Component Management

Companies often want the markings on components removed to make it hard for rivals to easily find out what parts are used on the PCB. Similarly, military and security products without product part codes make them hard to reverse engineer or hack. This is usually done after PCB assembly to ensure that the board is made correctly, but the technique of manually grinding the markings off afterwards is time consuming and can often damage components an...

Zestron will take the opportunity of the NEPCON Japan show 2015 to highlight its water-based Micro Phase Cleaning (MPC) technology for assemblies, power modules and stencils. This water-based cleaning technology combines the advantages of conventional cleaning with solvents and surfactants.

With the features, performance, and build-quality of systems twice its price, Manncorp announces that its AP430 Fully-Automatic Inline Stencil Printer brings affordability to solder paste printing technology. Capability for 01005 chips, µBGAs, and 12mm ultra-fine-pitch components is offered at a price to fit modest budgets of surface mount manufacturers who require full automation and high throughput.

Gen3 Systems has announced the successful installation of its MBTech NC25 Conveyorised Batch PCB Cleaning System at Briton EMS’ facility in Bedford, England. The NC25 Batch Cleaner is specially designed around a patented filtration system and a unique process of combining forced convection and vacuum, providing high cleaning performance.

2014 has been an eventful year for the graphene industry. The first round of commercial applications has already been announced, and the industry has witnessed intense investment and acquisition activity as further companies have gone public. Despite the high interest, valuations of public graphene companies have declined, returning largely to where they were at the time of their IPOs.

Stadium Group has announced that its iEMS division continues to invest significantly in key equipment to bolster manufacturing capabilities at its centres in Dongguan, China and Hartlepool, UK. The investments made in 2014 include an SMT assembly line installed at the Hartlepool facility, along with equipment from DEK (Screen Print), Assembleon (AX range of Pick and Place) and Vitronics Soltec (Reflow) to compliment existing SMT capability.

Suitable for use with the IJF ATD Autotube Dispensing System, to enable accurate and efficient dispensing, the ADH 9454 adhesive has been introduced by Intertronics. A gap filling cyanoacrylate (instant) gel suitable for use on vertical and porous surfaces in industrial assembly applications, the surface insensitive ADH 9454 cyanoacrylate gel has high viscosity so preventing runs on inclined or vertical surfaces during the 3 to 60 seconds fixture...

At 2014's IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting, imec demonstrated the industry’s first integrated graphene optical Electro-Absorption Modulator (EAM) capable of 10Gb/s modulation speed. Combining low insertion loss, low drive voltage, high thermal stability, broadband operation and compact footprint, the device marks an important milestone in the realisation of next-gen, high-density low-power integrated optical interconnects.

Inventors at Nottingham Trent University are using smart materials to develop a low-cost steerable medical device to help doctors insert a life-saving breathing tube into a patient’s windpipe to provide oxygen in emergency situations. The steerable endotracheal bougie, being developed by a team led by Professor Philip Breedon, Smart Technologies, aims to improve the way that doctors insert endotracheal tubes into patients who are in in...

The Lynx, a small form factor SMT placement machine, has been introduced by Essemtec. According to the company, the machine offers the highest feeder density on the market, with 180 feeder lanes on 0.85 square metres. Bridging the gap between Essemtec’s Pantera X-plus and Paraquda SMT placers, the machine is suitable for high-mix SMT production.