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News
December 31, 1969 |Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Compiled by the SMT Staff
Roundtable Highlights RoHS Issues
MILPITAS, Calif. - Solectron Corporation hosted an environmental-compliance panel with representatives from the UK Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the American Electronics Association (AeA) and London law firm Allen and Overy. Discussions centered on looming deadlines for the Restriction of Certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS) regulations. Steve Andres of DTI updated attendees on the UK’s execution of RoHS. Jennifer Shepherd, Solectron’s environmental sustainability manager, discussed the company’s Market Ready offering, which aims to help OEMs meet RoHS and other requirements. The AeA pinpointed how the regulations will affect U.S.-based companies selling products internationally. Allen and Overy discussed the legal ramifications of non-compliance. “Current legislation and compliance requirements are complex, evolving and unavoidable - impacting the entire supply chain,” claims Jennifer Shepherd. “New laws, such as RoHS, will cause operational, business and product-reliability challenges, forcing OEMs to keep up with changing requirements.” Solectron is teaming with experts such as AeA, as well as OEMs, to ensure a smooth conversion to lead-free.
PCB Book-to-bill ratioMarch Book-to-Bill Ratio Dips
NORTHBROOK, Ill. - The IPC IMS/PCB book-to-bill ratio for March 2005 fell to 1.05, calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period. IPC reports separate statistics for the rigid PCB and flexible circuit segments of the industry, with a book-to-bill of 1.04 for rigid PCBs and 1.07 for flexible circuits. For these two segments combined, sales billed (shipments) in March 2005 decreased 4.5% year-over-year, and orders booked decreased 10% from March 2004.
March’s overall book-to-bill level dipped to 1.05, and orders booked for March 2005 dropped 10% from last year.
Elcoteq Opens Plant in Bangalore, India
IRVING, Texas - Elcoteq Network Corporation has opened a plant in Bangalore, India, claiming to be the first EMS company to manufacture telecommunications equipment there. When in full-swing, the Bangalore plant will employ 1,000 people and manufacture products for customers operating in India and the Asia-Pacific region. The facility will manufacture terminal products, such as cell phones and communication network equipment. Union Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Dayanidhi Maran, inaugurated the facility. “Telecommunications services have been growing exponentially, but the electronics manufacturing sector has been lagging behind,” commented Maran. “With Elcoteq’s initiative, I am sure we can look forward to meeting the growing demand from India’s telecommunications sector locally.”
SMTAI Technical Committee Appointed
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The SMTA International Technical Committee for 2005 is slated to run in congruence with the SMTA International Conference and Assembly Tech Expo on September 25-29, 2005, in Rosemont, Ill. The 2005 team includes a slew of industry professionals, including Gerry Adams, Dade Behring and Donald Banks from 3M Company; Dr. Dan Baldwin of Engent, Inc; Dr. Srinivas Chada of Jabil Circuits; Dr. John Evans from Auburn University; and SMT magazine’s Editor-in-Chief, Gail Flower, among others. Rob Rowland, Radisys process engineering manager, and SMTA conference chair will lead the group. Conference tracks include emerging technologies, process control, soldering, advanced packaging, SMT manufacturing and assembly, business and PCB technology. The conference also will focus on lead-free and RoHS issues. Visit www.smta.org/smtai for information.
JPSA and UMass Dartmouth Team in Laser Acquisition
HOLLIS, N.H. - J P Sercel Associates (JPSA) partnered with the Advanced Technology Manufacturing Center (ATMC) of the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. The ATMC’s industrial research section acquired an IX-300 UV laser micro-machining system from JPSA. The laser system is a 193-mm wavelength, industrial-grade excimer micro-machining unit that will help ATMC’s clients develop processes and conduct applications engineering for the biomedical and microelectronics industries.
Bliss Industries Marks 25 Years
MILPITAS, Calif. - Bliss Industries celebrated its 25th anniversary in the cart-based industry. Entering the market in 1980 as an SMT cart-based manufacturer, Bliss Industries offers a range of ESD-safe products for industries specializing in lean electronics manufacturing.
Siemens’ Platform Lauded in Munich
NORCROSS, Ga. - The Siplace X-series placement machine platform from Siemens L&A’s Electronics System (EA) Division received the iF Product Design award and the Reddot Design award at the International iF Product Design and Reddot Design Competitions, held in Munich, Germany. Evaluation criteria ranged from the degree of innovation to functionality and ergonomic compatibility. Of the 12 possible categories, the Siplace X-series won in the area of Industrial Design. The Red Dot Design award is divided into three sections: product design, communication design and concept design sections. The trophy for this award is the Red Dot, the international seal of quality for outstanding design. Siemens EA’s Siplace X-series design is an extension of the Siplace modular platform design.
Camtek Secures $5M AOI Order
MIGDAL HA’EMEK, Israel - Camtek Ltd. received an order from a Taiwanese PCB manufacturer valued at about $5.2 million for a range of systems targeting AOI of advanced PCB and IC substrates. The majority of the order is scheduled to ship during the Q2 ’05. Systems included in the deal are the Dragon, Orion, Pegasus and LAM.