Malaysia -- P.I.E. Industrial Bhd, a one-stop integrated electronic contract manufacturer is adding new production lines this quarter to cater to a surge in demand for its industrial electronic products. 

Group managing director Alvin Mui told StarBiz that the group was allocating RM6mil to buy new assembly machinery and equipment from the U.S. and Japan. 

“The new machinery and equipment we are installing now have the capability to handle lead-free electronic components assembly,'' he added. 

Mui said the group had recently secured orders from new customers in Japan, the U.S. and Europe to assemble PCBs and industrial electronic products such as barcode scanners, battery chargers and battery packs. 

He added that for the first half ended June 30, the group generated RM7.45mil in pre-tax profit compared with RM5.2mil for the first half of 2004. 

Revenue amounted to RM92mil compared with RM69mil previously.   

GREELEY, CO -- FCT Assembly will continue its Lead-Free Seminars in Missouri and Minnesota in August. The seminar gives an overview on the actual production experience in Asia and covers wave, reflow, repair and board finishes.

The free seminars will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and will include lunch. The dates are August 22 in Kansas City, August 23 in St. Louis and August 25 in Minneapolis.

For information, contact Bob Gilbert at 970-988-6243 or bgilbert@fctassembly.com.

To register, go to www.fctassembly.com and click on “Seminars and Trade Shows.”

Teddington, UK – The National Physical Laboratory is hosting a two-day Master Class on Solder Joint Reliability on Oct. 12-13.  Industry expert Werner Engelmaier, known as “Mr. Reliability,” will lead the class.

The class will be split into four half-day sessions: 1) Fundamentals in Solder Joint Reliability, 2) Failure Mode and Root Cause Analysis (Fatigue, Brittle Fracture, ENIG) & Acceleration Models, Reliability Tests and Screening Procedures, 3) Reliability Issues for Lead-Free Soldering, 4) Interconnect Failures and Design for Reliability for Plated-Through Holes/Vias, including Lead-Free Solder Impact.

Engelmaier’s background enables him to address the issues underlying electronic packaging from a system’s point-of-view, dealing with synergistic interdependence of material behaviour, processing aspects, thermal design, functional and environmental requirements.

He established the Product Reliability Main Committee of the IPC and has been Chairman since its inception. Author of over 150 technical publications, he holds two patents.

For more info: www.npl.co.uk/ei/news/

Carlsbad, CA– Asymtek and Emerson & Cuming will host a seminar in Taoyuan, Taiwan, to address new solutions for hand-held and computing manufacturing.  The free workshop, help August 19, will discuss how technology evolution impacts material selection and processing.

Industry speakers will discuss lead-free regulations and other factors affecting new processing technology, like thermal management solutions and jet dispensing rather than needle dispensing for optimum throughput requirements.  

The free seminar will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Sunrise Country Club, with a buffet lunch. For information, contact Patrick Lee, Asymtek regional sales manager at 886-2-2902-1860, plee@asymtek.com; or Andy Yang, Emerson & Cuming’s Greater China sales manager at 886-9-3219-2400, andy.yang@nstarch.com.