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SMT Magazine Reacts to Chinese Electronics Assembly Market Growth
December 31, 1969 |Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
Compiled By SMT Staff
NASHUA, N.H. — PennWell Corp. has launched SMT China. The magazine will be published bi-monthly by PennWell in partnership with China Electronic Appliance Corp. (CEAC) located in Beijing.
Published in Chinese, SMT China will be the first magazine in China focused specifically on the major technologies and products used in PCB assembly. The magazine will be circulated to 10,000 engineers and decision-making managers at key OEM and EMS providers throughout China. The magazine also will be distributed at key tradeshows and conferences throughout the year and beyond.
The electronics industry in China is projected to grow at a rate of 20 percent, while the global economy remains flat. Research firm iSuppli of Segundo, Calif. has predicted that Greater China EMS design and production will grow from $40 billion in 2001 to $157 billion by 2006.
"Engineers in the China electronics assembly market are looking for information and solutions to their PCB production issues," said John Bubello, publisher of SMT Magazine. "Top-tier EMS providers are quickly moving into China through expansion, acquisition and partnerships. Because of this, advertisers are looking for an effective medium to reach this rapidly expanding market and SMT China will help fill that niche."
In addition to the U.S. edition of SMT, PennWell publishes SMT Magazine editions in Germany and in Korea. "As the electronics assembly market starts to rebound next year, we will provide suppliers with access to the three most important markets for assembly: the U.S., Europe/Asia and now China," said Bubello.
SMT China will provide readers with content translated from the U.S. magazine as well as local editorial content. "PennWell has extensive experience publishing throughout Asia with many of its magazines," said Bill Pryor, senior vice president of PennWell's Advanced Technology Division.
SMT to Sponsor APEX Panel Discussion
ANAHEIM, Calif. — On Tuesday, April 1 at 10:45 a.m., SMT Editor-in-Chief Gail Flower will host a panel discussion, "Predicting the Future for Surface Mount Technology Practices," during APEX 2003, which takes place March 31 through April 2.
The panel discussion will feature short presentations by industry experts discussing pick-and-place, solder, printing, reflow, test/inspection, and rework. The presenters will provide knowledge- and experience-based speculation on how today's hot electronics manufacturing issues will affect lead-free, optoelectronics, MEMS, Bluetooth, integrated manufacturing, process control software and EMS activity in China.
Panelists include: Ron Lasky, Ph.D., Indium Corp.; Jeffrey L. Timms, vice president, Siemens Dematic; Kim Hyland, director of engineering, Solectron Corp.; Pierre de Villeméjane, president, Cookson Electronics Equipment; and E. Jan Vardaman, president, TechSearch International.
PCB BOOK-TO-BILL RATION
Book-to-Bill on the Rise
NORTHBROOK, Ill. — The IPC PCB book-to-bill ratio for December was 0.96, meaning $96 worth of orders for new boards were received for every $100 billed (shipped). The ratio increased from the November level of 0.92. Sales billed (shipments) in December 2002 decreased 12.7 percent from December 2001, and orders booked decreased 12.2 percent from December 2001. Compared to 2001, PCB bookings are down 13.6 percent YTD, while PCB shipments are down 22.8 percent YTD.
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December's book-to-bill level increased from November's numbers, while orders booked for December 2002 decreased 12.2 percent below the level in December 2001.
EKRA, Heraeus Sign Partnership Agreement
BOENNIGHEIM and HANAU, Germany — EKRA GmbH and the Circuit Material Div. of W.C. Heraeus GmbH & Co. KG signed a partnership agreement.
EKRA is a leading worldwide manufacturer and supplier of stencil and screen printing machines and of high-performance Material Deposition Technology for the electronics industry worldwide. W.C. Heraeus GmbH & Co. KG is one of the global market leaders in the field of environmentally compliant SMT materials such as solder pastes.
EKRA has confirmed Heraeus SMT materials as their preferred choice of SMT assembly materials. Together with EKRA printers, Heraeus products have shown the best results in all applications.
Within this partnership, in combination with their comprehensive portfolio of SMT materials, Heraeus will use EKRA's high-end stencil printer families in their technology and demonstration centers in Hanau, Germany; Conshohocken, Pa.; and in Shanghai, Peoples Republic of China. The aim of this partnership is to optimize existing products, and to create new solutions by joint development.
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The companies will combine tradeshow appearances at APEX 2003 in Anaheim, Calif. (March 29 through April 2, 2003), SMT Nuremberg (May 6 through 8, 2003) and Productronica in Munich (November 11 through 14, 2003). Additionally, with events such as open days and road shows being organized by the respective companies, both businesses will support each other. EKRA also will train the Heraeus CMD staff globally.
APS Merges with March Plasma Systems
CONCORD, Calif. — March Plasma Systems has integrated with Advanced Plasma Systems (APS) under the March name.
Production, applications support and contract services for the PCB products will remain in the St. Petersburg, Fla. facility.
APS specializes in the manufacture of plasma treatment systems used in PCB fabrication products; March Plasma Systems provides similar products designed for the semiconductor industry. With this change, March, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nordson, now offers a complete range of plasma treatment systems that address all markets.
Babiarz Joins IPC's APEX 2003 Committee
CARLSBAD, Calif. — Asymtek Senior Vice President Alec Babiarz has accepted the invitation to join IPC's steering committee for APEX 2003.
As a committee member, Babiarz will contribute his more than 20 years of electronics assembly experience. He is senior vice president of Asymtek and vice president of New Business Development for Nordson Corp. One of the founders of Asymtek, Babiarz is a co-developer in three patents on equipment and apparatus for fluid dispensing, and has written more than 16 articles and technical papers on fluid dispensing.
ViTechnology Names Burroughs President of the Americas
HAVERHILL, Mass. — Gary Burroughs joined ViTechnology LLC as president of U.S. operations.
Burroughs will be based at the company's U.S. headquarters, and will be responsible for all operating functions of the company in North and South America. He brings more than 17 years experience to the company from the SMT and semiconductor packaging marketplace. Burroughs has extensive experience with pick-and-place equipment, having most recently been president of Juki Automation Systems in Raleigh, N.C. Prior to Juki Automation Systems, Burroughs was vice president of Speedline Technologies, responsible for global corporate accounts. He also was responsible for the Speedline Semiconductor Products Group.
AVX Converts Capacitors to Lead-free
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — In response to the increasing demand for environmentally friendly components, AVX Corp. will convert is commercial line of surface mount tantalum capacitors to lead-free technology during the first six months of 2003.
This conversion involves changing the termination from tin/lead (Sn/Pb) to 100 percent tin.
The pure tin termination is fully compatible with standard Sn/Pb solders, as well as lead-free solders. The lead-free components can be assembled with existing mounting equipment and production solders with no changes in solderability or joint quality.
The change will cover the company's commercial TAJ, TPS and THJ Series of SMT capacitors. Military products and special order commercial products will continue to be available with Sn/Pb solder terminations.
EMSNEWS
Former Maxtor CEO Joins Solectron
MILPITAS, Calif. — Michael R. Cannon has been named president and CEO of Solectron Corp. He succeeds Koichi Nishimura, who in September announced his intention to retire.
Cannon also was elected to the Solectron board. He joins Solectron from Maxtor Corp., where he was president, CEO, and a director of a leading global supplier of hard disk drive storage products and solutions.
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The board also elected William A. Hasler, the company's lead independent director, to succeed Nishimura as chairman of the board. Hasler, a Solectron director since 1998, is co-CEO of Aphton Corp., an international biotechnology firm.
In Cannon's six years at Maxtor, he led a significant increase in the company's revenues while diversifying its base of business. He also orchestrated the 2001 merger between Maxtor and Quantum Corp.'s hard disk drive division, a move that established Maxtor as one of the world's largest hard disk drive manufacturers and a leading developer of storage solutions and technology.
Masstech EMS Receives Workforce Training Fund
WOBURN, Mass. — Masstech EMS received a Workforce Training Fund grant for $87,000 from the Massachusetts Department of Education and Training (DET) in a ceremony at the company's manufacturing facility on Commonwealth Ave.
Presenting the award was DET Operations Manager of the Workforce Training Fund Vincent Lopes. Also in attendance was Sen. Charles Shannon, who represents Woburn in the Massachusetts General Court.
The Workforce Training Fund provides resources to Massachusetts businesses and workers to train current and newly hired employees. The goal of this program is to improve employee skills and strengthen businesses in the Commonwealth.
Q & A: gold embrittlement
Q: Should our company be concerned about gold embrittlement?
A: Tin/lead solders that typically are used in SMT assembly are not completely compatible with the gold plating finish sometimes used on printed circuit boards (PCB). Gold will alloy readily with tin/lead, but the alloy can become weak if the gold concentration exceeds a small percentage. This is what is known as gold embrittlement. The embrittlement of the finished solder joint will result in excessive cracking during thermal cycling or mechanical stressing. However, as long as the gold plating thickness on the PCB is thin (30 µ"), gold embrittlement typically is not a problem. For applications where a thicker gold finish is needed (wire bonding), indium-based alloys and some tin/silver alloys are used to ensure that the solder joints maintain a high integrity, particularly during thermal cycling extremes.
Samples received from this customer were evaluated to determine the potential for gold embrittlement to occur. Cross-sectioning, mechanical shearing, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with an elemental analysis were performed as part of this assessment.
XRF measurements of the gold on unpopulated bond pads on the board were taken, with an average of just under <30 µ". This thickness is much higher than typically would be used in a traditional SMT assembly process, but ideal for gold thermosonic wire bonding. Based on the measured board geometry and measured gold thickness values, a predicted value for the gold composition by mass was determined to be between 2 to 3 percent (based on stencil thickness). Assumptions including stencil aperture size, paste release, solder alloy and density, gold distribution, and gold thickness uniformity were made for this calculation.
Cross-sectioning and SEM elemental analysis of assembled components were performed with a gold composition value between 2.5 to 3.0 percent by mass. This amount of gold in a solder joint is sufficient for gold embrittlement to occur. Higher magnification SEM analysis at the interface between the substrate bond pad and the solder joint showed high levels of localized gold concentration. Further elemental analysis indicated evidence of ternary tin/gold/nickel intermetallics at the substrate bond pad interface as well as at the fracture interface of components that were sheared from the circuit board. Presence of gold intermetallics is known to affect solder joint mechanical and thermomechanical property changes.
Therefore, there is a concern for gold embrittlement in these particular samples. To reduce the amount of gold composition in the solder joints, alternate surface finishes such as selective plating or palladium/gold can be used. Additionally, alternative wire bonding processes can be investigated.
Craig Beddingfield is senior technical market manager and Brian Smith is an advanced process development engineer for Siemens Dematic Electronic Assembly Systems Inc., Norcross, GA.
NEWSMAKERS
People
ASAT Holdings Ltd. (Hong Kong) and ASAT Inc. (Fremont, Calif.) appointed Charles F. L. Ward as senior vice president and general manager of ASAT Inc. Reporting to Harry R. Rozakis, CEO of ASAT Holdings Ltd., Ward will oversee ASAT's U.S. operations.
Lipinski
Henkel Loctite Corp., Rocky Hill, Conn., named Thomas C. Lipinski as sales manager for the company's electronics business unit. In his new position, Lipinski will oversee nine sales representatives, working to grow electronics sales in the Midwestern, Southwestern and Western United States.
Keisuke Nishu was appointed Regional Business Development Manager, Plating and Metallization; Carl Chiang Business Director, North China; Igor S. Zavarine, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist; and Oscar Khaselev, Ph.D., Senior Material Scientist by Enthone Inc., West Haven, Conn., a Cookson Electronics PWB Materials & Chemistry business.
March Plasma Systems, Concord, Calif., named Dennis McGee as its global PCB market manager. In his new position, McGee will expand strategic customer alliances, and strengthen partnerships with material and equipment suppliers to develop future plasma product offerings for the PCB market.
Michalkiewicz
Trace Laboratories East, Hunt Valley, Md., named Renee J. Michalkiewicz Chairman of the IPC Ionic Conductivity/Ion Chromo-tography Task Group. This group within the IPC is responsible for the development and confirmation of new and existing methodologies for assessing PCB and assembly cleanliness.
COMPANIES
RBP Chemical Technology, Milwaukee, Ill., which produces proprietary chemical products for offset printing and circuit board processing, achieved ISO 9001:2000 registration after passing an extensive audit by Perry Johnson Registrars Inc. (PJR).
Concepts in Computing Inc., South Beloit, Ill., entered into a strategic alliance with PPT Vision that has resulted in the addition of a general purpose, EconoCR-based, OCR tool to the Inspection Builder application development environment that is used to program PPT's IMPACT machine vision micro-systems.
Ricreations Inc., Suwanee, Ga., and Flynn Systems, Nashua, N.H., announced a cooperative marketing agreement to jointly promote their Universal Scan and onTAP Boundary Scan test software packages. This alliance was formed to help make JTAG testing more affordable to mainstream test and design engineers.