CLINTON, NY – Indium Corporation Senior Technologist Dr. Ronald Lasky will host a three-part webinar series, Defeating Defects in Electronics Assembly (SMT Process), as part of the company’s free InSIDER Series. Part I will be held on September 12 at 10 a.m. EDT. Parts two and three will be held at the same time on October 17 and November 14, respectively.

Part I will cover best practices in developing an SMT Assembly process that supports low defects in general. This section will include a review of the materials and equipment used in SMT Assembly and important activities, such as how to select a solder paste, design a stencil, and how to set up a reflow oven process.

“At Indium Corporation, we are proud to manufacture materials proven to eliminate defects while ensuring high-reliability solder joints,” said Dr. Lasky. “In addition to delivering these materials, we also believe in the importance of process optimization. This three-part series will provide a clear blueprint for defeating defects in electronics assembly.”

To register or learn about the three-part series, visit indium.com/webinars. The webinar links will be shared with registrants the day of the event. Registrants must use a company email account to avoid Indium Corporation’s spam filters. This is a first come, first served event.

Dr. Lasky is a senior technologist at Indium Corporation, as well as a professor of engineering at Dartmouth College and a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Instructor. He has more than 30 years of experience in electronics and optoelectronics packaging at IBM, Universal Instruments, and Cookson Electronics. He has authored six books and contributed to several others on science, electronics, and optoelectronics; he has authored numerous technical papers. Additionally, he has served as an adjunct professor at several colleges, teaching more than 20 different courses on topics such as electronics packaging, materials science, physics, mechanical engineering, and science and religion.

Dr. Lasky holds numerous patent disclosures and is the developer of several SMT processing software products relating to cost estimating, line balancing, and process optimization. He is the co-creator of engineering certification exams that set standards in the electronics assembly industry worldwide. Dr. Lasky was awarded the Surface Mount Technology Association’s (SMTA) Technical Distinction Award in 2021 for his “significant and continuing technical contributions to the SMTA.” He was also awarded SMTA’s prestigious Founder’s Award in 2003.

REDDITCH, UK – Altus Group, a leading supplier of capital equipment for the electronics industry, is pleased to announce the appointment of Andras Fekete as their new After Sales Support Engineer for Ireland. This strategic move comes as the company experiences significant growth in its business and an expanding customer base in the region, necessitating dedicated support for customers during both pre and post-sales stages.

Andras Fekete brings a wealth of experience in Surface Mount Technology, having previously worked with Altus before relocating to Europe to be closer to his family. During his time in Europe, he contributed his expertise as a valued member of Stäubli, a global industrial and mechatronic solution provider. With changing circumstances now allowing him to live further away, Andras has welcomed the opportunity to open a new chapter in Ireland and re-join the Altus team.

Joe Booth, CEO of Altus Group, said: "I am delighted to bring Andras back into the Altus fold and to see how his experience and enthusiasm can support lifting our Irish operations to new heights. Andras is a proven, knowledgeable, and dedicated engineer who will help Altus to provide the level of support our partners expect as we increase our install base and services further in the future."

Having previously supported Altus in the UK, Andras is ready to hit the ground running in his new role and provide immediate value to customers. His advanced skills and experience in both operating and servicing the extensive Altus range of equipment make him an ideal fit for the position.

Based in Cork, Ireland, Andras will be strategically located to support existing Altus customers in the southern region, while collaborating with Senior Applications Engineer Michal Ostrykiewicz and Sales Manager Gareth Fenton to further enhance Altus' support offerings and expand the user base in Ireland.

INGLESIDE, IL – IDENTCO – a manufacturer of high-performance labeling solutions for the power equipment, electronics, transportation, and general industrial sector – will present the challenges associated with cleaning- and heat-related PCB label adhesion and legibility issues during the SMTA High Reliability Cleaning & Conformal Coating Conference (CCCC), which takes place in Dallas from August 29-31. Shahela Ali, Director of Global Marketing for IDENTCO, will present PCB Labels & Cleaning Agents: Critical Compatibility on August 30 at 3pm.

Despite frequently being overlooked, the ways in which labels and labeling components interact in cleaning and coating environments is crucial. In electronics manufacturing, the relationship between these two distinct disciplines is both symbiotic and fundamental. Printed circuit boards must be clean – and must also be clearly marked and reliably traceable.

Ms. Ali’s presentation will explore this mission-critical topic, including an overview of labeling materials best suited to withstand powerful cleaning agents and harsh SMT environments. It also will discuss the need for conformal coaters and cleaning agent providers to work more synergistically with labeling experts to collectively serve electronics customers.

IDENTCO was selected to present largely due to its prowess in this niche. At Booth #4, the company will showcase one of its latest series of labels for PCB applications, featuring a substrate developed exclusively for IDENTCO by a prominent industry materials and coating supplier. Called TT413, the labels easily withstand prolonged, repeated exposure to the chemicals and high temperatures typical to post-production washing processes. Helpfully, the series is designed for on-demand thermal transfer printing of variable information – a plus for electronics companies incorporating serialization and/or anti-counterfeiting coding into their production practices.

During her presentation, Ms. Ali will elaborate on the broad range of factors that commonly impact PCB labeling durability.

“PCB labels can experience any number of critical failures due to cleaning agents or high temperatures, from fading and flaking to smearing and even complete detachment or disappearance,” said Ms. Ali. “I look forward to discussing solutions to these pitfalls, including the importance of real-world scenario testing and equipping PCB labels with materials-science based endurance and protection.”

SANTA CLARA, CA – Promex today said it has promoted VP of Engineering David Fromm to chief operating officer.

The Santa Clara, California-based subsystems supplier hired Fromm in March. Promex said Fromm will also remain VP of engineering and lead the operations, engineering, and business development teams.

“Dave has walked in the shoes of OEM engineers, project leads, and procurement decision-makers. He is uniquely qualified to bring a customer-focused perspective to every aspect of the Promex business,” Promex CEO Richard Otte said in a news release. “He understands how to partner for turnkey, vertically integrated approaches to creating the smallest, most complex medical devices that are enabled with microelectronics.”

Before joining Promex, Fromm worked with the company as a customer for nearly 10 years. He was previously director of instrument research at Cepheid, where he led hardware and technology R&D for next-generation platforms. He collaborated with Promex on the development and construction of subassemblies for a point-of-care molecular diagnostics device.

“I needed a partner capable of iterating and building out the vision, from a blank piece of paper through design maturity, for very complex projects,” Fromm said in the news release. “My leadership at Promex is shaped by what appealed to me as a customer – the company’s capabilities, flexibility, and problem-solving skills. Promex can take early, abstract requirements and scale them into successful production and commercialization.”

Fromm holds a PhD in physical chemistry from Stanford University and a B.A. in biochemistry from the University of Colorado-Boulder. He also has patents for molecular diagnostics systems and high-speed atomic force microscopy.

Fromm will oversee technical developments for high-quality, scalable assembly and manufacturing of complex medical devices that incorporate microelectronics, Promex said. Promex offers microelectronic component assembly, process design and packaging for medtech and biotechnology firms.