If you have a bunch of complicated boards that need rework, and you need to remove solder and adhesive, it's a time consuming and risky application. In fact, even the most experienced and technical operators can get into delicate situations when faced with repeating component and pad cleaning over and over.
Meet Metcal Eastern RSM Ed Zamborsky
Ed Zamborsky is Metcal's Eastern Regional Sales Manager, as well as a Master Applications Engineer. Ed visits customers throughout North and South America helping them evaluate new and complicated PCB assembly and other difficult applications.
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Metcal’s Scarab Site Cleaning System – Check Out the 2-Minute Video
Contactless solder cleaning is rapidly replacing manual cleaning methods in more and more rework applications. Metcal’s Scarab system provides an easy to use and cost effective solution for PCB cleaning challenges faced by most rework manufacturers today.
Paired on a bench top with the Metcal Scorpion Advanced Package Rework System, any rework operation can now effectively and economically clean a board and also ensure accurate component placement and custom tailored reflow profiles in a single bench top operation.
Metcal Wins NPI Award for Best Hand Soldering Product
We're excited to announce we have been awarded a 2017 NPI Award in the category of Soldering – Hand Tools for CV-5200 Connection Validation™ Soldering Station!,
The Circuits Assembly NPI Awards are chosen by an independent panel of practicing industry engineers. Evaluation of the award entries is based on several criteria, including innovation; compatibility with existing technology; cost-effectiveness; design, and more. The award was presented to the company during a Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017 ceremony that took place at the San Diego Convention Center during the IPC APEX EXPO.
The patented CV-5200 Connection Validation™ Soldering Station is the next major step in the evolution of process control. CV is the world’s first soldering station capable of evaluating the quality of the solder joint by calculating the intermetallic compound formation and providing real-time, closed-loop feedback to the operator via an integrated LED ring in the hand piece.
“Connection Validation sets the stage for a major advancement in machine intelligence,” according to Christopher Larocca, President of OK International, which acquired Metcal in 1996. “It fundamentally mitigates the risk of product failures, imperiled user safety, recalls, and unrecoverable cost – which can result in significant damage to a company and its brand. Manufacturers can now confidently develop faster, more advanced products, while boosting performance and cost efficiency,” added Larocca.
The CV-5200 features a Chip-in-Cartridge technology that precisely calculates and displays tip temperature on the unit’s color TFT graphic display. With the CV-5200’s communication port, tip temperature and other data can be collected and analyzed in production reports.
Premiering in 2008, the NPI Awards program is an annual celebration of product excellence in electronics surface mount assembly. Premier products based on the finest examples of creative advancement in technology are chosen by a distinguished panel of electronics assembly industry experts.
Metcal Team to Present on Rework and Risk Mitigation at IPC APEX 2017
Metcal will be presenting two white papers at IPC APEX 2017 in San Diego this February 14-16. Take a look at a summary of what our engineers will be presenting:
When: Wednesday, Feb. 15th, 1:30 -3:00 PM
What: Panel: S17: Rework I
Location: 1A
Rework Challenges for Leading Edge Components BGA, QFN and LED in Today’s Fast Moving Industry
(see also below: Risk Mitigation in Hand Soldering)
Presented by Paul Wood, Metcal Advanced Product Applications Manager
The electronics assembly industry continues to face the challenges associated with BGA, QFN, and LED packages. The demand for more performance by consumers drives change, which results in greater component density. Component density on printed circuit boards continues to decrease with a corresponding increase in component complexity and reduction in pitches. Good examples of these industrial trends are smart phones, tablets and wearables.
Industry Trends Making Manual PCB Cleaning Increasingly More Challenging
In addition to PCBs becoming thicker over the years, pad and pitch size have also reduced significantly, with many smartphones and other devices now utilizing pad sizes as small as .25mm millimeters spaced at intervals of .5mm. It is known in the industry that new chips are scheduled for release in the next two to three years that utilize designs calling for pad sizes as small as .15 mm with a .3 mm pitch. With adjacent parts so close together, avoiding hitting them with the wick during manual cleaning—and creating another round of rework—will most likely become impossible for even the most skilled technician.
Further, traditional cleaning methods can be even less effective when it comes to cleaning PCBs incorporating advanced chip technologies. For example, one new technology is providing outstanding improvements in security, making it nearly impossible for criminals to access data stored on the processor. However, due to factors such as differing size pads and uneven solder volumes, manual cleaning can be a significant challenge.
Another technology, Ceramic Ball Grid Array (CBGA), a specialty process used in aerospace, military and other high reliability applications, is another high value case in point. These boards,
