What is ESD and Why Should We Worry About It?

December 10, 2018 | Pete Starkey, I-Connect007

The realities of ESD, how static charges are generated, how they can be transferred to electronic components and the damage they can do, and what practical controls are required to protect components, assemblies and equipment from damage—these topics were explored and clearly explained in a webinar presented by SMTA Europe Technical Committee members Dr. Jeremy Smallwood of Electrostatic Solutions and Charles Cawthorne of MBDA.

Electronic Manufacturing Files: What We Need for PCB Assembly

December 7, 2018 | Duane Benson, Screaming Circuits

As PCB assemblers, manufacturing is all about taking data and delivering good working circuit boards. It can be just data, as in full turn-key, data plus some parts, or a partial turn-key or a kitted job. Regardless of whether you're sending parts and boards or having us buy everything, PCB assemblers need good data, and a lot of it.

Does Medical Device Reliability Worry You Sick?

December 6, 2018 | Eric Camden, Foresite

When you are manufacturing high-reliability assemblies related to medical industry, it is critical to take a very close look at the assembly process and all other processes that can influence the end-use reliability—even...

Proper Thermal Shielding Yields Highest Rework Results

November 21, 2018 | Bob Wettermann, BEST, Inc.

There are numerous "gotchas" if the rework technician does not care for components and materials neighboring the component rework area. However, careful planning, shielding, and sometimes removing a neighboring device or...

SMT Manufacturing: Why Soldering?

November 15, 2018 | Dr. Jennie Hwang, H-Technologies Group

Upcoming AI hardware requires advanced semiconductors, packaging approaches, new architectures, increased speeds and capabilities of inference processing, and system design and manufacturing prowess continually developed to reach the...