ELECTRONIC PRODUCTION EQUIPMENT

SELECTIVE SOLDERING IS TAKING OFF

Call us on: 024 7621 0270 June 2014 • Issue 50

VAPOUR PHASE IS THE ‘WAY TO GO’ Increasing numbers of electronics manufacturers are turning to Vap our Phase soldering to ensure optimum sold er joint quality on high technology PCB ’s. In this issue you can read about two examples of companies that hav e installed Vapour Phase systems and experie nced dramatically reduced faults and much higher yields.

Selective soldering seems to be flavour of the month at the moment, with increasing numbers of PCB’s being designed with surface mounted and through hole components on both sides of the board. So it’s either back to hand soldering or an investment in a selective soldering machine. On page 7 you can see how Newbury Electronics successfully implemented selective technology with our help.

IN THIS ISSUE

Y G O L O N H C E T L L E D N U DATES FOR BL D E C N U O N N A E R A K E E W This year’s Blundell Technology Week will be held at Coventry on 7th – 9th October. Invitations will be sent out in August, but we suggest you make a diary note now, as it will be an interesting event with guest exhibitors and many PCB assembly and inspection products on display.

Why CSR chose Vapour Phase Soldering:

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We now sell Glenbrook X-Ray:

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Recent orders & Installations: Page 3 Latest full product range: Pages 4 & 5 PVA launches new Conformal Coating Machine: Page 6 Chromatec installs Vapour Phase:

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Newbury Electronics benefits from Selective Soldering:

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New SMT Placement features from iPulse:

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DEFLUXING • MOISTURE CONTROL CABINETS • REFLOW OVENS

CSR’s VAPOUR PHASE INSTALLATION PAYS DIVIDENDS ambridge based CSR is a company that develops innovative Bluetooth products for the consumer electronics market and they operate at the leading edge of audio-visual technology. Hence, many of the PCB’s they assemble are of very high value, in some cases a bare board can be up to 5mm thick and have 32 layers. The PCB alone without components can be worth up to £7,000, so when it comes to soldering, no risks can be taken. Last year CSR invested in a new IBL BLC509 vapour phase soldering machine from Blundell Production Equipment. Barry Andrew, CSR’s SMA Team Leader says ‘The great thing about vapour phase is that it’s virtually impossible to completely cook a board. When you get the profile right the results are very consistent and it makes no difference whether the jig is hot or cold.’ Vapour phase machines solder in an inert atmosphere and have a much smaller footprint than a reflow tunnel oven. Another advantage is that the outer casing of the machine never gets hot, so if you are operating in a small room, as CSR do, the machine doesn’t heat the room up to an uncomfortable temperature. Barry Andrew continues: ‘One of the best features of the IBL machine is the ability to move the boards up

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and down within the vapour. This has proven to be very beneficial for our high mass boards. We can drop the boards right down into the hottest part of the vapour to preheat them and them move them up into the higher levels to optimise the profile.’ This feature is patented by IBL and is only available on their machines. ‘Some people worry about the cost of the Galden fluid, but we only use about 5Kg of Galden in a year, we top it up once a year after the machine has been serviced.’ ‘It’s really quick to switch profiles, it can be done

with 3 or 4 touches of a button and there is no waiting time for the temperature to settle as there would be with a convection oven, even if there are big differences in the mass of the boards. We solder about 6,000 boards a year of varying sizes, and we can put several small boards through at the same time saving time and running costs.’ Barry concludes: ‘Vapour phase has proven to be a trouble free process for us, and no other solder method would give us the quality of soldering results that we are getting from the IBL machine.’

STENCIL CLEANING • SMT PROTOTYPING • PICK AND PLACE

BLUNDELL NOW SELLING GLENBROOK X-RAY MACHINES Blundell Production Equipment has signed up with US based Glenbrook to promote their range of X-Ray inspection machines in the UK. Blundell has had long experience in supplying and supporting XRay inspection equipment and Paul Blundell says: “The great thing about the Glenbrook XRay machines is that they are affordable for a wide range of customers. It makes the purchase of an X-Ray justifiable for companies that currently sub contract XRay inspection because of the

ORDER BOOK Recent Blundell orders and installations: Alfatronix, manufacturers of power converters and power supplies have recently installed an iPulse M20 SMT mounting machine at their Poole, Dorset factory. Intercole Sub Contract Services of Eastleigh, Hants have recently added a 6th Fritsch PA510 placement machine to their SMT line. Blundell is the UK distributor for Fritsch. Exception EMS have installed an Ersa Powerflow

perceived cost of buying a machine. Glenbrook already has a substantial user base in the UK and we intend to build on this. We have two machines from the Glenbrook range in our Coventry demonstration room. “ Previously Glenbrook has been represented by Testsolve of High Wycombe who will continue to assist with installations and service support and we at Blundell will expand and build on the sales side of the business.

wave soldering machine at their Calne facility. PCM Electron of Luton have installed a new TWS Quadra DVC Evo pick and place machine with a TWS SR2700 semi-automatic screen printer. Paxton Access of Lewes, Sussex have purchased an Ersa Versaflow 3/45 selective soldering machine and an iPulse M20 SMT placement machine. UK Circuits of Oldham, Lancs have ordered an iPulse M20 placement machine. Cogent Technology of Woodbridge, Suffolk have installed a PVA 650 conformal coating robot. First Choice Assembly of Halesowen, West Midlands have ordered an iPulse M20 SMT mounter and a CMS 400 wave soldering machine.

IBL X-Treme Series Auto Dry Cabinet

 
   
 CONFORMAL COATING

PVA –

REFLOW OVENS

HAND SOLDERING

selective spray coating systems, eliminate hand spraying, dipping & masking.

ERSA –

ERSA –

Hotflow range – 12, 14 and 20 zone ovens with ‘multijet’ technology.

professional hand soldering stations. Fast heat up & instant response.

X-RAY INSPECTION

FIRST ARTICLE INSPECTION

X-Ray –

Extra Eye –

solutions for inspection of PCB’s & components.

first off inspection system – new camera based system now available.

the high performance professional PCB cleaning machine for ultimate cleaning results.

STENCIL CLEANING

SMT PROTOTYPING

FUME EXTRACTION

Fritsch –

Purex –

manual assisted SMT placement stations for prototypes & small batches.

full range of volume, tip & machine extraction & filtration systems.

960S Purpose made cleaning machine for large screens and stencils.

DEFLUXING

Riebesam –

TEMPERATURE PROFILING

FUME WORK CABINETS

Blundell –

Blundell –

L-ZERO –

thermal profiling systems for reflow ovens & wave soldering.

extracted enclosed work areas for conformal coating etc.

intelligent stock control & inventory retrieval.

SMT MOUNTERS

STOCK CONTROL CABINETS

PICK & PLACE

SMT PLACEMENT

iPulse SMT mounters –

Fritsch –

setting standards in surface mount assembly. iPulse M10 & M20.

mid range small footprint high accuracy.

TWS –

SELECTIVE SOLDERING

REWORK

SELECTIVE SOLDERING

lowest cost entry level.

ERSA – ERSA –

EBSO –

selective soldering for in-line applications.

low cost off-line selective soldering.

INSPECTION

BGA INSPECTION

leading the field in BGA & SMT rework. The new HR 600 automated rework system.

AQUEOUS CLEANING

Aqueous – Inspex-HD –

ERSASCOPE –

high definition, high magnification viewer.

under BGA Inspection system.

PCB cleaning machines - benchtop cleaners to high end professional systems.

VAPOUR PHASE SOLDERING

MOISTURE CONTROL

WAVE SOLDERING

IBL – patented ‘Soft Vapour Phase’ systems offer control over tombstoning & voiding.

Low humidity storage cabinets, vacuum sealers & baking ovens.

Blundell – still the leaders in wave soldering, new & used machines always available.

Units C / D , Quinn Close, Seven Stars Ind. Est., Coventry. CV3 4LH Tel: 024 7621 0270 • Fax: 024 7621 0280 Email: [email protected] www.blundell.co.uk

X-RAY INSPECTION

• CONFORMAL COATING MACHINES

PVA LAUNCHES NEW CONFORMAL COATING MACHINE C

oating and dispensing machine manufacturer PVA have launched a new conformal coating machine which will shortly be installed in our Coventry demonstration room. The PVA Delta 6 is the latest development from the company that has built a solid reputation for robotic coating and dispensing. We at Blundell have been selling and supporting PVA machines since

1996 and we have many UK installations. Whilst maintaining the preferred features of previous models, the Delta 6 has been designed with a slimmer footprint, improved structural rigidity and stronger gantry to support the spray valves. Despite its advanced features, manufacturing cost savings have resulted in the Delta 6 being lower

priced than the model it replaces. A Delta 6 will be installed in the Blundell showroom within the next 4 weeks and prospective customers are invited for demonstrations.

VAPOUR PHASE IS “THE ONLY WAY” FOR CHROMATEC hen they selected a method of soldering their high technology PCB’s, broadcast industry manufacturer Chromatec decided to go for Vapour Phase soldering, and they purchased an IBL Vapour Phase system from Blundell Production Equipment. Previous experience with CEM’s showed that conventional soldering methods such as heat tunnel reflow weren’t optimal for the BGA’s typically used on Chromatec’s PCB’s. Vapour Phase reflow always

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produces a higher yield. Wendy Aitken says: “The IBL

Vapour Phase machine has worked beautifully, and the process is giving us close to 100% yield. We feel that it’s the only way to solder

the high-Tech boards we produce and it suits our low volume high reliability set-up perfectly. Typical components on our boards are 900 pin BGA’s, 665 and 484 pin BGA’s, 128 pin QFP’s and several fine pitch QFN’s. Of course solder paste application is critical due to the fine pitch but we have got that down to a fine art with the TWS SR2700 screen printer which performs really well.” “We couldn’t have done this without Vapour Phase soldering – it has been a key component of our new line.”

DEFLUXING • MOISTURE CONTROL CABINETS • REFLOW OVENS

NEWBURY ELECTRONICS GETS EXCELLENT RESULTS WITH SELECTIVE SOLDERING ontract electronics manufacturer Newbury Electronics recently invested in an Ersa Eco-Select 1 selective soldering machine from Blundell Production Equipment. Newbury had found that they were increasingly being asked by their customers to solder PCB’s with SMD’s on both sides, and big production bottlenecks were building up due to the need to hand solder these boards. It was also difficult to accurately price jobs as hand soldering times were unpredictable and good hand soldering operators were hard to find. Newbury’s managing director Philip King approached Blundell for advice and a visit was arranged to Hanover Displays in Sussex who use an EcoSelect 2. There he saw that although the automated selective soldering process was slow in comparison to wave

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soldering, it was precise and repeatable. Philip King comments: ‘I could see that once programmed, the machine could be left to get on with the job without much operator intervention. The operators can walk away and do something else and when the green light comes on they know

the board is ready to be taken out of the machine” “We opted for a batch machine as we don’t need in-line capability at the moment although I can see it happening in the future. Being a CEM we have a high mix of boards and

we have already got dozens of programs set up in the machine. The shop floor staff have no problems with selecting the right program, loading and unloading the machine and performing routine maintenance.” Newbury Electronics opted for a nitrogen generator from Atlas Copco which is performing well and is producing nitrogen to the correct purity for the process. Philip King is quick to point out that selective soldering is not a replacement for wave soldering, and that his Blundell CMS 400 wave soldering machine will continue to be used for boards that do not have double sided SMT content “But there are an increasing number of boards that we simply can’t wave solder” he says, “and the EcoSelect gets on with the job with the minimum of fuss”

VAPOUR PHASE SOLDERING • FIRST ARTICLE INSPECTION

NEW AND UNIQUE FEATURES AND OPTIONS FROM i-PULSE ith the introduction of the M20 platform, iPulse have introduced many new features and options to deal with the latest demands in Electronic Manufacturing and SMT Placement. The latest developments have addressed the demands of LED replacement lighting manufacture and complex Hybrid Assembly requirements to make the iPulse M20 & M10 truly unique and highly flexible machines. Large board capability: With the rapid growth of LED lighting technology replacing traditional Fluorescent Lighting, the demand for large board handling capability to match the existing tube length designs has become evident. iPulse have addressed the trend for increased board sizes with the introduction of the MultiConveyor system which can handle a PCB size of up to 1,480 x 510 as standard with and optional 1,800 x 510 mm to match larger tube replacement boards. A further option of 600 x 600 mm wide is also available to match ceiling tile formats. For the reliable handling and in-feed of the PCB, roller guides and full length clamping for 1,480 mm long and 2 stage automatic placement process have been introduced. The new conveyor system will also accommodate 2 buffered PCB’s and another in placement up to 500 x 510 mm as standard thus reducing transport time for large PCB’s.

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Hybrid Dispense Functions: In recent years the need for dispense of solder paste and other materials during the SMT production process has increased. The advent of PoP and other 3D placement requirements can require additional solder paste to be applied during the placement process. The large print area requirement for LED replacement lighting PCB’s is outgrowing the print area capabilities of many Stencil Printers on the market thus

restricting the manufacturers in the design of their PCB’s. The new Hybrid Dispense options introduced by IPulse for the M10 & M20 address these demands. The dispense head or heads – up to 3 can be quickly fitted and removed as demand requires by removing the standard placement head collet and replacing with the dispense head and fittings. Laser Board Warp Detection Laser board warp detection ensures the accurate and stable non-contact dispense of both solder paste, adhesives and other materials. Dispensed solder and material can be 100% inspected with the machines standard camera system if required, giving stable and high speed dispensing down to 0.2 mm dot size and line dispense and other functions. The system will also provide stencil less solder paste printing application for all board sizes up to and including 1,800 mm long boards, thus overcoming the problem of limited stencil print area.

www.blundell.co.uk

Tel: 024 7621 0270 Quinn Close, Seven Stars Industrial Estate, Coventry CV3 4LH