Ersa DfM
Quality right from the start!
Design features in the development process of electronic assemblies enable reliable manufacturing processes
The foundation for reliable electronic systems is laid with the design and production of PCBs. Under this motto the second technology seminar “Design for Manufacturing” took place on June 4th and 5th at the Ersa headquarters in Wertheim. After last year´s great success, Jürgen Friedrich, Head of Application Technology at Ersa, welcomed 46 participants from Germany, Austria and Switzerland to the 2019 event.
In the introductory lecture he presented practical examples of the various influencing variables on which the quality and reliability of electronic assemblies in the manufacturing process depend. The arc was drawn from circuit board design to various component specifications, the diverse soldering processes and the specialist knowledge of the employees who operate and program the production systems. The rapidly progressing digitalization of almost all areas of our daily work is based on electronic systems and assistants. These systems are increasingly intervening directly in our lives to protect them – as current development trends in the automotive industry show. This requires 100% functional integrity, as malfunctions cannot be tolerated under all conceivable operating conditions.
Arnold Wiemers, Technical Director of the Berlin Leiterplatten Akademie (Circuit Board Academy), spoke on the fundamental challenges of PCB technology and CAD design. In his lectures, he dealt in detail with topics such as CAD layout and -libraries, properties of base materials, special features when etching copper structures, building multilayer PCBs and designing LP benefits. His comments on UL solder limits showed that these are technologically sensible, but often difficult to implement in practice. Helge Schimanski, group leader at Fraunhofer ISIT, Itzehoe, introduced the trends in the miniaturization of SMT components and the special features of processing new designs. His further lectures were characterized by topics around the requirements of PCBs for these new designs and their solder paste printing. His presentations were rounded off by reflections on the reliability of solder joints and an exciting presentation on the limits and possibilities of various test methods.
The complexity of networking and monitoring a production line was the subject of a lecture by Hans-Jürgen Lütter, Managing Director of ANS answer elektronik Service- & Vertriebs GmbH. In addition to the central control of process parameters in order to be able to react immediately if irregularities occur, the goal of comprehensive networking is also the documentation of the individual processes in the customer´s focus. Another topic was the optimization of the throughput of production lines with frequent product changes or small batch sizes.
Soldering heat requirement depends on LP layout
Finally, the soldering processes were the focus of attention, since they are the central process step that has to reliably connect PCBs and components. Jürgen Friedrich demonstrated how the soldering heat requirement of a solder joint is directly dependent on the layout of the printed circuit board. Using examples from daily THT and SMT practice, he showed that the thermal load of a component can be reduced in multiple soldering processes. This reduces the thermal stress on assemblies during the manufacturing process, which in turn has a direct positive effect on their quality and reliability. At the end of the technology seminar, the potential of “Design for Manufacturing” became clear – the high number of satisfied participants and consistently positive evaluations underline this assumption.