ANGLETON, TX -- Contract manufacturer Benchmark Electronics Inc. today reported sales of $510 million for the March quarter, up 6% from $481 million last year.

First-quarter net income was $16.9 million, up 11% from $15.2 million a year ago.

Cary T. Fu, president and chief executive, called the results "excellent in light of the soft economic conditions seen recently in the technology marketplace."

For the quarter, operating margin was 4.4%, and return on invested capital was 13.8%.

As of March 31 Benchmark had cash and short-term investments of $344 million and no outstanding debt. 

Inventories increased by $39 million to $295 million; inventory turns were 6.4 times.

Benchmark guided for second quarter revenue of $525 million to $550 million.

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OYSTER BAY, NY -- A new war among automakers is on the verge of breaking out. The battle: safety as the key differentiator for vehicle lines.

"There are a host of cutting-edge safety systems in varying stages of development that will alter the consumer's perception of what makes for a safe vehicle," says ABI Research senior automotive analyst Robert LaGuerra. "What is interesting is that automakers disagree about how they define a safe vehicle."

LaGuerra adds that automakers are tackling the issue of safety from varying perspectives. From electronic stability control, adaptive cruise control and telematics systems, to blind-spot detection, lane-departure warning, driver monitoring, and pedestrian-based safety systems, all will be used in some combination to make for a safer vehicle.

Automakers such as Honda and Mercedes are among the first to introduce systems promoting pedestrian safety, while GM may be the first to introduce both ESC and reactionary safety systems such as OnStar as standard equipment across all its North American models.

ABI cautions that there are still issues to be overcome, including high systems costs, the ability to have on-board safety systems communicate with each other, decisions about how much control should be taken away from the driver in an emergency, plus software and processor limitations in assessing an emergency situation on a real-time basis. ABI suggests that further systems integration will not only enhance the level of safety, but help reduce overall system costs.

Minneapolis -- The Harsh Environment Electronics Workshop cosponsored by SMTA and Auburn University will be held June 28-29 in Indianapolis. The workshop will address concerns related to harsh environment electronics and challenges for auto electronics. It aims to combine the needs of end-users with the capabilities from  research and industry.
 
Will addresses the challenges of meeting expanding temperature ranges (-55°C to +150°/200°C) with increased vibration, higher packaging density and longer reliability. Next-generation requirements for automotive electronics are explored from the systems level and potential supply based solutions are presented.
 
Industrial needs for non-automotive vehicle requirements will be addressed, with session topics on:
- Thermal Interface Materials
- Component Reliability
- Module Overmolding
- Systems Design
- Lead-Free Soldering and Solder Alternatives
 
The workshop will also feature a panel discussion on lead-free for harsh applications.  
 

Bannockburn, IL - As the electronics industry races to meet the EU's RoHS Directive, IPC and Soldertec Global --a division of Tin Technology-- are sponsoring the third International Conference on Lead-Free Electronics on June 7-10 in Barcelona.                                                  

Critical lead-free issues include new alloys and materials evaluations, inspection changes, tin whiskers, lead-free on advanced packages like chip scale and flip chip, and reliability. Assembly operations will face increased assembly costs (perhaps 15% higher) and will impact areas beyond manufacturing such as field support, sales, marketing and training. 

Conference topics and educational courses will cover:

Policy development: European/Asian/other legislation or voluntary activity on hazardous materials and recycling; Legislative compliance and policy enforcement methods; 

Supply chain issues: Standards for marking and test; Materials declarations, part number, obsolescence, etc.;

Production issues: Design for lead free production; Component solder, board development, availability and lead-free compatibility; Examples of implementation; Reflow, wave, hand soldering, inspection, repair, rework and test; 

Cost issues: Tin whiskers; Reliability test data and method developments; High reliability product sectors (automotive, aerospace, etc.)

Environmental considerations: Toxicity and risk; Recycling; Substitutes for other hazardous substances.