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FEATURES

NTI-100
The Asian Persuasion
The 102 largest (by revenue) fabricators produced approximately 80% of the total worldwide output in 2010. And by and large, China is reaping the gains. In a PCD&F exclusive, we count them down, from Unimicron to Somacis.
by Dr. Hayao Nakahara

Electronics Sustainability
Green Machines
EMS companies are no longer in the business of “just” making solder joints. Environmental and sustainability initiatives now permeate many large organizations. In a Circuits Assembly exclusive, Flextronics’ top engineer explains the world’s second-largest EMS/ODM’s approach to the new green world.
by Mike Buetow

Print Inspection
Man vs. Machine
Does anybody really believe that in 2011 three-fourths of all SMT defects are generated in the print process? Of course not. But we accept this spurious, decade-old, seemingly baseless statistic on stencil printing without question because we know how important a good printing process is to a profitable SMT assembly operation.
by Chrys Shea

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Finally, a chance for a reset.
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• ROI
  Lining up the schools.
  Peter Bigelow

• Sherman’s Market
  Foxconn meets Tron.
  Randall Sherman
  

TECH TALK

• On the Forefront
  3D packaging holdups.
  E. Jan Vardaman
  

• Defects Database
  Blocked stencil apertures.
  Dr. David DiMaio
  

• Solar Technologies
  New life for new materials.
  Tom Falcon
  

• Technical Abstracts
  In Case You Missed It.

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FEATURES

Cover Story
Equipping the PCB Design and Supply Chain with 21st Century Data
It’s an age-old story: A good design is undone at fabrication or assembly by a file transfer format that doesn’t accommodate key data. Yet, we still mechanically accept 30-year-old ways of communicating design intent to manufacturing. Change could finally be brewing, though, as a new industry consortium made up of OEMs, users and CAD/CAM providers drives for standardization across design, fabrication, assembly and test.
by Keith Felton and Hemant Shah

Recycling and Reuse
Benefits of an EMS for the EMS
The right Environmental Management System can help an electronics manufacturing services company monitor and comply with regulatory requirements, set and complete environmental objectives, and prevent pollution.
by Scott Mazur

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Unrepressing transference.
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• ROI
  Hardly intellectual, and barely property.
  Peter Bigelow

• Focus on Business
  It’s not me, it’s you.
  Susan Mucha
  

TECH TALK

• Designer’s Notebook
  Thermal vias.
  Duane Benson
  

• Screen Printing
  Scrap the waste.
  Clive Ashmore
  

• Selective Soldering
  Two is better than one.
  Al Cable
  

• Defects Database
  Eliminating test prints.
  Dr. Davide Di Maio
  

• Getting Lean
  Leaning NPI.
  Steve Fraser

• Technical Abstracts
  In Case You Missed It.

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FEATURES

ESD Standards
Class 0 ESD Manufacturing Qualification
A series of Class 0 case studies at high-rel manufacturers illustrate the complexity and customization required to successfully produce products utilizing ultra-sensitive devices. They also form the basis of a third-party qualification for Class 0 manufacturing operations.
by Ted Dangelmayer

IP Protection
Royalty Treatment
A patent is a time-limited monopoly granted by the federal government to inventors. A patent encourages innovation by giving a patent owner exclusive rights to his or her invention. On the surface, a patent is a fairly simple concept. It protects an invention. However, just as designing, engineering and manufacturing a product is a complex process fraught with potential risks, a patent is much more than simply protection for an invention.
by Kathlene Ingham

Charge Characterization
Ensuring Charge Measurement Application Accuracy
Electrostatic discharge or a release of static charge can damage sensitive electronic components, resulting in failures, reduced reliability and increased rework costs, or latent component failures in equipment in the field. That potential for damage makes the ability to characterize charge accurately extremely important for electronics manufacturers. But what is charge and how is it measured?
by Jonathan L. Tucker

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  EMS showing its age?
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• Sherman’s Market
  LEDs shine.
  Randall Sherman and Frank Klomp
  

• ROI
  A sporting chance.
  Peter Bigelow

TECH TALK

• On the Forefront
  ECTC highlights.
  E. Jan Vardaman
  

• Selective Soldering
  Custom nozzles.
  Al Cable
  

• Solar Technologies
  Solar conversion efficiency, part II.
  Tom Falcon
  

• Defects Database
  Reworked components.
  Dr. Davide Di Maio
  

• Technical Abstracts
  In Case You Missed It.