100% quality in assembly production

Following an initial few words and the presentation of the Kurtz Ersa Group, the topic was introduced by Jürgen Friedrich, Head of Application Engineering, who has been working for the system supplier Ersa for the last 20 years. The European electronics industry must face up to numerous challenges if it is to survive and remain competitive in a climate of global competition. In Europe, the branch primarily produces components and appliances in mid-range lots for demanding industrial applications – highest quality whether in large or mini format, is the real challenge. The focus of all measures must always remain on premium quality.

First and foremost, this demands manufacturing-specific design and flexible production lines, so that even small lots can be produced efficiently and in top quality. “As a manufacturer of soldering systems, we have huge numbers of layouts submitted to us and have to decide what will work and what not – always in close cooperation with the customer, but of course also complying with the generally-accepted rules of technology, said Jürgen Friedrich. The two-day seminar examined important aspects of component manufacturing which are to be established as standards in order to achieve highest quality within a cost-efficient framework. The span of topics in the subsequent lectures extended from CAD-design and PCB technology and components to production processes – with the focal points ranging from the complex interplay of the board layout and solder joint quality to quality assurance and the traceability of process parameters.

The aim of the seminar was to show the influence of individual procedures on the buildability and reliability of electronic components in design engineering, production and testing. Above all, however, the interdependency of individual sub-processes was to be highlighted, such as how the PCB layout affects the capillary fill of THT components or how reliability depends on the design of the component use. Participants learned how to design electronic components taking manufacturing-specific aspects into account, how to select material and components and how to evaluate manufacturing processes. “Those who invest in the developers’ know-how benefit in the end – because optimised circuit board layout is the basic prerequisite for the cost effective manufacture of high-performance and reliable PCBs. “Quality therefore begins with the design engineering phase,” emphasises Jürgen Friedrich. A topic which exercises many electronics manufacturers – as demonstrated by the response when the seminar was advertised: The twoday seminar was completely booked out almost immediately.