Authored By:
Jenny Yuh, Joseph Park, Denis Kang
Koh Young Technology, Inc.
Seoul, Korea
Brent Fischthal
Koh Young America, Inc.
Summary
With a shortage of highly-skilled employees for printed circuit board assembly, the electronics industry faces a severe challenge, which is being complicated with a high turnover rate as employees jump between companies or simply become misaligned with the organization. While leading industry organizations like IPC and SMTA are tackling the issue head-on with education and training programs, a need exists for equipment suppliers to cooperate with other industry leaders and organizations to adopt Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication standards. Initiatives like the IPC Connected Factory Exchange (CFX) and the IPC-Hermes-9852 standard underpin the efforts within the industry, and many companies are working together to develop standards to create seamless production.
Guided in part by Industry 4.0, these M2M communication standards are quickly altering the manufacturing process by improving metrics like first pass yield and throughput by applying autonomous process adjustments. Far beyond an automatic line changeover, this bi-directional communication allows equipment to automatically adjust production parameters to increase board quality and lower costs by eliminating rework and scrap.
Building on our expertise and testing, this presentation will explore Industry 4.0, and then explore how Advanced Process Control (APC) can increase production yields and reduce defects. Specifically, the presentation will discuss how APC improves process repeatability by automatically adjusting component placement to the paste, rather than to the pad location. Moreover, it will show how APC will identify a shift trend and implement further position correction by using true 3D measurement data from the Automatic Optical Inspection (AOI) system. While a smart factory will help resolve the skilled employee challenge, it will also revolutionize process optimization.
Conclusions
The electronics industry is facing a chronic skilled employee shortage. Job hopping and employee misalignment lead to high turnover, which further compounds the challenge. The leading industry organizations like IPC and SMTA are tackling the issue head-on with education programs and training initiatives, it is not enough. While the lack of skilled labor remains a challenge, Industry 4.0 and its associated benefits will help advance the industry. Equipment suppliers need to work diligently to accelerate M2M communication standards to help the situation. Initiatives like the IPC Connected Factory Exchange (CFX) and IPC-Hermes-9852 underpin the efforts within the industry to develop standards and create a Smart Factory.
These M2M communication standards, guided in part by Industry 4.0, are quickly altering the manufacturing process by improving metrics like first pass yield and throughput by applying autonomous process adjustments. Far beyond an automatic line changeover, this two-way communication with suppliers will allow the equipment to automatically adjust production parameters to increase board quality and lower costs by eliminating rework and scrap. As part of this mission, advanced process control with interconnected PCBA equipment will revolutionize process optimization and lay the foundation for the smart factory.
Initially Published in the SMTA Proceedings
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