rogers sold its polyimide and thermoset epoxy laminate unit to CriticalPoint Capital. SAKOR Technologies moved from

Okemos, Michigan to a 20,000 SF facility in Owosso, Michigan.

Semiconductor assembly & testing services market will expand at a 4.7% CAGR from $29.6 billion in 2015 to $39 billion by 2021. –Persistence Market Research Semiconductor capital spending is projected to decline 4.7% y/y to $59.4 billion in 2016. –Gartner Semiconductor R&D expenditures grew 0.5% to $56.4 billion in 2015. –IC Insights Silicon wafer area shipments increased 3% y/y in 2015 to 10,434 million square inches. –SEMI

SEHO North America appointed Jessica

Top 10 wafer fab leaders had an installed capacity of 11,737K wafers/month at the end of 2015, which equates to 72% of global capacity. –IC Insights

Showa Denko developed solder mask

Korea’s semiconductor fab combined equipment and materials spending will likely top $15.3 billion in 2016. –SEMI

Andrews-Griffin, Key Account Manager for DENSO.

resist for 20 to 30 micron class COF modules of flat displays. SST International named A.J. Wilson,

President.

52 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

N America-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers posted $1.34 billion in orders worldwide in December 2015 (3-month average basis) and a book-to-

bill ratio of 0.99. –SEMI Advanced packaging technologies in the semiconductor industry will account for 44% of packaging services with revenue increasing from $9.8 billion in 2014 to $30 billion by 2020. –Yole Développement Handset baseband IC market declined 12% y/y to US$5.1 billion in 3Q’15. –Strategy Analytics

High-brightness LED shipments will grow 31.8% y/y in 2016 to 245 billion chips with a shipment value of US$12.8 billion. –Digitimes Research IC market will expand 4% y/y to $47.5 billion in 2016. –IC Insights IoT chip market will grow at an 11.5% CAGR from US$ 4.6 billion in 2015 to US$ 10.8 billion by 2022. –MarketsandMarkets

Samsung Electronics and Apple purchased 17.7% (US$59 billion) of global semiconductors in 2015. –Gartner Smartphone AP market declined 9% y/y in 3Q’15 to US$5.3 billion and tablet AP market fell 38% y/y to US$828 million. –Strategy Analytics

Thin wafer market is expected to grow at a 3.7% CAGR from USD 6.8 billion in 2015 to USD 9.2 billion by 2022. –Markets and Markets

Advanced sensor revenue is expected to grow from $1.2 billion in 2016 to $3.2 billion in 2025. –Navigant Research Fingerprint sensor market shipments grew from 316 million in 2014 to 499 million in 2015 and are projected to increase to 1.6 billion in 2020. –IHS Image sensor market is forecast to grow at a 4.1% CAGR to $12.9 billion by 2020. –Research and Markets

Sensor hub market will grow from 1.0 billion units in 2015 to nearly 2.0 billion in 2018, driven by the smartphone market. –IHS Non-volatile memory market is estimated to expand at of 9.9% CAGR to US$ 80.5 billion by 2022. –MarketsandMarkets

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Enter the Third-Dimension Control your process in 3D

Visit us at APEX 2016 March 15-17th Booth 2534

速

International Diary

I N T ERN AT ION A L March 1, 2016 SMTA Houston Expo & Tech Forum Stafford, Texas USA www.smta.org/expos/#houston

March 7-9, 2016 CMSE - Components for Mil & Space Los Angeles, California USA www.cti-us.com

March 14-17, 2016 GoMAC Tech Orlando, Florida USA www.gomactech.net

March 2-3, 2016 National Electronics Week Durban, South Africa www.new-expo.co.uk/newsa

March 8-10, 2016 SATELLITE National Harbor, Maryland USA www.satshow.com

March 15-17, 2016 APEX IPC Expo Las Vegas, Nevada USA http://ipcapexexpo.org

March 3, 2016 SMTA Dallas Expo & Tech Forum Dallas, Texas USA www.smta.org/expos/#dallas

March 9-10, 2016 Smart Systems Integration Munich, Germany www.smartsystemsintegration.com

March 15-17, 2016 CPCA Show Shanghai, China www.ying-zhan.com

March 5-12, 2016 IEEE Aerospace Conference Yellowstone, Montana USA www.aeroconf.org

March 13-14, 2016 Design & Manufacturing New England Boston, MA USA www.oemnewengland.com

March 15-16, 2016 IMAPS Device Packaging Fountain Hills, Arizona USA www.imaps.org/devicepackaging

March 6-9, 2016 Burn-in & Test Socket Workshop Mesa, Arizona USA www.bitsworkshop.org

March 14-18, 2016 CeBIT Hanover, Germany www.cebit.de

March 15-17, 2016 Expo Electronica Moscow, Russia www.expoelectronica.ru

54 Global SMT & Packaging â&#x20AC;˘ March 2016

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Tech that Actually Improves Lives

STOTEN

Tech that Actually

Improves Lives

’ve just returned from a show where I watched robots select and warm cookies and it made me think of all the pointless stuff that technology has given us. Robotics particularly seems to struggle to find its useful place in society. Robot vacuum cleaners seem to clean less well than we do, and to be honest, I can easily warm my own cookies. But if you follow me on twitter (@ philipstoten) you will have noticed me tweeting some great products that seem to actually be improving, or even saving lives. Bionic legs that are so light paraplegics can wear them under their clothes, or intelligent socks that prevent diabetic amputations, watches that predict hypoglycaemic episodes, and the wrist wearable that provides an emergency inflation device that I saw at January’s Wearables Technology event in Munich. For some time I’d seen 3D printing as a solution looking for a problem, until I saw it used to produce custom joint replacements, or recently skull implants that exactly fit the hole left from brain tumour surgery. Medicine is an obvious use of technology and it really can have a huge impact. Traditional medical research and the pharmaceutical industry are driven by the development of treatments and drugs. Technology seems to offer some advancement in prevention, selfdiagnosis and self-management, thanks to sensors and apps that work on the ubiquitous smartphone. The health industry is creaking under the strain of an aging population that thanks to wealth and abundance have abused their bodies. Obesity and subsequent diabetes are at epidemic levels leaving many health services unable to cope with demand. Perhaps technology has some, if not all, of the answers. Self-monitoring and selftreatment may be concepts that can help reduce the impact on governments and if physicians can access real-time

56 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

data remotely and intelligently they may be able to predict and prevent problems before they become acute. Alongside this trend in monitoring we are seeing the medical technology industry constantly inventing new and exciting way of improving the lives of those with injuries or disabilities, like the aforementioned bionic legs and other endoskeleton systems that can achieve mobility and independence that was hitherto inconceivable. These are indeed greatly exciting

PHILLIP STOTEN

developments! Also improving the outcomes for an aging population is awareness in terms of general fitness and wellbeing. Technology seems to offer us more ways of measuring the various factors that contribute to our health. As and iPhone user, I am aware of the number of steps I take in any given day, the number of kilometres I have walked or run and the number of floors I’ve climbed. I have a heart rate monitor on my device as well as applications that tell me when I should run based on a particular goal and also when my son is running further and faster than me, and being a competitive soul, that gets me out trying that little bit harder. One hopes that this new found interest in our lifestyle and in fitness supported by our smartphones, our fitbits, our fuel bands and other wearables will help to achieve a population that is aware and as a result fitter and less prone to the diseases that come from a indulgent sedentary lifestyle. The more people participating in fitbit challenges the better off we’ll all be. The last trend that I wanted to touch on that has a positive impact is ‘sharing’. As a society we love to share – selfies, where we are, where we’ve run, where we’re cycling, what we’re doing and what we’re eating. I’m often cynical about all this sharing, particularly when people spend so long photographing their dinner in a restaurant. But this sharing allows us to benchmark and compare our performance. I know that apps like Strava, which thousand of runners and cyclist use, make us more competitive, participating in monthly distance or speed challenges and comparing results against friends and peers. Surely this can’t be a bad thing. So, let’s keep building tech that improve lives, using all this cool enabling technology like sensors and 3D printing to solve some real problems… @philipstoten www.wearescoop.com

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International Exhibition and Conference for System Integration in Micro Electronics Nuremberg, 26 – 28 April 2016

Experience the diversity of assembly production: System development • Production planning • Materials and Components • Manufacturing equipment • Reliability and Test • Software • Service and Consulting •

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Information: +49 711 61946-828 smt@mesago.de smthybridpackaging.com

Interview

Rick Ertmann

Alpha Assembly Solutions

iniaturisation, increasing automotive electronics and the market for silver are just some of the topics discussed in this in-depth interview with Trevor Galbraith, Editor-in-Chief and Rick Ertmann, President, Alpha Assembly Solutions. What trends do you see emerging with modern interconnection materials?

There is definitely a shift away from high-lead solders in favor of ultrahigh thermal conductive die attach materials, specifically for use in the power semiconductor and power module package sector. Modern interconnection materials are essential for use in the high volume manufacturing automotive electronics market. Our Alpha Advanced Materials business (AAM) manufactures products specifically for this segment, ALPHA Atrox and ALPHA Argomax, that can meet HVM demands. Another trend is the constant push for miniaturization. This is where we think Alpha is also well positioned with our solder paste and preform product lines. In recent years we had significant spikes in the cost of silver and other precious metals. The price has stabilized, but do you foresee a time when it could be prohibitive to use precious metals in interconnection materials?

We believe the industry will need silver bearing alloys for the foreseeable future. Many silver bearing alloys provide reliability that silver-free alloys cannot. But we also recognize that there are many applications where silver-free alloys, or even lowmelting point alloys, are perfectly acceptable. That’s why we’ve launched our SnCX silver-free alloys and several solder pastes with low-melting point alloys.

58 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

What is driving the trend towards sintered materials?

The technology is leading toward smaller packages with higher power, which requires better heat dissipation.

Our Alpha Advanced Materials business (AAM) manufactures products specifically for this segment, ALPHA Atrox and ALPHA Argomax, that can meet HVM demands.

Sintering technologies allow components to meet these challenges with overall increased reliability. For instance, with die interconnection we can eliminate wire bonding and replace with a clip attach process (i.e. no wire connections) for a longer shelf-life. Through a die attach process, we see higher thermal conductivity and increased reliability. The ALPHA Argomax product line was developed as a solution for this technology trend. How cost effective is the process?

The overall value of sintering is very good, even in comparison to high-lead solder alloys. This is a high throughput process, easy to implement and extremely compact in terms of floor space in a production environment. And, you gain higher reliability from the products. Cars have recently been labelled :”the newest consumer electronics accessory”! How much of your research is geared towards the increasing amount of electronics found ‘under the hood’?

We have dedicated resources to focus on the complexity of material selec-

tion for automotive electronics. The requirements and applications of these electronics is continually expanding and Alpha is in a leading position and has developed some groundbreaking programs over the last decade which have re-defined the capabilities of automotive electronics to survive in high temperature, high vibration environments. This covers interconnect materials at the semiconductor die level, through to the solders used at PCB assembly. Are there any specific challenges that automotive manufacturers are having with the increased amount of electronics in cars?

There are many, but specifically weight and space has become a key challenge. A lot of weight is added due to the amount of cabling in a car to join the mass of electronics and sensors. These cables can reach 100Kgs in a large sedan for example. To address this issue, Alpha has been working on

We believe the industry will need silver bearing alloys for the foreseeable future. Many silver bearing alloys provide reliability that silver-free alloys cannot.

product technologies that will enable a significant reduction in automotive cabling weight. In the past the automotive industry experienced serious issues with electronic migration and tin whiskers. With the new era of driverless cars on the horizon, how big a concern is electro-migration, solder creep and tin whiskers?

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Interview

Our new organization provides enhanced innovation and service structure for customers around the world and at every step of the supply chain.

It’s certainly a concern, but with the right material this can be avoided. The key is engagement. Our technical support engineers work closely with customers to ensure that our products chemistry is relevant to the application and meets or exceeds reliability requirements. In terms of products, ALPHA CVP-390 solder paste has leading electrochemical reliability and works with a suite of alloys to meet the most stringent creep resistance requirements. We see that Alpha was recently acquired by Platform Specialty Products Corporation. What changes, if any, can we expect to see from you in the future?

Our new organization provides enhanced innovation and service structure for customers around the world and at every step of the supply chain. With this recent acquisition, Platform created a new division, MacDermid Performance Solutions, that combines the initial MacDermid operations with the newly acquired businesses, which include Enthone and OMG in addition to Alpha. With our combined resources, we are one of the largest technological and service oriented forces in the industry. We have started doing business as Alpha Assembly Solutions to indicate our position as the leader in the electronics assembly solutions within the new organization. The core of the Alpha brand will remain. As always, we aim to be the industry’s preferred supplier of high performance materials and chemistry by delivering leading technology…represented by our innovative products, processes and people. – TREVOR GALBRAITH

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Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

New Products

NEW

■ Kyocera’s new LCDs TCG070WV, TCG104XG and TCG121XG feature super high brightness, wide viewing angle and PCAP touchscreens.

KYOCERA introduces TFT-LCDs for industrial applications

Yamaichi Electronics extends M12 and push-pull series

Kyocera announced three new TFT-LCDs with Projected Capacitive Touchscreens (PCAP) that offer an ideal user interface for a wide variety of industrial applications such as medical equipment, factory automation, test and measurement, and marine application. PCAP touchscreen technology, the key touch innovation in smartphone and tablet applications, is valuable because of its high sensitivity, high reliability, and ability to support multiple touches. PCAP touchscreens require only gentle contact to activate; there is no need to press hard as with resistive touchscreens. Popularized by consumer devices, the technology is now migrating to industrial applications, especially direction Industry 4.0. Kyocera will initially offer the PCAP touch solution on its most popular display sizes, including: 7.0-inch, 10.4-inch and 12.1-inch. The touchscreen surface features anti-glare and anti-fingerprint treatments for better performance, and offers the option of either I2C or USB touch interface. All three products incorporate Advanced Wide View (AWV) technology and achieve 170-degree viewing angles from both vertical and horizontal directions. With this, also the portrait mode is no problem. It’s easy to incorporate Kyocera’s new PCAP LCD displays into compact equipment designs. www.kyocera.eu

Yamaichi Electronics is expanding its M12 and push-pull connector series with a CAT6A version in each series. Yamaichi Electronics in Europe continues to work on building out its M12 product series Y-Circ M and the push-pull circular connector series Y-Circ P. Based on the familiar modular system of the Y-Circ M, in which 360° shielding and vibration protection can be added by modular configuration, Yamaichi Electronics has now completed a CAT6A version. This X-coded, IEC 61076-2-109-compliant connector permits the interference-free

60 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

transmission of signals up to 10 Gbit/ sec. That highlights the competence of Yamaichi Electronics when it comes to the design and production of high-speed connectors. Special insulating inserts were developed for high-speed data transmission. To ensure conformity with CAT6A, the pin layout in the insulator was fully redesigned. This particular layout is available in the diameters of 12 and 15mm. So far, this is unique on the market. Even at the smaller size 12, 10Gbit/sec can be achieved. The customer can select the specific connector size in accordance with their requirements. The M12 in CAT6A is also IP68 protected and meets the strictest quality standards for secure contact. The same is true of the CAT6A push-pull in IP50. This is particularly vital for demanding applications in industrial environments. To permit fast, flexible production, these high-speed versions in both series are also produced by Yamaichi Electronics in Germany. This location has been active for years in the area of cable configuration and the production of connectors. Matthias Schuster, product manager for the entire Y-Circ product family at Yamaichi Electronics, says this about the Y-Circ M: "The version with X-coding is an extension of our existing CAT6A products in the RJ45 and push-pull areas. www.yamaichi.eu

■ Kyocera TFT-LCDs with PCAP.

www.globalsmt.net

New Products

Globally matched SonoTools streamline inspection Automated acoustic micro imaging tools in different manufacturing plants can often produce different images of defects in identical components. Resolving these differences to qualify component quality acceptability can be difficult and time-consuming. Automated C-SAM systems, such as the ‘dual tray - dual scanning’ DF2400, that give precisely the same image of a given component at all of a company’s locations have now been introduced by Sonoscan and are already at work in multiple plants worldwide. Called Globally Matched SonoTools (GMST), the new systems unleash the full potential of automation, calibration and consistency to image and qualify large numbers of components with a minimum of human attention. At any of a company’s locations, a technician selects the scan recipe for a component, pushes a button, and gets fully comparable results. There are no discrepancies to discuss with other manufacturing locations. The new systems differ sharply

from the more common non-automated laboratory type systems and from unmatched production systems. www.sonoscan.com

Reconfigurable Probe Station COAX, Inc. has introduced a reconfigurable probe station (Model W4.0 x L6.5) This mini probe station is meant for the busy design engineer or technician. It’s used to test a chip or small circuit board for the project that cannot wait for the local lab probe station availability. The probe station has small footprint (X = 22 in, Y = 9 in, Z = 8 inch) and can be used at the desk or a lab. It’s easy to transport weighing only 9 pounds. The probe station is fully manual with the following features: 4.0 inch x 6.5 inch test plate with vacuum holes; wide probe holder plates on each positioner with multiple holes for probe mounting; both positioners can slide back and forth in the X and Y directions and can be moved toward the DUT at the angle; the height positioning is

■ COAX, Inc. introduces a reconfigurable probe station.

accomplished via digital micrometers; and each positioner can be locked independently. Magnetic plates attach to the normal probe mounting holes to allow additional magnetic XYZ positioners with fine adjustment; probe arms are adjustable in the X, Y, Z, and theta. This probe station is compatible with all standard wafer probes and many DC needle set-ups. www.D-COAX.com

Keep it Smart. Keep it Simple.™

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Edge Belt Conveyor Buﬀering Systems Laser Marking Systems Robotic Assembly Cells

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www.Simplimatic.com Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

62 Global SMT & Packaging â&#x20AC;˘ March 2016

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New Products

Microtronic GmbH now offers Permalex Squeegees

I/O command-slave function in our RC8 controller makes it easy for customers to program and operate our robots from within their familiar PLC or PAC environment, without having to learn a specialized programming language.” www.densorobotics.coms

Indium Corporation’s Indium8.9HF solder paste Indium Corporation's Indium8.9HF is a halogen-free, no-clean solder paste that is specifically formulated to Avoid the Void, while delivering high transfer efficiency with low variability. In addition to outstanding print transfer and response-to-pause, this no-clean solder paste also provides excellent pin-in-paste solderability and hole-fill, while remaining stable at room temperature for up to 30 days. Indium8.9HF is perfectly suited for a variety of applications, especially automotive, due to its unique oxidation barrier technology. This solder paste delivers robust reflow capability and a

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■ Indium8.9HF solder paste.

wide process window, accommodating various board sizes and throughput requirements, minimizing potential defects. Indium8.9HF solder paste is part of Indium Corporation’s family of high-performance, lead-free, low-voiding, no-clean solder pastes that help manufacturers to Avoid the Void. www.indium.com

Microtronic GmbH is pleased to announce that it has added Transition Automation, Inc.’s Permalex Edge Metal Squeegees to its product lineup. Permalex Squeegees are a premium brand of metal squeegees used for SMT and microelectronics printing applications. Permalex squeegees incorporate many customer needs such as long service life, improved printing quality, ease of use and ease of ordering. Permalex Edge Squeegees directly support the lead-free process by assuring maximum print quality despite the reduced wetting and joining performance of lead-free materials. Ernst J. M. Eggelaar, President of Microtronic commented, “We are excited to add to the solder materials from AIM to offer an even more complete and well-rounded solution to our customers". Transition Automation, Inc. is the worldwide leading supplier of the long life Permalex metal squeegees. www.transitionautomation.com

Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

Association News

ASSOCIATION North American PCB industry – 0.4 percent sales growth in 2015 IPC – Association Connecting Electronics Industries announced the December 2015 findings from its monthly North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. Slow sales growth continued in December, bringing 2015 to a close at 0.4 percent growth over 2014. The bookto-bill ratio returned to parity at 1.00 in December. Total North American

PCB shipments increased 0.6 percent in December 2015 compared to December 2014. Year-to-date shipment growth remained at 0.4 percent. In December, year-to-date growth reflects the entire year of 2015 over 2014. Compared to the previous month, PCB shipments were up 6.7 percent. PCB bookings rose 1.5 percent compared to December 2014. Year-to-date order growth in December, which represents the entire year of 2015, was up 2.5 percent over 2014. Orders

64 Global SMT & Packaging • March 2016

in December were 6.4 percent ahead of orders in the previous month. “Although North American PCB industry sales ended 2015 just slightly ahead of 2014, orders have grown a bit faster,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “This, and the long run of positive book-to-bill ratios in 2015, falling below parity for just one month, indicate the likelihood of continued slow growth in 2016,” she added. www.ipc.org

SMTA International 2015 Best Papers Announced The SMTA is pleased to announce the Best Papers from SMTA International 2015. As speakers at SMTA International, individuals make contributions to the industry by sharing their research and findings. To reward exceptional achievement, $1,000 awards and plaques are given for the Best of Conference Presentation, Best of Proceedings Paper,

and the Best International Paper. The winner from SMTA International 2015 for the Rich Freiberger Best of Conference Award, as selected by the conference attendees, is Bob Willis, bobwillisonline.com, for his presentation entitled "Assembly Process and Product Failures-Causes and Cures." The award is based on the conference attendees' rating of each speaker at the technical session. Bob donated half of his prize to the Charles Hutchins Educational Grant. Paul Vianco, Ph.D. from Sandia National Labs won the Best of Proceedings category for the paper "Establishing a Ti-Cu-Pt-Au Thin Film on Low Temperature Co-Fired Ceramic (LTCC) Technology for High-Temperature Electronics." Co-authors include J. Rejent, M. Grazier, A. Kilgo, B. McKenzie and A. Allen, Sandia National Laboratories; E. Guerrero and W. Price, Honeywell Inc. Matt Kelly, P. Eng., MBA, IBM Corporation, won the Best International Paper category for his paper entitled "Via-In-Pad Plated Over (VIPPO) Design Considerations for Enterprise Server and Storage Hardware." Co-authors include Mark Jeanson, Timothy Younger, Jim Bielick, Theron Lewis, and Mitch Ferrill, IBM Corporation. This award and the Best of Proceedings are selected by the SMTA International Technical Committee. A new award category, Best Student Presentation, was awarded to Cong Zhao, Auburn University, for his paper “Long Term Aging Effects on the Reliability of Lead Free Solder Joints in Ball Grid Array Packages with Various Pitch Sizes and Ball Alignments.” Co-authors include Chaobo Shen, Zhou Hai, Jiawei Zhang, M. J. Bozack, and J. L. Evans, Center for Advanced Vehicle and Extreme Environment Electronics (CAVE3), Auburn University. The authors will formally be presented their awards at the Opening Ceremony during SMTA International on September 27, 2016 in Rosemont, Illinois. For information on participating in the 2016 SMTA International Conference, visit the Call for Papers page. Abstracts can be uploaded directly on-line and will be accepted through February 29, 2016. www.smta.org

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“Cirtech provides high-mix, quick-turn contract manufacturing solutions to a broad base of customers who demand the highest quality products. We pride ourselves on our flexibility and the ability to rapidly respond to the needs of our customers. When it comes to purchasing new manufacturing equipment, it is critical to select the appropriate technology necessary to meet and exceed our customer’s expectations. After evaluating several 3D AOI machines, we selected MIRTEC’s MV-6 OMNI system as the best platform to satisfy our demanding inspection requirements” William Sirois, V.P. of Operations

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