Circuits Assembly Online Magazine - News

News

SAN JOSE – May sales of semiconductors worldwide declined 0.5% sequentially to $18.05 billion, the Semiconductor Industry Association reported today. SIA cited a drop in DRAM prices as a major factor.

May sales were up 4.1% year-over-year.

PHOENIX – Avnet Inc. has completed its acquisition of Memec, a distributor of semiconductors.

"This acquisition is significant for so many reasons," said Harley Feldberg, president of Avnet EM. "The acquisition allows us to provide a more balanced mix of these services to our customers regardless of location."

DORNSTADT, GERMANY – ASYS GmbH has stepped deeper into the screen printer market, acquiring EKRA, the Germany-based printer manufacturer, in a deal announced today. Financial and other terms were not disclosed.

The deal, which closed July 1, includes EKRA’s divisions in Asia and the U.S. The combined firm will employ more than 350 persons worldwide.

TEMPE, AZ – The manufacturing sector grew for the 25th straight month in June, boosted by spikes in new orders and production. Manufacturing rebounded from three months of slowing growth, according to the latest Institute for Supply Management poll.

“The improved rate of growth in new orders is quite encouraging, particularly when combined with a slower rate at which prices are escalating,” said ISM chairman Norbert Ore.

San Diego — DEK USA will host a lead-free workshop on Sept. 22 -23, at its Schaumburg, IL, facility. The workshop is co-sponsored by KIC, Henkel Technologies, DEK, Vitronics Soltec and OK International.

The hands-on training program is designed for engineers and engineering management, and aims to provide participants with a broader knowledge of lead-free materials interactions, and the advantages and limitations of the process. A sample lead-free board will be produced and taken away by each attendee.

The workshop will feature hands-on production floor training in the following areas:

· Screen printing surface mount adhesives and solder paste, and placement
· Reflow profiling

· Inspection/analytical

· Rework

· Wave.

A detailed agenda will be available mid-July at kicthermal.com/index.html. Reservations must be made in advance.

NEW YORK -- Companies that concentrate on process change, global branding and strategic relationships have the potential to shake up the competitive SMT landscape while transitioning to lead-free manufacturing. So said Frost and Sullivan analyst Keith Sullivan during a recent Webcast on the impact of RoHS on the SMT market.

Sullivan claims companies can “help tilt the competitive landscape” by leveraging potential Pb-free market opportunities for existing products, including value-added services, back-end semiconductor markets and expanding to China. For new products, Sullivan suggests looking to potential software developments and diversification.

BANNOCKBURN, IL – A group of leading vendors of solder today released its final results from a lengthy investigation on lead-free alloys, finding an alloy of Sn96.5Ag3.0Cu0.5 to be the best candidate to replace tin-lead solder.

The three-year study also baselined a series of test methods for determining lead-free solder performance.

HOUSTON —BP Microsystems, a supplier of device programming systems, announced that Redback Test Services will represent its full line of device programmers throughout Australia and New Zealand.

Established in 2002, Redback Test Services is a supplier of test and test automation solutions for the Australian and New Zealand electronics industry. Based in Melbourne, the company presently supports local, interstate and international companies.

LOS ALTOS, CA -- Slowing GDP gains will have a domino effect on electronics equipment demand, with replacement cycles losing momentum, according to a just released report.

Demand for everything from PCs to handsets to autos will suffer, although unit growth will remain respectable, said research firm Henderson Ventures (hendersonventures.com).

CHICAGO -- Boeing Co. today named 3M chief executive James McNerney as chairman and CEO, bringing a long track record of integrity and success to a executive team recently marred by scandal.

McNerney, 55, formerly ran General Electric's jet engine division, and is credited with turning around 3M following his appointment there in 2001.

Menlo Park, CA – OK International announced that Mark Cowell has been named president, succeeding Michael Gouldsmith. Cowell has worked for OK and Metcal for 22 years, most recently as VP of engineering.

Gouldsmith, who started OK as a small tool company over 20 years ago and built it into an international firm, will remain as chairman and assist Cowell in the transition.

Gouldsmith said, “Mark has played a key role at OK and one of its predecessor companies Metcal and has been responsible for the design and development of its Smart Heat soldering tools. More recently, as a member of the Executive Management Team, Mark has played an increasing role in the overall management of the company and is the ideal person to fill this role."

BANNOCKBURN, IL – The 90-day moving average shipments of all types of circuit boards slipped 7.8% year-on-year in May, and bookings plummeted 17%, according to the latest poll of North American PCB fabricators. Yet despite a 7.5% drop in bookings year-to-date, the trade group which takes the poll said it expects a second-half rebound.

“It’s pretty clear that 2005 will be a year of flat growth [sic] for the North American PCB industry overall,” said IPC, which takes the poll, in a statement. “But positive book-to-bill ratios over the last several months and other leading indicators suggest that demand should remain stable throughout the remainder of 2005.”