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FEATURES

PCB WARPAGE
How and Why to Use the IPC-9641 Standard
IPC-9641, High Temperature Printed Board Flatness Guideline, is the first standard to address local area PCB warpage across reflow profile temperatures. The standard is both educational about the general topic of PCB warpage measurement and specific in its guidelines for how such measurement should be done. A summary of the contents of IPC-9641, plus notes about how to implement it.
by Ken Chiavone

ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE
GHS Impacts on the EMS
OSHA’s recent update of the Hazard Communication standard 29 CFR 1910.1200 brings the HazCom standard into alignment with the United Nations Global Harmonized System. Here, the practical impacts of the GHS standard on a company’s EMS (environmental management system), given a facility’s requirement for chemical management, are discussed.
by Scott Mazur

LABOR
Determining the Profit-Maximizing Machine/Technician Ratio
More technicians cost more money but reduce wait-for-technician time. Fewer technicians save money but increase wait-for-technician time. Where is the profit-maximizing tradeoff? And what is the profit-maximizing machine/technician ratio?
by Bob Kotcher

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  A matter of perspective.
  Mike Buetow

MONEY MATTERS

• ROI
  Living without.
  Peter Bigelow

TECH TALK

• On the Forefront
  Apple’s Newton: Passé or predictive?
  E. Jan Vardaman
  

• Screen Printing
  It’s in the hole.
  Michael L. Martel

• Tech Tips
  Rework, reconsidered.
  Karl Seelig and Tim O’Neill

• Test and Inspection
  Risky business.
  Robert Boguski