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Greetings!
Is tin heading for a crisis? Recent figures on the global output of tin
shows a huge increase in the volume of tin being mined. 2004 figures from
ITRI (International Tin Research Institute) suggest that 50% of all tin
mined is used in the production of solder. This amounts to a staggering
150,000 tonnes, 50% of which is consumed within Asia, mostly China. Assuming
an approximate growth of total electronics manufacturing of 6% per annum
and a stronger move towards lead free (SAC alloys typically contain around
96.5% tin) over the past two years, the global resources of this metal are
being sorely tested.
Indonesia produces around one third of the global output of tin and they
have recently come under increasing government pressure for all tin ore
to meet the 99.85% purity standards demanded by the London Metals Exchange.
New legislation was introduced on February 23rd, but only 2 of the country’s
39 mining companies are expected to be able to meet the standard. On the
eve of this legislation coming into force, the price for tin rose to a 20
year high of $14,000 per tonne. This can only result in higher solder costs
in our products.
Trevor Galbraith
Editor-in-Chief
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the March Issue (7.3) |
Issue 7.3 brings three new technical articles on mechanical stress caused
by the packaging process, nanodispensing in a high-speed production process
and conformal coating reliability issues. Andy Kellard interviews Dage's Paul
Walter and our regular columnists cover timely topics. Download
now.
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Getting Through
the Memory Bottleneck
Joe Fjelstad
Memory is vital to virtually all electronic systems of any complexity. In
the world of semiconductors memory comes in many forms; among those are SRAM,
Flash, MRAM and perhaps the most ubiquitous of all, DRAM. After local cache
memory on or in the processor package assembly, DRAM is the memory technology
that is used almost exclusively for direct communication with the CPU. Workhorse
that it is, DRAM is nevertheless a key and gating technology to the overall
performance of electronic computing systems because memory deployed in its
current form is significantly slower that the microprocessor. For instance,
while leading edge processors are now operating at 4GHz, present generation
memory is only capable of 400 MHz performance. Read
the full column...
This column appeared in Global SMT & Packaging magazine issue 7.2
- February 2007. |
RoHS Compliance
and Pb-free Capability: One and the Same?
by Kevin Curran, the electronics group of Henkel
Absolutely not. Though many in the industry would lead you to believe that
a RoHS compliant product ensures lead-free process capability, in fact, nothing
could be further from the truth. RoHS compliance simply means that a product
or a material does not contain any of the hazardous substances banned under
the legislation. But, just because a material is free of the RoHS list of
excluded substances, doesn’t mean it can withstand processing at the
elevated temperatures of lead-free. There are countless examples of compliance
versus capability but, in this case, we’ll take a look at surface mount
adhesives (SMAs). Read
more...
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Via hole mounting
on surface pads or not?
Bob Willis
The use of via hole mounting of ball grid array (BGA) devices can have advantages
and disadvantages in the manufacturing process. Alternatively smaller vias
in pads or through hole vias offset from the mounting pad has become quite
commonplace in many mobile applications, but again some issues may be experienced
unless a full understanding of the process is obtained through production
trials. Often a design concept is not fully considered or proven in manufacture.
Using stacked vias, full via plugging or pulse plating in printed board manufacture
are options for the design engineer, but what is the additional cost and
availability? Read
the full column...
This column appeared in Global SMT & Packaging magazine issue 7.2
- February 2007.
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iNEMI Board Assembly
Roadmap
Dongkai Shangguan
In November 2006, I was honored to be elected a Distinguished Lecturer by
the IEEE CPMT Society. At the inaugural IEMT conference in Malaysia, I gave
a keynote on packaging and board assembly technology trends and the impact
on the supply chain. The conference was very well organized and attended.
As I traveled across continents, the topic of industry and technology
roadmaps continued to be one of great interest in the discussions. Read
the full column...
This column appeared in Global SMT & Packaging magazine issue 7.2
- February 2007.
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Kyzen introduces online service support
This new features gives customers and Web site users access to Kyzen’s
top-rated technical support for questions or problems on the spot.
Balver Zinn and Cobar Group merge global business activities in solder
materials
Balver Zinn in Balve, Germany, and the Cobar group in Breda, Holland,
announced the signature of a letter of intent ("LoI") relating
to Cobar joining the Balver Zinn Group.
 Steve Glass
appointed business development manager of RMD’s RoHS/WEEE
division
Steve will have global responsibility for the LeadTracer™ line of
RoHS-detection instrumentation utilizing XRF technology.
Speedline to present webinar on statistical process control and DOE
On Thursday, April 19, 2007, a webcast will be offered on practical applications
of design of experiments (DOE) and statistical process control (SPC).
Digi-Key Corporation inks deal with Knott Systems
Digi-Key will distribute the company's development kit.
Asymtek wins 2007 Service Excellence Award
This is the fourth consecutive year Asymtek has won Circuits Assembly
Magazine's "Service Excellence Award".
More Industry News...
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 Enhanced reflow heater controls allow lead-free BGA rework at lower
air temperatures
OK International APR-5000-XLS array package rework system meets
narrow lead-free process window for perfect rework every time.
 Precision dispensing in a compact system
Asymtek's new DispenseMate D-583/585 brings high-level process control
to benchtop dispensing.
 Electrovert launches
lead-free VectraES™ wave soldering system
The VectraES provides reduced flux usage and dross generation, competitive
pricing, and the environmental benefits of lead-free process capability.
More New Products...
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March 27, 2007
Have something to say?
Global SMT & Packaging is currently accepting submissions
of original, previously unpublished technical articles, industry-related
book reviews, and articles that offer insight into industry trends
and developments. For more information, or to submit a query, contact
Trevor Galbraith at editor@globalsmt.net.
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