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Chicago Trade Show Blues

Published: 03 October 2007
 by Mike Buetow
SCHAUMBURG, IL – From one came three. But more was less, and after the first few bars of the Chicago trade show musical chairs, many folks were singing the blues.
Much will be made of the series of trade shows – IPC Midwest, Assembly Technology Expo and SMTA International – taking place this fall. The former two, which took place last week in the northwest Chicago suburbs, effectively divided the audience that once could be counted on to walk the floor of AT Expo each year.

In neither case did the foot traffic live up to hopes or expectations. However, for those who bothered to turn out, there were some nuggets of value.

Following the SMEMA Council’s decision to support the IPC show, most equipment suppliers hightailed it there. A handful of exhibitors, Viscom and Sony among them, chose either to stick to the tried and true, or did not want to pay the cancellation fees to bail on ATE. At least three companies – Qualitek, Kyzen and Viscom – chose to exhibit at both.

All things considered, the Schaumburg Convention Center was a nice place to host a show. The center is new, clean and – if this matters to you – nonunion (based on the picketers outside the event). Parking is free and close; restaurants are in abundance; and the adjacent hotel (Renaissance) is pristine, although expensive, especially for the Chicago suburbs.

Some of the stars of the show – there were a few – included Fuji, which debuted its XPF-L single gantry placement machine, with a 25,000 cph chipshooter (said to have 50-micron accuracy) and a 35-micron accuracy flex placer head, with the capability of placing 01005s up to 45-mm sq. parts. The machine comes with up to 100 feeders (and uses the same feeders as the NXT and AIM models), picks from up to five Jedec style trays, and parts can be added while the machine is in operation. Fuji calls the head changeover Dynamic Head Exchange, and claims it takes less than 1 sec. to automatically perform. The gantry has a lower center of gravity and operates like a cast iron yoke; it is thin and wide to reduce stress and vibration. Fuji has sold 11 XPF-Ls so far, marketing manager Scott Wischoffer told Circuits Assembly.

BPM Microsystems showed its Flashstream automated flash programmer, which contains four programming sites and is rated at 1050 devices per hour. It handles parts in tray, tube or tape formats. A second automated system, HelixFS, is rated at 800 devices per hour, and is flexible enough to switch between dedicated flash and universal sites, based on production needs. Very slick.

KIC’s new Explorer thermal profiler was as good as advertised: a compact (7" long) design, high-temperature rated components, minimum of 12 thermocouples. The device also has an improved sampling rate and greater memory capacity, and connects to PCs via a USB port. But perhaps the real value is in the software: a neat GUI and the capability to measure slope, peak temperature and time above liquidous, and the Process Window Index which, as KIC’s new North American sales manager Brian O‘Leary describes it, mathematically identifies a profile’s "fit" to the available process window and whose algorithm distills the process to a whole number to indicate an in-spec condition. It also reveals where the process or oven needs adjustment. As the Explorer takes hold, the Slim KIC will be discontinued.

On the floor, the traffic, or lack of it, was disconcerting. With a few exceptions, exhibitors expressed broad concern about the numbers. Most companies seemed willing to give the show the benefit of the doubt, noting its late jump into the game and the confusion over which show(s) to attend. Jeff Timms of Siemens called IPC Midwest “good, with quality leads.” But another exhibitor noted to me, “The bar for SMTAI just got much lower.”

Over in Rosemont, a few minutes north of O’Hare airport, ATE was much busier, but just who were the people there to see? Canon has bundled several shows under one roof, a measure that drives traffic and presumably improves the producer’s margins, but makes comparisons between shows much more problematic. While ATE did feature a hands-free, operational SMT line – and IPC Midwest did not – most exhibitors Circuits Assembly spoke with felt that ATE is simply too broad to fit their current needs. Moreover, the hotels, dining and parking are neither as convenient nor as cost-effective as Schaumburg.


Circuits Assembly spent considerably less time at ATE than IPC Midwest. We picked up a few items of note, however.

Electrolube hinted toward a major new product to be rolled out at Productronica. The company, which already makes a wide range of materials, claimed this is new to the company and that beta testing is complete.

Zierick showed a new small footprint surface mount crimp terminal that promises excellent strain relief. The terminal eliminates wire stripping, terminating and soldering. A manual version is available; an automatic model is in development and expected by year-end.

Identco displayed 3 x 3 mm labels designed for cellphone and other miniature electronics. Its ELP 620 label printer is capable of printing 10"/sec.

Our take: IPC will continue to draw folks away from ATE, which has its work cut out for it if it hopes to retain a place in electronics manufacturing. It is clear that Canon hopes to entice the SMTA to reconsider its decision to maintain an independent show.

While in town, we ventured over to Morey Corp., the EMS company in the Western suburbs of Chicago. The firm recently opened its 26,000 sq. ft. Innovation Center, a testament to past success and an optimistic future. Sales have reached $100 million, thanks to rigid insistence on quality and performance metrics and family values passed down through three generations of family ownership. Major customers include Caterpillar (since 1978), Rockwell Collins, General Electric, Earthwave, International Truck and Engine and Case New Holland.

The 100,000 sq. ft. main factory boasts three double-sided SMT and one prototype line, all with a common equipment platform, including MPM UP2000 screen printers, Panasonic pick-and-place, Electrovert OmniExcel 7 ovens, JOT conveyors and YesTech AOI. The wave lines used ERSA baths and selective soldering, and Chad PTH inserters. The test equipment, which is kept in the main factory adjacent to the prototype line, included four Agilent 3070 ICTs, Glenbrook Technologies’ x-ray and an SPEA flying probe. The company handles about 300 work orders per month, performing up to 15 changeovers per day. We’ll detail more on this up-and-coming company, including an exclusive interview with its third-generation CEO, Scott Morey, shortly.

Overheard:

Dave Torp, ex of Rockwell, Kester and most recently Plexus, will join IPC as director of technology.

Telecom equipment maker Westell will outsource its manufacturing to Foxconn.

Hospitality suites will make their debut at IPC Apex in 2008.

Multiple parties have attempted to facilitate a meeting of the minds between IPC and SMTA on the trade show issue, without success.

Industry veteran Jeff Stong is headed to chip bonder OEM Hesse & Knipps. Our best wishes to an old and popular friend.

Likewise, Keith Howell has joined Nihon Superior.

The IPC Cleaning Subcommittee is working on a new cleaning handbook. A 12-month development cycle is expected.

Zestron will install a technical center near Munich. The new site will resemble its recently built center in Virginia.

The IPC-A-610 task group has determined measles to be a process indicator for Class 3 product. It was formerly considered a defect. The change will be made in the next revision of the standard, pending IPC member ratification.

A new Assembly and Joining Handbook will be written and will replace the J-STD-001 Handbook. The former will not include the tables comparing J-STD-001 and other standards, however, task group members say.

Dage and YesTech, now both under the Nordson umbrella, will remain separate entities. Both units report to Dage CEO Geraint Rees.

RIT has conducted a study on SMT line energy use. It should be available shortly.
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