FEATURES

• Soldering
  Reflow Soldering with a SnCu Eutectic Pb-Free Alloy
  A design of experiment identifies differences in soldering between SAC alloys and SnCuNi.
  By Gerjan Diepstraten

• Cover Story
  Improving OEE in High Mix Facilities
  The growing negative overall equipment effectiveness trend can be seen throughout North American facilities, with rates sometimes falling to 50%. Manufacturers can, however, boost OEE through proper process control.
  By States Mead

• RF Production
  Effectively Managing RF Design in Utility Metering Applications
  EMS companies can provide the missing link between meter expertise, good distribution channels and the ability to easily develop RF products.
  By Roger Allcorn

• Pb-Free Rework
  Solder Joint Reliability of Different BGAs Reworked Using Low Melting Point Pb-Free Alloys
  Low melt rework process performed on 0.093" and 0.125" thick boards under nitrogen found thermal fatigue life may be comparable or slightly better than that of components reworked using conventional SAC 385.
  By Simin Bagheri, Polina Snugovsky, Zohreh Bagheri, Craig Hamilton and Heather McCormick

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Not this time.
  Mike Buetow

• Talking Heads
  Assembleon’s Dr. Jan Michiels
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• Focus on Business
  Weathering the storm.
  Susan Mucha

• Global Sourcing
  The biggest fabricators.
  Dr. Hayao Nakahara

TECH TALK

• On the Forefront
  Breathing lessons.
  E. Jan Vardaman

• Screen Printing
  Alden’s printing.
  Dr. Rita Mohanty

• Better Manufacturing
  What role government?
  Peter Grundy

• Tech Tips
  Water-based fluxes.
  American Competitiveness Institute

• Wave Soldering
  Common defects.
  Ursula Marquez de Tino

• Pb-Free Lessons Learned
  Eroding myths of copper.
  Chrys Shea

• Materials World
  Epoxy fluxes.
  Dr. Renzhe Zhao

• Process Doctor
  Clean as a ROSE.
  Terry Munson

• Equipment Advances
  Seho’s Go Soldering Line.

• Technical Abstracts

DEPARTMENTS

Industry News
Market Watch
Product Spotlight
Ad Index
Assembly Insider

On the cover: Achieving a well-balanced flow from prep through production. (Photo: Panasonic Factory Solutions)

FEATURES

• PWB Procurement
  Auditing a Fabricator
  Bare boards, be they prototype or production, involve distinctly different buying patterns and requirements, and with them, issues OEM purchasers should be aware of. What engineering and procurement should know.
  By Zulki Khan

• Program Generation
  Cutting Machine Programming Time
  Online programming costs companies a fortune. But how does one create machine programs and have them run perfectly once they get to the machines? This novel process instructs how to avoid repeated online debugging.
  By Edward Faranda

• Cover Story
  Simultaneous Acoustic Imaging and Surface Mapping
  A new development in acoustic micro imaging makes it possible to map component surface topography at the same time that internal features are imaged. Combining the methods reveals not only the anomaly, but the extent of 3-D distortion.
  By Tom Adams

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Two tech titans team up.
  Mike Buetow

• Talking Heads
  Jabil’s Tony Allan and Jeff Cavanaugh.
  Mike Buetow

TECH TALK

• Screen Printing
  Bigger and better.
  Clive Ashmore

• Better Manufacturing
  Don’t rip the rep.
  Phil Zarrow

• Tech Tips
  Where there’s HOP, there’s fire.
  American Competitiveness Institute

• Soldering
  Lead and Pb-free: All mixed up.
  Ursula Marquez de Tino

• Test and Inspection
  To the programming house.
  Stacy Kalisz Johnson

• Process Doctor
  What cleaning really does.
  Terry Munson

• Pb-Free Lessons Learned
  Cost of ownership.
  Chrys Shea

• Getting Lean
  Reliability analysis and process variability.
  Ryan Wooten

• Component Advances
  Molex’s Solder Charge Interface

• Technical Abstracts

DEPARTMENTS

Industry News
Market Watch
Product Spotlight
Ad Index
Assembly Insider

On the cover: It’s now possible to map component surface topography and image internal features at the same time. (Courtesy Sonoscan Inc.)

FEATURES

• Cover Story
  Will Electronics Follow the Sun?
  Those who invested in SMT in the early 1980s benefited from higher demand driven by the Internet, telecommunications and computing products. Those who do invest in alternative energies today might see the same results.
  By Irene Sterian

• Emerging Technologies
  ‘Warm’ Manufacturing Heats Up
  Low-temperature or room temperature assembly has the potential to improve field reliability, streamline manufacturing and reduce cost.
  By Dr. Alan Rae, Dr. Andrew Skipor and Marc Chason

• Domestic Production
  Reputation Trumps Recession, China
  Mid-tier EMS providers are alive and well, thanks to rising offshore logistics costs, inflation in China, quality concerns and a growing “Made in USA” fervor.
  By Art Rutledge

• PWB Rework
  ‘Web Circuits’
  A major OEM has five boards with OSP finish requiring four additional components and the boards. Most companies would re-spin the design. But there’s a less expensive, more elegant solution.
  By Mike Buetow

• Conformal Coatings
  A Novel Non-VOC Conformal Coating
  Moisture-cure coatings tend to be fast-reacting and could block dispensers. New chemistries, however, have led to a polyurethane pre-polymer, 100% solids material that performs well in SIR and thermal shock tests.
  By Jade Bridges

• SEA Profile
  Krypton: Benchmarking Customer Satisfaction
  A newcomer to Circuits Assembly’s Service Excellence Awards, Krypton Solutions walked away with the highest overall customer rating for EMS providers with revenues less than $20 million. What drives the emerging EMS firm?
  By Chelsey Drysdale

• 2008-09 Circuits Assembly Buyers Guide

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  iNEMI: Rooted in history?
  Mike Buetow

• Talking Heads
  Kester’s Bill Spring and Jeff King.
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• Focus on Business
  When selling, go positive.
  Susan Mucha

• Global Sourcing
  ‘Mis-’leading indicators.
  Jennifer Read

TECH TALK

• On the Forefront
  Hopping on PoP.
  E. Jan Vardaman

• Screen Printing
  Stencil design mistakes.
  Clive Ashmore

• Tech Tips
  The hardest cuts.
  American Competitiveness Institute

• Wave Soldering
  Protecting your pot.
  Ursula Marquez de Tino

• Pb-Free Lessons Learned
  The head-on-pillow epidemic.
  Chrys Shea

• Process Doctor
  Plugged microvia residues.
  Terry Munson

• Materials World
  New silicone technology.
  Dr. Renzhe Zhao

• Technical Abstracts

DEPARTMENTS

Industry News
Market Watch
SMTA Int'l Product Preview
Ad Index
Assembly Insider

On the cover: Jumping into solar cells is expensive, but so was SMT in the 1980s. (Photos by Lucwa and Celestica)