News
TAMPA -- Reptron Electronics today reported financial results for its second quarter ended June 30, and said it would lay off 10 to 12% of its workforce in an attempt to cut costs..
ARLINGTON, WA -- CheckSum, a supplier of low-cost in-circuit test systems, has opened an sales and support office in Shanghai.
John VanNewkirk, president and chief executive, said the company has more than 500 installations in China since first selling there in the 1990s.
The facility will be headed by Tony Tan, field product specialist, a veteran of Teradyne and Landrex Technologies.
PITTSBURGH -- Valor Computerized Systems' manufacturing data sets will be integrated with a startup EDA firm's component placement software in a move that could help speed electronics design.
DesignAdvance Systems, a provider of electronic design automation and CAD design-synthesis software, said its CircuitSpace component placement software will be used with Valor's manufacturing data, merging Valor's DfM capabilities with DesignAdvance's design and electrical rules checks, known as CircuitSpace.
"It is a logical next step for us to use manufacturing data sets to improve the manufacturing results of a CircuitSpace PCB design," said Randy Eager, CEO of DesignAdvance. "Valor's PCB manufacturers' data sets allows companies to calibrate their placement data with manufacturing equipment and processes."
Julian Coates, Valor vice president, corporate marketing, said, "By facilitating the use of PCB designers' production constraint data within CircuitSpace, our mutual customers are now able to consider DfM information while automating the placement of components on a PCB. This will have many positive effects including the reduction in design time and a reduction in the number of spins or design prototypes, which delay the release of new products."
BOSTON, MA – A recent run up in bookings for SMT process equipment is showing no signs of abating, and suppliers say signs point to organic growth in the industry.
Speedline Technologies today reported that second quarter bookings rose 44% sequentially and in July reached their highest level since 2000. At the end of July, backlogs had climbed 68% versus the end of the first quarter.
Thief River Falls, MN - - Micrel Inc. has signed a distribution agreement with Digi-Key Corp. for its line of advanced mixed-signal, analog and power semiconductors; high performance communication, clock management, Ethernet switch and physical layer transceiver ICs.
Micrel provides power and mixed-signal analog, RF transceivers and transmitters, high bandwidth communications and Ethernet IC solutions. Its product line of more than 4,500 IC solutions will be made available through Digi-Key.
SAN FRANCISCO -- The July book-bill for makers of semiconductor gear was 0.93, up from 0.90 in June, despite a drop in orders.
A drop in front-end orders masked gains for backend tools. Orders for backend tools jumped 44% quarter over quarter.
