Data Transfer
IPC-2581 Consortium Update
The consortium is on track to extend the standard to enable build-intent collaboration between PCB manufacturers and design houses before layout begins.
by Hemant Shah

Component Placement
The Impact of Reel Splicing Kits on Setup and Changeover
Everything from resistors to BGAs to odd-form components is packaged in tape-and-reel. Splicing kits can dramatically improve reel setup and changeover efficiencies.
by Rob Sierra

Markets
Outsourcing at Home
OEMs are cutting time in new product development to maintain a competitive advantage. Aided by grants and better internal execution, some smaller EMS companies are taking advantage.
by John Sammut

ESD
Static Control Standards: An Annual Progress Report
From components to wrist straps, a look at more than 60 documents that make up ESD control programs.
by  The ESD Association

Supply Chain
An Onshore Wind
Changing economics is moving contract assembly to North America. Here’s why.
by Robert Sergio Simon

European RoHS Enforcement Explained
An Onshore Wind
A UK-based expert on implementation and enforcement details the latest round of changes, and what we can expect in the future.
by Mike Buetow

SIR Testing
The IPC-B-52 SIR Test Vehicle: Current Test Vehicle Design and Possible Modifications
IPC-B-52 is not always seen as adequately “product-like.” Alternate test vehicle designs offer the flexibility to make it so.
by Mitchell Ferrill, Matt Kelly, Wai Ma, Nandu Ranadive, Cheikhou Ndiaye, Jim Bielick and Simin Bagheri

Inspection
First Article Verification: A New Level of Accuracy
Impedance checking boosts FAI's value.
by Matthew Holzmann and Chrys Shea

Component Qualification
Fine-Tuning Acoustic Screening of PEMs
Picking the right standard means knowing the spec and what it is that needs testing.
by Tom Adams

Materials World
Flip-Chip Devices Get Flat
Thin is in, but what modern flip chip devices really need is to be flat.
by Jie Bai

COVER STORY
SMT Reflow Oven-to-Oven Repeatability
SMT process engineers with multiple process lines traditionally needed to establish a different recipe for each reflow oven because of variation between equipment. Advancements now make it possible to adjust some reflow ovens so a single recipe will work “among” ovens running the same product.
by Fred Dimock

EMS Top 50
Bend, Don’t Break
If the EMS market in 2012 were a movie, it would have been the good (Nam Tai), the bad (the effects of RIM) and the ugly (Elcoteq). But most of the world’s 50 largest contract assemblers absorbed the blows from shrinking PC and cellphone margins and set their sights on the more profitable (if smaller) automotive and industrial sectors.
by Mike Buetow

Nanocoatings
Stencil Printing: The Next Big Thing is Actually Very Small
Originally met with overt industry skepticism, nanocoatings are quickly proving themselves in studies and in production. A look at the latest in the molecule technology.
by Chrys Shea

ESD Basics
Managing Your ESD Program
Enjoy all the software tools, but don’t forget the procedures.
by The ESD Association

Pan Pac Recap
High-Tech in Hawaii
The annual Pan Pacific Microelectronics Symposium brought together the industry’s top specialists from around the world, and process and equipment revelations were in abundance.
by Chrys Shea