Tech Articles

P. D. Circuits Inc. provides a "from the ground up" approach to managing supply chain data. As a distributor of bare boards, P. D. Circuits interacts with customers as well as suppliers, and manages domestic and offshore operations, with offices in Taipei, Taiwan, and Shenzhen, China, supporting business.

High-Tech Conversions manufactures a variety of wiping products and can supply end users with virtually any type of consumable item used in cleanrooms, assembly lines, laboratories and manufacturing. The company is proactive and responds quickly and accurately to customers' needs. It also offers high-quality products at reasonable prices and strives to be ultra-efficient to keep overhead costs low.

Solder corrosion in the form of electrochemical migration has been studied and long known as a failure mechanism in electronic assemblies. Ionic contaminants, especially in the presence of moisture, increased power, whisker growths, and leakage currents, can lead to corrosion. The trend toward highly dense assemblies reduces the spacing between conductors while yielding a larger electronic field.

Sono-Tek is continually developing new applications for its unique technology, replacing wasteful practices in a world that is growing ever more environmentally sensitive.

One of the paradoxes facing many electronics assemblers today is the need to increase production through the addition of automation, while keeping valuable, skilled employees who are long-time assets to the company.

Without a doubt, the US electronics industry is going through one of its toughest eras ever over the last seven years. Much of the manufacturing has been moved offshore to cheaper markets, with China taking the lion's share.

Mandeep Singh of Reed Exhibitions discusses the upcoming NEPCON India Exhibition and its impact on the electronics manufacturing industry.

Fernando Rueda of Kyzen Corporation discusses the increased demand for lead free cleaning in assembly manufacturing.

A leading EMS company, NBS Design, Inc. delivers a complete contract manufacturing solution to meet complex product requirements across semiconductor, military, communications, industrial and medical markets. Based in Santa Clara, Calif., NBS Design was founded in 1999 as a PCB layout specialist.

Josephine Lee of Reed Exhibitions discusses the success of the NEPCON series of exhibitions

Wayne Wagner of Krayden Inc discusses the future of the Mexico market for lead-free soldering manufacturing.

Several new approaches to the print stroke recently have been introduced, with the specific intent of producing accurate, well-defined solder pads at increased rates of squeegee travel, thus lowering total machine cycle time.

SN100C (Sn99Cu0.7 with Ni- and Ge-micro-additions) is a lead-free solder alloy that is finding increased acceptance globally and holds promise as a mainstream solution in terms of long-term solder joint integrity when compared to SAC-alloys.

A supply chain management expert, Zurvahn is an EMS provider for low- to mid-volume products to OEMs worldwide. Zurvahn assists customers in designing reliable products, manufacturing products cost effectively, providing lower inventory requirements, and delivering quality products and services on time.

Ball Grid Array BGAs are a widely used technology in a vast range of products including consumer, telecommunications and office based systems. As an area array device it provides high packing density with a relatively easy introduction cycle.

Bjorn Dahle, KIC discusses advances in automated thermal processes

For the first time in its history, Apex has moved from Southern California, and this year is going to be held at the Mandalay Bay Convention Centre in Las Vegas. For the last several years Apex has been the de-facto show in the US Electronics Production Sector, having replaced Nepcon West as the primary West Coast exhibition. Originally the show was run in the Anaheim Convention Centre, close to Los Angeles.

In January 2007, Yossie Riemer joined Sono-Tek Corporation as the VP of Engineering. By September of the same year he had been promoted to President of the company. Josie’s background was from the food and biotech sectors. He spent four years as R&D Director for Pfizer, and five years as a consultant to companies in this sector. His primary degree was in Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology His main interest is in technology transfer, i.e. bringing existing technology from one sector of industry, and implementing it in a new sector. Sono-Tek Corporation was originally established as a provider of superior spray coating solutions. Their first systems were designed for use in the Electronics Industry, but they soon diversified into Medical, Glass and Chemical Industries. They are now in a financially solid position, and are investing heavily in the growth of the company. The growth plan at the moment is to double or triple existing sales over the next two years.

Mike Scimeca, the founder of FCT, comes across as an easygoing, laid-back type of guy from Colorado. He has a chemistry degree from the University of Florida (graduated 1987), and subsequently worked for a Cookson Distributor selling a range of their chemical products. In 1991, he went off on his own, and founded Florida CirTech, a company specialising in Chemicals and Metals, primarily for the Bare Board industry. The other shareholder and partner in this venture is Glen Sikorcin, currently the VP of Florida CirTech.

Nihon Superior, the Global Company that developed and holds the patents for SN100C Lead Free solder alloy, have been working in the US Market for around four years now. This has primarily been done through their licensees; FCTAssembly, based in Greeley, CO and since 2006 through AIM Solder, based in Montreal, Canada. Nihon works closely with distributors around the whole world. They currently have Balver Zinn working with them in Europe, and also working closely with European companies manufacturing in Asia. In addition they have FCTA, currently in North America, and looking to open offices in Asia, and AIM Solder, who are headquartered in Canada and work with Nihon in both North America and in Asia.