CLINTON, NY – As a materials pioneer and trusted partner in electric vehicle (EV) and e-Mobility manufacturing, Indium Corporation® is proud to showcase its high-reliability alloys and soldering solutions at productronica China, March 20-22, in Shanghai.

With nearly a decade of experience in EV manufacturing and more than 10 million EVs on the road with its innovative materials, Indium Corporation will feature its Rel-ion™ suite of electrical, mechanical, and thermal solutions proven to reduce manufacturers’ time to market. Rel-ion material solutions deliver reliability by:

• Eliminating non-wet opens and head-in-pillow defects
• Preventing dendritic growth by meeting stricter surface insulation resistance requirements
• Preventing solder delamination with precise bondline control and increased creep and fatigue resistance
• Reducing hot spots-induced voiding through improved thermal efficiency

Some of the Rel-ion products featured at Productronica China will include:

• Durafuse® HR – based on a novel alloy technology, delivers enhanced thermal cycling performance (-40°C/125°C and -40°C/150°C) and superior voiding performance for high-reliability automotive applications.
• Award-winning Durafuse® LT – a novel solder paste mixed alloy system with highly versatile characteristics that enable it for energy savings, high-reliability, low-temperature, step soldering, and assemblies with large temperature gradients. It also provides superior drop shock performance as compared to conventional low-temperature solders, outclassing BiSn or BiSnAg alloys, and performing better than SAC305 with optimum process setup.
• Indalloy®301 LT Alloy for Preforms/InFORMS® – a novel Pb-free alloy that enables lower processing temperatures in preform soldering compared to SAC alloys. Specifically designed for power module applications, this alloy prevents warpage in package-cooler attach scenarios without sacrificing reliability like traditional bismuth-containing low-temperature alloys. It is available in preforms, ribbon, or InFORMS®.
• Award-winning InFORMS® – reinforced solder alloy fabrications which improve mechanical and thermal reliability, and are specifically designed to produce consistent bondline thickness for power module applications. They also address specific challenges for the power electronics industry by providing an enhanced material for the development of more reliable and higher performance modules.
• InTACK® – a no-clean, no residue, halogen-free adhesive solution developed for holding parts in place during placement and reflow processes. Designed for use in no-flux reflow applications with formic acid, InTACK® is specially formulated with high tack to hold a die, chip, or solder preform in place without movement, reducing the dependency on tooling without compromising soldering or sintering quality.
• QuickSinter® – a new approach to sinter technology. This high-metal, low-organic content approach enables fast drying and sintering times for high throughput. Both silver and copper sinter pastes are available. The portfolio includes the InFORCE™ range of pressure sinter pastes and the InBAKE range of pressure-less sinter pastes. Applications include die-attach and substrate attach in power electronics.
• Durafuse® HT – a novel design based on a novel alloy technology, designed to deliver a tin-rich, high-temperature lead-free (HTLF) paste, presenting the merits of both constituent alloys. Durafuse® HT delivers simplified processing, with no special equipment needed, and enhanced thermal cycling reliability equal to or higher than a high-Pb solder.
• Indium8.9HF Solder Paste Series – an industry-proven solder paste series that delivers no-clean, halogen-free solutions designed to achieve high surface insulation resistance (SIR) and improve stability during the printing process for high-reliability automotive electronics.
• Heat-Spring® – a compressible, non-reflow metal TIM ideal for TIM2 applications. These indium-containing TIMs offer superior thermal conductivity over non-metals—with pure indium metal delivering 86W/mK in all planes. Because of its solid metal state, Heat-Spring avoids pump-out and bake-out problems. It also offers a sustainable solution due to our indium reclaim and recycle program.

To learn why Indium Corporation is trusted by top EV manufacturers across the globe, visit them at booth E4.4102 or at www.indiumchina.cn

POOLE, UK – Europlacer has signed a global partnership agreement with Siemens, provider of the industry’s leading electronics manufacturing software solutions, to integrate Valor Process Preparation software into its Surface Mount assembly platforms and products worldwide.

The integration of Valor Process Preparation software boosts manufacturing productivity by offering a seamless transition from design to programming of all equipment in the SMT assembly line. The software supports a wide range of assembly machines and product types, allowing Europlacer customers to streamline programming along the length of the line from a variety of data sources and formats, including Gerber, ODB++, IPC2581 and other popular protocols.

Companies like EMS providers and Contract Electronic Manufacturers operating in high-mix environments will leverage the automation, simplification and time savings offered by the Valor software and benefit from true commercial value. It elevates the NPI process to a completely new level.

“Our customers can take any design file and automatically create the programming not only for the Europlacer pick & place machine and screen printer but for all other products in a full SMT line,” explains François Erceau, Group Strategic Direction and Marketing Officer at Europlacer. “Integrating the Valor software further extends our capability to deliver comprehensive full-line solutions globally,” he adds.

“I am excited about this new partnership with the Europlacer Group,” says Jeremy Schitter, Product Line Director at Siemens Digital Industry Software. “Common customers worldwide will benefit from the industry-leading PCB assembly digitalization platform to accelerate the NPI process. The Digital Twin methodology is a must for every customer operating in high-mix environments and looking to enable right-first-time programming to significantly improve their shopfloor operations”, he adds.

TEMPE, AZ – Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE: BHE), a global provider of engineering, design, and manufacturing services, today released its 2023 Sustainability Report. The report can be found on the company's website and keeps track of Benchmark's continued progress on environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives, including specific achievements across the company's global network.

"I am pleased to release Benchmark's third annual Sustainability Report, sharing our company's latest efforts and results on this important strategic imperative," Jeff Benck, president and CEO, Benchmark. "As demonstrated in our report, we continue to further our efforts to positively impact the environment, engage our people, support our local communities, and continue advancing our vision with customers. We're proud of the work being done in this area across Benchmark."

The report highlights Benchmark's sustainability efforts and achievements over the past year and provides insight into future plans guided by the company's commitment to reduce environmental impact, while increasing social and economic value, and further promoting ethical business practices. A few of the highlights from the 2023 report include:

• The company substantially expanded its ESG/ Sustainability management structure with a new Global Director of Sustainability position, a new Health and Safety Council and an Environmental Council with representatives from every site.
• Benchmark again achieved Silver status from EcoVadis. Benchmark moved up from the 72nd percentile for 2022 to the 89th percentile for 2023, placing the company among the top 25 percent of companies assessed by EcoVadis.
• In 2023, Benchmark conducted its third annual employee survey, achieving 86% participation in the survey, up from 82% in 2022 and 77% in 2021.

"As a leading design and manufacturing service provider to OEMs across the world, Benchmark has a responsibility to our stakeholders, employees, customers, and communities to be a corporate leader in sustainability and DEI pursuits," said Bill Olson, Global Director of Sustainability, Benchmark. "To meet this responsibility, we will lean on our long history of operational excellence and extend that same level of rigor to our pursuit of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) imperatives."

To learn more about Benchmark's sustainability efforts and Product Sustainability Services, visit the company website at https://www.bench.com/sustainability 

LAKEVILLE, MN – ITW EAE will be showcasing its latest developments at IPC APEX, April 9 - 11 in Anaheim. The ITW EAE booth #2327 will have MPM, Camalot, Electrovert and Vitronics Soltec Applications Experts on hand as well as Sales and Management to answer questions and offer solutions.

Camalot will be demonstrating their Advanced Tilt and Rotate option on the Prodigy dispensing system. This innovative and patented feature reduces wet out areas and improves capillary flow for underfill by accurately dispensing on the side walls of packages. State-of-the-art rotary actuators provide a fast, high precision, zero backlash mechanism that allows proprietary motion and controls allow articulation of the dispense pump in sub-degree increments for both axes as many times as you need, in other words total flexibility.

Electrovert wave solder will feature the new Deep Wave option on the Electra wave soldering system. The new Deep Wave option offered by Electrovert provides the ability to pump up to a 20 mm wave height. The deep wave option overcomes the challenges associated with deep pockets and masking and provides a wave depth necessary to achieve topside hole fill. Electrovert will also feature the new Heavy-Duty Finger Conveyor option which is designed to address the increasing demands of PCB production in terms of weight, throughput capability and process flexibility.

Electrovert Cleaners will feature the NEW Matrix style manifold with Intermix spray technology. Electrovert Cleaners will feature the NEW Matrix style manifold with Intermix spray technology. The new manifold design will allow for manual or automated adjusting the height of the nozzles for increased cleaning performance without any increase in energy consumption. Higher efficiency of energy transfer at the board allows for cleaning under low stand-offs and heavily populated boards. Prepared to meet the evolving demands of future cleaning challenges, this new Electrovert Cleaning technology is ready to effectively tackle tomorrow’s demands.

MPM will conduct live demonstrations on the Momentum II Elite printer. Elite family has the industry leading accuracy, cycle time, and reliability, and its advanced technologies and features bring the benefits of versatility and flexibility, quality and throughput, ease of use. One machine does it all!

Vitronics Soltec will feature the ZEVAm+ Selective Soldering solutions with the patented Bridge Prevention Technology acts as a hot nitrogen knife to prevent bridging for small pitch up to 1mm (40mil) pin to pin distance even with longer leads and increased drag speed. This design is only feasible with the design freedom of 3D metal printing technology. Additionally, the ZEVAm+ Selective Soldering machine accommodates larger board sizes, supporting dimensions up to 510mm x 510mm (20 x 20 inches). This modification is specifically aimed at meeting the needs of high-mix, low-volume manufacturers, with a particular focus on industries like automotive. The growing demand for electronic vehicles is driving an increased need for larger board sizes in manufacturing processes.

Vitronics Soltec will feature Centurion Reflow Oven with True N2 to Air Switching. The True N2 to Air Switching feature offers versatility and convenience, allowing users to seamlessly switch between nitrogen and air atmospheres with the push of a button. This capability ensures optimal cleanliness of the reflow oven tunnel, where operating in air or nitrogen mode. In addition to that, Idle Mode demonstrates Vitronics Soltec’s commitment to sustainability by reducing power and nitrogen consumption when the machine is not in active production. This not only helps to minimize operating costs but also algins with environmental initiatives aimed at conserving resources.