Industry Articles

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The Important Advantages of MicroCare® - provided courtesy of MicroCare®
About MicroCare
MicroCare is a leader in the high-speed, high-performance world of cleaning, coating and lubricating. With products for industries as diverse as electronics, transportation, photonics, medical devices and aerospace, MicroCare is your catalyst for process enhancements, lowering costs and improving quality. MicroCare is an ISO 9001:2000 registered company.

Introducing The Microcare® Circuit Board Cleaning Station featuring The Trigger Grip™ Cleaning System - provided courtesy of MicroCare®
The Most Complete Benchtop Cleaning System Improving Workplace Safety and Lowering Your Cleaning Costs
MicroCare® Corporation, the global leader in high-performance critical precision cleaning announces the launch of the industries only ready-to-use bench top cleaning system. This kit will feature MicroCare® SUPRCLEAN® Defluxer, the most progressive solution for cleaning electronics and printed circuit boards. It removes flux, oil and acrylic conformal coatings, is non-flammable and fast drying.

Introducing MicroCare® Optixx™ Precision Lens & Instrument Screen Cleaner - provided courtesy of MicroCare®
The Most Advanced High-Precision Optical Cleaning Solution Developed for Optical Lens, Solar Cells, Laser Hardware, Scientific Instruments, Metals, Plastic, Glass and Coatings
MicroCare® Corporation, the leader in progressive precision and fiber optic cleaning announces today the launch of the industry’s most advanced optical cleaning solution that is fast-drying, nonflammable, nonhazardous, and plastic-safe. It is completely effective in getting rid of soils such as dust, oil, grime, and moisture from optical lens, metals, plastic, glass and coatings.

Desco ESD Control Surveys - provided courtesy of Desco
Desco ESD Survey Defined - A Desco factory trained representative will walk with you around your facility resulting in a written report noting observations and measurements with the goal to assist you in to improving the overall quality of your ESD control program. A written report will be prepared with observations, measurements and specific recommendations for each of the Technical Elements. There will also be a Recommendations Summary, identifying those areas we believe to be most critical. A second document will accompany the ESD Survey Report, listing suggested ESD products for to specifically address problems or deficiencies found. We hope you will consider incorporating these items into your Qualified Product Listing (QPL) for use in your program.

Advantages of Using Continuous Monitors per ESD Association - provided courtesy of Desco
Continuous or Constant Monitors pay for themselves improving quality, productivity, eliminating wrist strap daily testing and test result logging.

"The wrist strap system should be tested daily to ensure proper electrical value. … Daily testing may be omitted if constant monitoring is used." [Wrist Strap standard ANSI/ESD S1.1-2006 Annex A, 3 Frequency of Functional Testing].

Desco Ionizers and ESD Control - provided courtesy of Desco
Desco offers a wide product offering of Ionizers: bench top, overhead, and point-of use. Desco products incorporate superior technology providing fast discharge times, and such features as auto balancing feedback controls and "clean me" alarms.

Nitrogen Soldering - provided courtesy of Pace
PACE’s soldering systems offer legendary thermal control as well as advanced features to maintain your process.

Working with Lead Free Solders
- provided courtesy of Pace
Lead Free solders do not behave or look like their lead containing counterparts. As our industry changes over to Lead Free solders, individual PCB assemblers will need to address several issues relating to hand soldering and rework.

Upgrade to Intelliheat - provided courtesy of Pace
In today’s environment flexibility isn’t just important, IT’S THE KEY TO SUCCESS...

How to Set Up an Ergonomic Workplace
- provided courtesy of Sovella
Why usability and ergonomics improvements?

Because industries recognize work related health problems and associated costs, they look for working environment solutions designed to fit workers’ needs.

Ergonomic Seating Within the Biomedical Research Environment - provided courtesy of Bevco
The types of pathogens that are studied include anthrax, avian influenza, bubonic plague, hemorrhagic fevers (such as Ebola), typhus, West Nile virus, influenza, drug-resistant tuberculosis among others.

Ergonomic Seating Scores: High Marks at State College - provided courtesy of Bevco
The Evergreen State College, is a public, four-year liberal arts and sciences college located in the Pacific Northwest. Recently it became necessary to remodel their existing chemistry and microscopy laboratory facilities.

Style and Comfort by Design
- provided courtesy of Bevco
Quality Seating: A Wise Investment
The products you’re about to discover in these pages - quality ergonomic seating solutions for office, industrial and technologically sensitive applications - are exceptional.

Earn LEED Environmental Quality Credits with Bevco Seating Products - provided courtesy of Bevco
Bevco achieves LEED certification for all of its seating products.

Increase Efficiency and Organization with Akro-Mils and 5S Lean - provided courtesy of Akro-Mils
5S Lean is a methodology to improve efficiencies and enhance operational performance.

5S / Visual Workplace Handbook: Building The Foundation For Continuous Improvement - provided courtesy of Brady Worldwide Inc.
S1: SORT >> S2: SHINE >> S3: SET IN ORDER >> S4: STANDARDIZE >> S5: SUSTAIN
5S is one of the most widely adopted techniques from the lean manufacturing toolbox. Along with Standard Work and Total Productive Maintenance, 5S is considered a “foundational” lean concept, as it establishes the operational stability required for making and sustaining continuous improvements.

Sustain the Gains of Lean Improvements - provided courtesy of Brady Worldwide Inc.
Visual Workplace Critical To Promoting Long Term Continuous Improvement
If your company uses lean practices to improve plant operations and business performance, or if you're considering a lean transformation, you're not alone. In recent years, more companies are adopting lean as a continuous improvement method to improve profitability, enhance customer satisfaction and maintain a competitive edge in the marketplace.

Equipment Reliability Made Visual: Effective Labeling Enhances Asset Performance - provided courtesy of Brady Worldwide Inc.
Manufacturers on the lean journey are discovering how critically important it is to stabilize and optimize
equipment performance.

Conduction Soldering – Facts, Fiction and Best Practices - provided courtesy of OK International
Poor hand soldering results are costing electronic manufacturers thousands of dollars every year. There is no secret to producing a good solder joint; the challenges comes with repeating this feat for all joints in the assembly, at production speeds.

OKi SmartHeat Technology - provided courtesy of OK International
Through the evolution of OKi's product lines there have been some inconsistencies of the Smartheat story. These newer, different, and sometimes made up versions can be confusing and cause us to look less credible when customers hear two stories during the same presentation.
It is the intention of this guide to help us all find a more consistent message to better educate our customers and provide a better Smartheat experience.
Click here for Frequently Asked Questions.

Weller Extends Product Line with Introduction of New Electric Screwdriver System - provided courtesy of Weller
End Users Can Now Rely on a Trusted Brand for Electronic Assembly Needs

Weller, a global leader in soldering solutions announced a series of new Weller High-Precision Electronic and Mechanical Torque Control Screwdrivers for electronic assembly applications.

Fume Extraction - provided courtesy of Weller
  • 90 Minutes of Soldering - An image illustrating the effects after 90 minutes of soldering.
  • Fume Extraction - The danger of solder fumes.
  • Health Hazards - Health hazards from inhaling and exposure to soldering fumes.
  • Isocyanates - Isocyanates are from a family or group of substances used extensively in today's working environment.
  • Solvents - Everyone working in an industrial environment comes in contact with chemicals containing various solvents.

Tackling High Mass Soldering Applications
In today's electronic rework and repair field, the operator is faced with a myriad of challenges from the use of lead-free alloys to emerging package styles and sizes to PCB layouts that are highly densely populated.

Fundamentals of Electrostatic Discharge
A six-part series on Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) prepared by the ESD Association
Provided courtesy of the Electrostatic Discharge Association -- http://www.esda.org
  • Part 1 - An Introduction to ESD
  • Part 2 - Principles of ESD Control
  • Part 3 - Basic ESD Control Procedures and Materials
  • Part 4 - Training and Auditing
  • Part 5 - Device Sensitivity and Testing
  • Part 6 - ESD Standards
© 2010, ESD Association, Rome, NY
ESD Association • 7900 Turin Road, Building 3 • Rome, NY 13440-2069 USA • Ph: +1 315-339-6937 • Fax: +1 315-339-6793 • email: info@esda.org

Wet vs. Dry Fiber Optic Cleaning
by Harvey Stone – MicroCare Corporation

The Benefit Of Tool Kits
Why Tool Kits?

Fiber Optic Troubleshooting In The Data/Telco Network Environment
There are several steps to trouble shooting a fiber connection, cable, patch cord or connector.

Emergency Screw Removal
While a good quality selection of straight, Philips, Torx, and hex-head drivers should handle most screws found in consumer electronic equipment, a couple of other types do turn up and can really be a pain to remove intact.

The Difference Between Precision & Commercial Stripping
The two basic levels of stripping requirements.

Time Tested Wire Connection Technique To The Rescue
How to make connections in densely packed equipment with terminals close together.

Tool Selection Tips
How to choose the right tool for your needs.

Cutter Terms
Different blade types for electronic cutters.

Troubleshooting Techniques
by Samuel Goldwasser
Website: http://www.repairfaq.org/
E-mail: sam@stdavids.picker.com

Test Your Electronics Knowledge, Part A
by J.A. Sam Wilson

Test Your Electronics Knowledge, Part B
by J.A. Sam Wilson

Choose The Right Solder Alloy
Properties for different soldering applications.

Selecting The Right Tweezers
Shape, precision and material.

All Cutters Are Not Created Equal
Material, head shape and joint type.

Get More Life Out Of Your Soldering Tips
Bad techniques cause poor performance.

Is Your Digital Multimeter Truly Safe?
The danger of overvoltages.

Premise Wiring Primer
What type of cable should you use for your network?

Tool Kit Terms
Construction and features.

Do You Know The Internal Resistance Of Your DMM?
Why and how to measure it.

Wire Stripping Basics
Wire diameter affects stripping requirements.

What is Ergonomics?
A definition and explanation of ergonomics.