CLINTON, NY – Indium Corp. promoted Ross Berntson to vice president of its solder products business unit, responsible for sales and technical services for printed circuit board assembly, semiconductor packaging, engineered solders and thermal interface materials. Berntson joined Indium in 1996 as a product specialist and was previously director of the solder products business unit. He is active in several industry consortia including the IPC Solder Products Value Council. Bernston has a bachelor’s in chemistry and master’s in teaching and business administration from Cornell University.
EL SEGUNDO, CA – Sales of broadband equipment are expanding at a robust pace, with factory revenue set to hit $15.1 billion worldwide by 2011, a CAGR of 6.2%, according to iSuppli Corp.
Broadband equipment sales were $11.2 billion in 2006, as users are opting for faster access to the Web. Household broadband is expected to exceed 50% in the U.S. and Japan for the first time this year, and will do so in Europe in 2008, iSuppli predicts. Global broadband subscribers will grow to 622.7 million by 2011, more than double the 270.4 million in 2006. “ADSL remained the leading broadband technology around the world in 2006, with 72% of the subscribers, while cable modems ended 2006 with 22%,” said Steve Rago, iSuppli principal analyst. “The ADSL market is headed for a major inflection point … This has happened in Japan already, as many service providers have migrated to fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) technology, which offers a 15-times increase in bandwidth compared to ADSL.”
IRVINE, CA – EMS firm ACC Electronix Inc. has purchased its second Mimot Advantage 2 placement system. ACC bought its first Advantage 2 last year.
FRANKLIN, MA – On May 17, Speedline Technologies will present a free one-hour Webcast on wave soldering process optimization. The Webcast starts at 11 am Eastern, and will emphasize process control and repeatability. Conveyance, fluxing, preheating and the wave solder module will be covered. Process-related topics will include product design, process definition, flux selection and application, solder wave forms, process instrumentation and control. Also to be discussed: tools and techniques for creating and maintaining engineering control and repeatability. For more information and to register, go to www.speedlinetech.com/seminars.
RICHARDSON, TX – TXP Corp. reported fourth-quarter rose to $3.1 million, up from $897,000 year-over-year. The EMS provider’s net loss rose to $1.8 million compared to net loss of $573,000 last year. The operating loss narrowed to $232,000, from $502,000. For the year, total revenue was $8.2 million, compared with $9.4 million for 2005. Revenue for 2005 included $5.2 million related to a one-time project with a single customer. The operating loss rose to $1.3 million, from $170,000 in 2005. The net loss was $4.6 million, versus a loss of $595,000. On March 30, TXP completed a private placement with Cornell Capital Partners worth about $5 million gross. The proceeds will be used to accelerate the company's ONT business strategy.
HERTFORDSHIRE, UK – Although 75% of respondents build products for markets outside the RoHS Directive scope, just 25% still use SnPb solder, according to a recent poll. And while most firms have opted for SAC alloys in soldering, no clear preference has emerged for board or IC finishes. The responses include companies exporting product to countries not covered by the RoHS Directive. The survey was conducted by Elfnet between November and February, and results compared with previous studies conducted in 2004 and 2005. SAC alloy remains the predominant choice in reflow soldering, at around 70%. SAC use has risen to 59% from 18% for wave soldering, and to 75% from 54% for hand soldering. About 12 to 13% of PWB and component finishes were SnPb, respondents said. Interestingly, companies have not standardized on a single replacement. Indeed, the number of finishes used has risen, to 10 in 2006 from seven in 2004. The report also includes limited data on regional variations with the U.S. and Japan, as well as equipment purchases and upgrades. About 80% of respondents reported ongoing implementation problems, some 15 to 18 months after the Directive went into effect. The report can be downloaded for free at www.europeanleadfree.net/pooled/articles/BF_DOCART/view.asp?Q=BF_DOCART_285702
