Tyco Electronics (Willow Grove, PA), a business segment of Tyco International Ltd, announced today that the company is offering Q-Series and APS-1H customers the ability to upgrade their machines to the Windows XP operating system.

According to Tyco, Windows XP's ease of use and dependability are benefits to customers, as well as factors such as:

• advanced security: Windows XP Professional builds on the security model in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000, making system security easier to manage. Additionally, users can protect data transmitted across a network. IPSec is a key part of providing security for vital private networks (VPN), which allow organizations to transmit data securely over the Internet.
•  increased application compatibility: Numerous operations that cannot run in Windows 2000 will run on Windows XP Professional, right out of the box. If an application is not natively supported by Windows XP Professional, a user or system administrator can specify if the application needs to run in either a Windows NT 4.0 or a Windows 95/98/ME compatibility mode. 
• Windows File Protection: This feature protects core system files from being overwritten by application installations. If a file is overwritten, Windows File Protection will restore the correct version.
• availability: This upgrade will be available on June 1, 2004. The availability date depends on the user's current system configuration, and a CPU, hard drive or memory upgrade may be required.

http://automation.tycoelectronics.com

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The Surface Mount Technology Association (SMTA, Minneapolis, MN) recently announced the Best of Conference paper for the Ninth Annual Pan Pacific Microelectronics Symposium, held in February in Kahuku, Oahu, HI. As rated by the attendees, the award was presented to Charlie Barnhart of Technology Forecasters Inc. (Alameda, CA).

 

In his paper, "Contract Manufacturing Strategies: Addressing the Changing Global Landscape," Barnhart discusses "today's market preference for China, the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) industry's fascination with off-the-shelf product solutions and the impact of these trends on the electronics manufacturing services (EMS) and original design manufacturer (ODM) industries, as well as their probable reactions and their likely successes."

 

While the clear message is electronic manufacturing is expanding in China and shrinking in the Americas, Europe and even other Asian locations, China is not a panacea for manufacturing all types of electronic products.  Issues concerning logistics, management of program, employee skill level, labor conditions, infrastructure, business culture and government practices are adding unexpected costs.

 

The paper also looks at projected growth rates over the next five years, especially considering that net global capacity may actually decrease during the period.

 

The 2005 Pan Pacific Microelectronics Symposium will be held on Kauai, Hawaii, Jan. 25-27, 2005. 

www.smta.org/pan_pac/

Copyright 2004, UP Media Group. All rights reserved.

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Tecnomatix Technologies Ltd. (Herzlia, Israel), a provider of manufacturing process management (MPM), has introduced eM-Execution, the latest solution in the company's eMPower for electronics offerings. The Web-based software solution was created specifically to meet the production management and analytical needs of electronics circuit board manufacturers and their supply chain partners.

 

The system helps electronics manufacturers act on critical production data to better serve their customers and meet regulatory demands by masking the complexity of gathering and managing critical manufacturing information. It creates customizable information and status reports targeted to multiple audiences, from the shop floor to the executive suite.

 

Electronics manufacturers can configure the solution to meet their specific needs and business objectives. Some of the key functionalities available include: traceability; electronic records and signatures; material management; process verification; repair; production analytics; and quality management.

www.tecnomatix.com

Copyright 2004, UP Media Group. All rights reserved.

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