Investments over the past 18 months support continuing technology advancements and business growth at the electronics design and contract manufacturing center near Rochester, NY

September 24, 2021 – Z-AXIS, Inc. (www.zaxis.net) has added more than $1.2 million worth of equipment for electronic product assembly services at its factory near Rochester, NY over the last eighteen months. The purchases increase throughput and support continuous quality improvement in the company’s manufacturing processes for surface mount technology (SMT) and mixed-technology printed circuit board (PCB) assemblies as well as box builds and wire and cable assemblies.

They include:

• An upgraded and expanded production line for manual and automated insertion of through-hole components in mixed-technology PCB assemblies. The company added a Universal Instruments Radial 88HT automated through-hole insertion machine, 30-foot adjustable extruded aluminum board handling rails, custom LED task lighting, CAM software with electronic assembly instructions for each station, and a conveyor to transport boards through inspection after wave solder and depaneling.
• An upgraded robotic IC programmer. A Xeltek SuperBot 5e robotic integrated circuit programmer replaces an earlier model, with speeds three times faster and an ability to reliably handle the latest fine-pitch IC packages.
• An Ersa VersaFlow 3/45 Selective Soldering System. This high-end system increases throughput and quality for soldering mixed-technology PCBAs. Offline programming and rapid change-over support Z-AXIS’ high-mix manufacturing business.
• A HydroJet in-line board cleaning system.  The new board washer effectively and efficiently removes solder flux from PCB assemblies, including those with high-density SMT components such as ball grid arrays (BGAs).
• An environmental chamber for Environmental Stress Screening (ESS). Adding to the existing burn-in chambers, ESS expands the company’s burn-in capabilities with temperature cycling from -70C to +175C.
• New automated equipment in the custom wire and cable assembly department.  This includes a second low-pressure injection molding machine for cable over-molding, a Panduit CP Series ferrule crimp press, a Kingsing KS-W66 Series heavy duty rotary cable stripper, a Gamma Mark III Plus heat shrink label printer, and a CableEye continuity tester.
• A Haas TM-2P Horizontal Mill in the machine shop. The new mill enables faster machining of jigs and fixtures for production use, as well as prototype enclosures and other components for the company’s box build services.

“Continuous re-investment in our manufacturing capabilities is essential for contract manufacturers to stay ahead of changing PCB technology and anticipate our customers’ next requirements,” said Michael Allen, president of Z-AXIS. “These investments improve our capacity, throughput and quality. At the same time, they improve employee satisfaction by automating the dull and boring jobs, making it easier for our team to do great work.”

The investments are aligned with the company’s long-range plan to continue to add capabilities to its agile, responsive, high-quality manufacturing services at its 32,000 square foot design and manufacturing center in western New York.