Publication date: 08 May 2008
Mexico has and will remain a strong N.A. manufacturing base for all global companies. We have not seen the loss of electronics manufacturing to China and the rest of Asia that was originally predicted.
Mexico is showing to be more reliable in regards to labor, and logistics is now becoming an issue with China, especially when the electronics industry is so dynamic. Lead times of 60 days minimum are inconvenient at best.
The world wants lead-free products and Mexico is still formidable in its reach. To supply Europe as well as the growing “Green Products and Companies List,” Mexico continues to convert reflow and wave applications that were traditionally 63/37 applications.
Mexico also has a large automotive electronics manufacturing segment and this alone will cause the next five years growth of lead-free technology.
We already have developed high visibility customers as well as local supply availability. Between K.I. and KM, we have six sales representatives working with FCT Assembly’s Mexican Sales representative Mr. Sergio Juarez.
This brings local support, technical seminars, training, product selection and installation support throughout Mexico. I dare say no other lead-free supplier can deliver all this expertise as quickly and efficiently as the FCT Assembly, Krayden, Inc. and Kraydenmex team.
Needless to say, we believe that SN100C will be the alloy of choice due to the long history of use in the rest of the world.
FCT Assembly has grown to be a top supplier in the N. A. lead-free market. It has a strategy of working through distribution to reach the local customers. This plays well in regards to Krayden, Inc.’s strategy of not bringing every line to our customers, but rather only the ones we believe have value and performance advantages for them.
FCT Assembly fits well into K.I. and KM strategy since they bring the SN100C lead-free product line that requires technical expertise working with the customers when they make this all-important change.
Although the Mexican market has been a lower quality market than the United States, this was never reflected in the stencils purchased. In many cases, customers in Mexico were purchasing electroformed stencils because of their ability to hold up longer than a typical stencil.
FLS has had success with our stencils because of the new technology that we bring to the market. With our electrolaser stencil, we are able to offer equal quality with the electroform stencil with turn times of one day vs. one week.
Today lead-free is still relatively new in Mexico. If a company operates 10 wave solder machines, less than 20 percent run lead-free. In reflow, applications are spottier. They are driven by application and need depending on the end market and customer requirement.
Today, due to few options, SAC has been the dominant lead-free alloy. But as more technical and scientific studies appear, SN100C is quickly taking over, similar to how it has done in both Asia and Europe. We expect Mexico to follow and SN100C will become the alloy of choice in the emerging lead-free market.
Krayden Inc. and KR Anderson have joint ownership. Both companies have similar philosophies: technical sales force, not the most suppliers only the best and world-class customer service that provides options not excuses. Both companies take care of the Big Three: engineering, production, procurement. No other distributors bring all these functions together in real life. For most, it is just a statement. But for Krayden and KR Anderson, it is a lifestyle.
Dow Corning: Dow Corning stays with one unique technology — silicones! Dow Corning is the largest and most diverse silicone manufacturer in the world.
Huntsman: I like to think of Huntsman as the Dow Corning of the Epoxy and Urethane business. They cover similar markets such as tooling, electronics, aerospace and general industrial. Again, this company does not try to cover every chemistry and this makes then superior in quality and technology.
Henkel: Henkel’s cover so many brand names that just to mention them gets people attention.
FCT Assembly: Again, this is a company that does one thing extremely well — lead-free solder. They have grown from a relative unknown to the new standard. They lead with the Nihon Superior SN100C®.
Humiseal: They focus on conformal coating, and this allows them to provide high-quality products and technologies.
Krayden Inc. loves the lines that specialize because it helps us support the customers in a way that goes far beyond logistics.
Krayden Inc. has few enough lines to be technical in all of them. I doubt any one distributor spends more on training each year than Krayden. So our suppliers love being able to send customers to Krayden sales reps knowing that they will be effective in finding answers to problems.
As previously stated, Krayden Inc. is more than just a catalog house (they have their place). It’s a source of knowledge and service for all components and key departments. When you carry 50+ lines, you limit your ability to be technical. Today, customers are more loyal and demand these services. Krayden Inc. meets these challenges and continues to set the bar higher for itself.
