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FEATURES

NTI-100
The Changing Fab Landscape
The annual list of the largest PCB fabricators reveals big changes coming to Japan and Thailand. But for Brazil, India and the West, it’s more of the same.
by Dr. Hayao Nakahara

CLEANING
Determining Critical Cleaning Process Parameters for QFNs, Part 2
The second part of this two-phase study to assess how to completely clean underneath leadless devices following soldering with Pb-free water soluble and Pb-free no-clean pastes looks at the methodology and results.
by Umut Tosun, Naveen Ravindran and Michael McCutchen

CAPACITY UTILIZATION
Saving on Capex Using Dynamic Capacity Planning
Operations with variability cannot ne run close to 100% loading because queue times become unacceptably high. Thus, management invests in surplus capacity — not to increase throughput, but to keep queue times in check. What is the optimal amount of surplus capacity to purchase, and exactly where? And what is the optimal capital-equipment (capex) purchase plan?
by Bob Kotcher

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Killer apps.
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• ROI
  Tight squeeze.
  Peter Bigelow

TECH TALK

• On the Forefront
  Joint developments.
  E. Jan Vardaman

• Final Finishes
  End times for HASL?
  Lenora Toscano

• Dispensing
  Adhesive application.
  Michael L. Martel

• Selective Soldering
  Making contact.
  Chris Denney

• Defects Database
  Too much paste.
  Dr. Chris Hunt

• Tech Tips
  Yield cause-and-effect.
  Robert Dervaes

• Getting Lean
  The soft benefits of value engineering.
  Steve McEuen

• Test and Inspection
  Skunked.
  Robert Boguski