White Papers
DALLAS, OR -- Printed circuit board maker TTM Technologies will shutter its
Dallas, OR, facility, and lay off about 300 workers, the company said. TTM expects to take a charge of $2.6 million for
severance in the first quarter of 2007.
Production will be moved to other company sites, primarily in Logan, UT, and Redmond, WA.
Production will be moved to other company sites, primarily in Logan, UT, and Redmond, WA.
PENANG, MALAYSIA – Pac Tech will open a high-volume wafer bumping facility in Penang next year. The 40,000 sq. ft. location will be completed in June and will be designed for mass production of wafer bumping using electroless NiAu, solder stencil printing, wafer sawing, solder-ball placement and more. The facility will reportedly be able to process 600,000 wafers annually to start. The company will begin producing in volume in October.
BRUSSELS -- The EU Commission has opened discussions for its latest round of requests for exemptions to the RoHS Directive.
A list of proposed exemptions is available here.
Among the requests: That all uses of lead in solders be exempted on the grounds that the replacements are more environmentally damaging than the leaded versions.
A list of proposed exemptions is available here.
Among the requests: That all uses of lead in solders be exempted on the grounds that the replacements are more environmentally damaging than the leaded versions.
WASHINGTON — Some U.S. Environmental Protection Agency staff are looking at removing lead from a 30-year-old list of air pollutants, and could recommend the same to the Bush administration.
In an EPA staff paper released Tuesday, agency said it would evaluate the status of lead as an air pollutant and "assess whether the revocation of the standard is an appropriate option for the Administrator to consider."
In an EPA staff paper released Tuesday, agency said it would evaluate the status of lead as an air pollutant and "assess whether the revocation of the standard is an appropriate option for the Administrator to consider."
TORONTO – SMTA is seeking papers for a conference on soldering and reliability to be held in Toronto this spring. To present a paper, submit a 200- to 300-word abstract. Suggested topics include SnPb with Pb-free components; reliability; harsh environment; tin whiskers; new alloys; electromigration; thermal dissipation; manufacturing process; supply chain issues; advanced packaging; new substrate materials; surface finishes; thermal interface materials, and underfill. The SMTA did not specify the precise dates of the conference. Abstracts are due Jan. 18 to Melissa Serres at melissa@smta.org. Include a title, author name and contact information. Authors will be notified of acceptance by Jan. 31. PowerPoint presentations are required and will be due March
SAN ANTONIO - Indium Corp. has received the 2006 Frost & Sullivan Global SMT Solder Paste Customer Value Enhancement award. The company demonstrated outstanding achievement and superior performance in expanding and maintaining its customer base by using innovative value creation and enhancement strategies. It was chosen based on an in-depth analysis of market competitors, as well as interviews with companies in the SMT soldering materials industry. It was the fourth time the company nabbed the honor. It previously won in 1998 and 2000 for Engineering Customer Focus, and in 2003 for Product Innovation.
THE WOODLANDS, TX - Huntsman announced it has selected Underwriters Laboratories (UL) as its RoHS compliance partner. Huntsman will apply for the UL RoHS Mark. UL created its restricted substances compliance program to help manufacturers demonstrate due diligence in complying with the EU’s RoHS Directive.
To receive the UL RoHS Mark, Huntsman will provide samples of the chemical products it markets for electrical and electronic applications. UL will test these samples for compliance. If Huntsman’s tested products meet the RoHS Directive limits, UL will authorize the company to apply for the UL RoHS Mark for the manufactured product. Organizations whose products qualify for the UL RoHS Mark must also accept onsite surveillance visits twice annually.
To receive the UL RoHS Mark, Huntsman will provide samples of the chemical products it markets for electrical and electronic applications. UL will test these samples for compliance. If Huntsman’s tested products meet the RoHS Directive limits, UL will authorize the company to apply for the UL RoHS Mark for the manufactured product. Organizations whose products qualify for the UL RoHS Mark must also accept onsite surveillance visits twice annually.
