TAIPEI -- Hon Hai Precision, which operates Foxconn, the second-largest electronics manufacturing services company, is pursuing an aggressive acquistion strategy, the company said this week.

The Taipei Times quoted Hon Hai chairman Terry Gou as saying, "We have been working on [more mergers]. We hope to settle one, or two deals in the second half of the year." Gou's comments were reportedly made after the company's annual shareholders' meeting.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – The Surface Mount Technology Association (SMTA) has announced the technical sessions for its annual conference, SMTA International, co-located with the Assembly Tech Expo show in Rosemont, IL, Sept.25-29.

The 1.5-hour technical sessions each present three technical papers under the direction of a chairman. They are arranged according to tracks on Manufacturing and Assembly, Advanced Packaging, Substrates, RoHS and Process Control, covering topics such as lead-free soldering and rework, HDI, RFID, microdevices, BGA reliability, CSP and flip-chip technologies, selective soldering, lead-free process control, leadless packaging, surface finishes, RoHS compliance, harsh environments and AOI.

The RFID mini-conference has three paper sessions on Production Lines, Tag Materials and Processing, and Applications in the Electronics Manufacturing Industry. Two new sessions will cover RoHS compliance. Technical papers on lead-free will address reflow and wave soldering, rework, key issues in lead-free/RoHS manufacturing, lead-free CSP reliability, HASL surface finishes, effects on PCBs, surface finishes, process control, and

RoHS test methods and compliance, customer and industry requirements, and due diligence approach to WEEE/RoHS compliance.

Organized by Dr. Paul T. Vianco of Sandia National Labs, the Lead-Free Soldering Symposium will consist of technical sessions organized by the Joint Council on Aging Aircraft / Joint Group on Pollution Prevention Lead-free Solder Consortia Project, as well as sessions on Process for Lead-free Implementation and Lead-free Reliability. 

The Contract Manufacturing Symposium, organized by Mike Buetow, UP Media Group/Circuits Assembly, will feature paper sessions on Mid-Tier

EMS Strategy and Models and Markets. 

Led by Dr. Reza Ghaffarian, Jet Propulsion Labs, the Emerging Technologies Summit will feature papers on Roadmaps, Turning Lead Into Gold and Advanced Power Technology.

For more info: smta.org/smtai

VANCOUVER— BRIO Technology Ltd., a Beijing-based electronics assembler, has set up a branch office here as part of a push into the North American EMS market.

Canada BRIO is positioned to provide customer management, BOM sourcing and technical communications, the company said.

“China today has evolved to become a global manufacturing base”, says Yang Tongxing, president and cofounder. “North America’s small- to mid-tier CMs/OEMs/ODMs have not been able to access Chinese EMS production opportunities enjoyed by larger competitors."

Founded in 1999, BRIO is one of China’s EMS pioneers. Its customer list includes GE, Motorola, Philips, JVC and Pioneer.

The company operates manufacturing facilities in Beijing and Shanghai, with a total of 16 SMT lines (Panasonic, Samsung and Juki).

NORWOOD, MA - Electrical and electronic product manufacturers seeking third-party certification in Canada and the U.S. now have a single point-of-service: U.S.-based testing laboratory FM Approvals. The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) has accredited the company as a testing and certification organization.  

The lab meets the SCC's administrative and technical criteria for (1) hazardous-location electrical equipment covering all protection methods recognized in Canada; (2) electrical and electronic products; and (3) fire-alarm-and-signaling equipment.

FM Approvals is already a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory in the U.S. The company approves and certifies products and services that meet its property loss prevention standards.