News
PCB East will be held Oct. 10 to 14, at The Center of New Hampshire in Manchester, NH. It is produced by UP Media Group, and sponsoredby by Printed Circuit Design & Manufacture and Circuits Assembly.
Papers or presentations are being sought for the technical conference on such topics as:
- High speed, high frequency and signal integrity
- Lead-free processes and their effect on PCB design
- Impedance and crosstalk control
- EMI/EMC analysis
- Embedded passives and active devices
- Thermal analysis
- RF and microwave
- Packaging and components
- Area arrays
- FPGA design and implementation
- Flexible circuitry
- HDI design and technologies
- PCB design/layout techniques
- Component library creation and management
- Design for manufacture, test and assembly
- Design (including analog, digital and power supplies)
- PCB fabrication
- Soldering
- Surface finishes
- Industry forecasts
- Business and design/supply chain issues.
Papers will be 30-minutes in length, while lectures will be one hour, workshops two hours, and seminars 3.5 hours. Also sought: presentations for a Professional Development Curriculum of one- and two-day tutorials.
Abstracts of 100 to 300 words are due March 4. Visit www.pcbeast.com to submit online, or send via email to Andy Shaughnessy, ashaughnessy@upmediagroup.com.
The PCB East conference and exhibition is for designers and manufacturers of printed circuit boards and semiconductor packages.
In addition to watching the road ahead, automotive cameras will also be used to monitor the driver and occupants for several new safety applications over the next few years, according to ABI Research.
Onboard cameras are the predominant technologies earmarked for driver monitoring. Through the use of specialized algorithms, these cameras will monitor the driver and check for conditions of distraction or drowsiness. Cameras will also be used for occupant detection as part of next-generation airbag systems.
"We are expecting a new dynamic testing procedure to be released by NHTSA this year in the U.S., which will act as a catalyst towards the adoption of optics-based occupant detection systems, as well as other leading-edge technologies," said Robert Laguerra, senior analyst, in a press release. "This will significantly impact all automakers looking to sell to this market."
The major advantages of camera-based occupant detection systems over current pressure/weight sensor-based systems are in improving occupant classification and position-sensing (Is this an adult? a child? a suitcase?), and in dynamically suppressing airbag deployment.
This can save lives and decrease costs, ABI says, because the number of airbags in a vehicle has increased so much that it may soon cost more to replace all the deployed airbags in a vehicle than just to buy a new car.
DES PLAINES, IL -- SMT and business expert Tony Longo will talk on impending environmental legislation requirements at an IMAPS meeting in Chicago next week.
Longo, a senior
market development engineer at Kester, will
present on developing a lead-free roadmap that complies with RoHS, the European mandate that restricts hazardous substances such as lead and some bromines.
The meeting will be held Feb. 15 at the Silver Stallion Restaurant in Des Plaines. The presentation starts at 7 p.m.
Longo is an SMTA certified process engineer with 14 years of SMT experience, a bachelor's in manufacturing technology and an MBA in international business.For more information: imaps.org/chapter/chicago/index.htm.
Fiorina, who managed the massive merger of HP with one of its chief rivals, Compaq Computer, cited differences with the board over executing its strategy.
In a statement, Fiorina suggested she was fired, "While I regret the board and I have differences about how to execute HP's strategy, I respect their decision. HP is a great company and I wish all the people of HP much success in the future."
The HP board has suggested or initiated several changes of late, from restructuring Fiorina's responsibilities to bringing on a new director whose influence is felt industry wide.
The contract manufacturer outdid last year's performance, when it reported $487 million in sales and net income of $13.4 million, including charges.
For the year ended Dec. 31, the company reported sales of $2 billion, up 8.8%. Net income
rose 28% to $71 million.
"2004 was another good year for Benchmark," said Cary T. Fu, president and CEO. "We enhanced our customer base, reduced
customer concentration, expanded our low-cost manufacturing capacities,
realigned our resources, increased our technical capabilities and delivered
solid financial performance.
Inventories decreased by $33 million to $257 million; inventory turns were 7.5 times.
As of Dec. 31, Benchmark had $367 million in cash and no outstanding debt.
Accounts receivable were $251 million.
Benchmark guided for first quarter 2005 revenue of $510 million and $530 million.
For the year the company anticipates revenue and earnings growth of 10 to 15%.
"Our 2004 new program bookings
provide good momentum for a strong 2005," Fu said.
The position is a newly
created post.
Prunier, 43, joined TFS
in September 2003 as senior director for the company's medical products
business. He is a former general manager at Plexus, and director of manufacturing for SCI Systems.
Cash from operations exceeded $9 million for the quarter. TTM ended the year with cash and short-term investments of $58.5 million and no outstanding debt.
Sequentially, net sales fell 5% ($3 million), the result of lower orders
due to capacity constraints at the circuit board maker's Chippewa Falls facility.
For the quarter, quickturn business made up 26% of net sales, down 1 point from last year. Gross margin decreased to 24.6%, compared to 26.1% last year and 28.4% sequentially. Gross margin was affected by a raw materials price increase, pricing pressure, lower operating efficiency and mix changes, the company said.
For the year, net revenues rose 33% to $240.6 million and net income
was up nearly 400%, to $28.3 million. The 2004 results included a
restructuring charge of $855,000 and a $1.2 million reversal of a tax
valuation allowance.
For its first quarter 2005, TTM guided for revenues of $59 million
to $62 million.
In a statement, Kent Alder, president and CEO, said, "While we
expect business conditions to remain relatively stable, the benefits of our
capacity expansion at Chippewa Falls should offset the seasonal slowdown in
quickturn typically experienced in the first quarter of the year."
In a statement, chief executive Bruce McMaster said, "We believe that the discontinuation of our UK-based business is a positive development for our shareholders. It provides a resolution to the liquidity challenges that have beset that business, enables us to cease reporting that business as an ongoing operation, and permits us to concentrate our efforts on the North American market. "
McMaster said DDi will focus on growing a value-added reseller services business recently begun in the U.S.
The U.K. operations carried heavy debt even before their acquisition
by DDi in 2000, McMaster said. The company, which is operating on slim
cash reserves, "could not justify" the large amounts of cash needed to
restructure.
DDi Europe will be placed into administration, a move that permits DDi Corp. to remove $38 million of the
UK-based indebtedness from its books.
In recent quarters, DDi Europe has contributed approximately one-third of
DDi Corp.'s consolidated net sales, which totaled about $285 million for the 12 months ended last September.
In a research note, Deutsche Bank said Cisco's performance and outlook are behind its "cautious view" of the EMS sector. The maker of networking gear is one of the largest customers of the EMS industry.
Cisco's sales were up 1.5% sequentially, but below Street expectations of $6.13 billion. Year-on-year revenue forecasts are decelerating, from 12% in January
to 8 to 10% for the current quarter.
The combination of slowing end demand, contracting component lead times and relatively high inventory levels across the communications infrastructure market continues
Cisco said its internal book-to-bill ratio for communications infrastructure gear is below 1.0, the benchmark for growth. "We continue to believe the recent softness across the supply chain reflects slowing end-demand and customers' inventory reduction efforts," DB wrote.
"Look for Cisco to work inventory levels lower in future quarters in response
to softer end market demand and improved component availability. This will likely translate into soft near-term demand for EMS suppliers," DB wrote.
The EMS makers which stand to be most affected include Celestica (more than 10% of revenue comes from Cisco), Solectron (14%) and Jabil (15%).
To be considered, students must submit an entry form, academic transcripts, a letter of recommendation, a resume and a one-page thesis research abstract.
The grant, presented each year at the SMTA International conference, was established in memory of past SMTA president and industry colleague Dr. Charles Hutchins.
The 2004 recipient was Brian McAdams from Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA) for his project: "Sub-critical Initiation of Delaminations at the Underfill/Passivation Interface in Flip-chip Assemblies."
SAN FRANCISCO -- Fabrinet, an engineering and electromechanical
manufacturing services company, last week opened a 115,000 sq. ft. building in Pathumthani,
Thailand,
the first of what is a new campus for the company.
The site, known as Pinehurst, will provide electronics assembly
support for products built at Fabrinet's Chokchai campus 7 miles away.
The company has broken ground on a second building at the Pinehurst
campus. When completed, Fabrinet will have doubled its footprint in Thailand.
The second building is scheduled for completion in December.
Upon completion of the Pinehurst campus, Fabrinet have nearly 450,000
sq. ft. of capacity in Thailand.
The company's sales decreased from $45.9 million in 2003 and $42.4 million last quarter. The net loss widened from $3.2 million in December 2003, although it improved from a loss of $30.8 million in the September quarter.
The company, which provides EMS services, took a $1.8 million charge for excess inventory
and scrap; a $760,000 charge for relocation to a new facility in Redmond, WA; and
$237,000 in severance charges for its Tempe corporate office. TFS also took $380,000
in charges for Sarbanes Oxley compliance.
TFS received $900,000 as reimbursement for expenses related to the move to Redmond.
For the year, the company posted net sales of $158.9 million, flat with 2003, and a loss
from continuing operations of $54.3 million, down from a loss of $33.9 million last year.
Including operations now divested, TFS lost $44.5 million in 2003.
TFS took non-cash goodwill and asset impairment charges of $23.2 million in 2004. In 2003,
it recorded one-time charges of $14.3 million.
In a press statement, president and chief executive Jack Saltich said, "We are
working through a challenging period of reorganization, consolidation and
restructuring. There is real value in our EMS+Display strategy, and we need
to extract that value by focusing on actions that streamline the company and
increase revenue.
TFS also announced it has won a program to supply color display modules a Tier One
OEM handset maker. The program is expected to begin late in the second quarter.
Cash from operations was in the quarter was almost $200,000. Capital expenditures
were $1.2 million. At the end of the quarter TFS's cash balance was $16.2 million, up from
$14 million sequentially.
Day sales outstanding were 52 days, one day lower, inventory turns rose half-a-turn
to 6.8, and cash conversion cycle days dropped by four to 54.
By industry, TFS said revenues
- Computing: 62% (52% in Q4 2003)
- Telecom: 7% (3%)
- Medical: 5% 12%)
- Industrial/Military: 14% (14%)
- Consumer: 8% (14%)
- Transportation: 4% (5%).
One customer accounted for more than 10% of revenue. The top
10 customers accounted for 76% of total Q4 revenue.
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