Reliability Matters

We all strive to build products that are reliable. If you’re listening to our watching this podcast, chances are you are concerned about or at least interested in reliability. Where does reliability start? Who is responsible for reliability? What types of reliability testing can be performed? My guest on this episode will help answer these and other reliability-based questions. My guest today is D...

When it comes to circuit assemblies, there are defects, which result in one of two situations. The preferred result of a defect is to capture it on your factory floor and repair it before it ships to the customer. The second scenario is referred to as an escape. That’s when the board ships to the customer and fails in the field. This is a scenario, all assemblers dread and strive to prevent. One w...

Most of us are well aware of the supply chain shortages, both within our industry and well beyond. Some of us are also keenly aware of labor shortages. This show is all about reliability of circuit assemblies. While reliability is often referred to as a process, it is also rooted in culture. Reliability begins with people. So, instead of talking about common reliability, subjects, such as voiding,...

Can reliability training the both entertaining and effective? The Manufacturing Game's Michelle Ledet Henley has a different approach to traditional training methods. Michelle Ledet Henley has worked with The Manufacturing Game since 1998 as a developer of new simulations and training material. She has traveled worldwide in her capacity as a facilitator and trainer for The Manufacturing Game and o...

I first met my guest at the SMTA Pan Pacific Symposium in Hawaii this past January. He was presenting a paper entitled Quantum Technology, A Theoretical Overview of the Possibilities. The more I listened to and watched his presentation, the more I wanted to learn about quantum physics and mechanics. So I selfishly invited him onto my show today so I could learn more, and perhaps you can too. My gu...

The subjects of Industry 4.0 and Big Data have been widely discussed on this podcast. What is Industry 4.0? What data is our industry collecting? And, perhaps more importantly, how can we sift through all of that data to make it useful and actionable? To help answer these and other data-related questions, I invited Ryan Gamble, CEO and Founder of Intraratio on this episode. Intraratio Corporation...

My guest, Eric Camden (Lead Investigator with Foresite) and I discuss electrochemical migration (ECM) and other failure modes caused by residues on circuit assemblies. Eric Camden's Contact Information: ericc@foresiteinc.com https://www.foresiteinc.com

On this episode, I speak with Mark Goodwin, COO of Ventec Europe, a supplier of copper clad laminates and prepreg bonding materials for the circuit board fabrication industry about supply chain challenges. Mark Goodwin's Contact Information: mark.goodwin@ventec-europe.com http://www.ventec-group.com

You don't have to be in the tech industry you understand importance and value of data. Industries have always collected various sets of data, first manually and, in modern times, automatically. The volume of data has historically been limited to the ability to capture and store it. Recent advances in technology have vastly increased the ability to capture and store data. The industry 4.0 movement...

On this show, we’ve discussed many aspects of the Electronics assembly process. We talked about reflow, thermal management, printing, soldering materials, additives, and so much more. What do all these topics have in common? When done correctly, they all contribute to the reliability of circuit assemblies. Today, we’re going to dive into the subject of cleaning circuit assemblies after reflow. For...

Episode 113: A Conversation about Counterfeit Component Detection with Dr. Eyal Weiss We are all aware of the “oldest profession in the world”. Perhaps the second oldest profession is counterfeiting. Whenever a product is introduced, a counterfeit version soon follows. While the electronics industry has experienced counterfeit components from its inception, recent events such as the pandemic and s...

David Raby is President of Madison Alabama-based STI Electronics, a contract manufacturer for the EMS industry. David worked at the family business since he was a child and eventually took over the family business when his father (and company founder) Jim Raby retired. The electronics industry moves at the speed of light and any business within the EMS industry must learn to stay ahead of technolo...

Electricity is the life blood for all circuit assemblies. It can also afflict significant damage via electrostatic discharge. My guest, Christopher Almeras of Raytheon reviews the various ESD mitigation strategies as well as some ESD horror stories! Christopher Almeras began his career in process engineering for a small electronics manufacturer in the late 1990s. There he became responsible for th...

Historically, circuit assemblies are rigid devices. IoT (Internet of Things) has opened up the opportunity to embed electronics into a near limitless array of form factors. Some of these form factors require the electronic assembly to be flexible such as in wearable and medical applications. To complicate matters, The metal conductors on the assembly are rigid, and not flexible or malleable. That...

On this episode, there are no guests, and no specific topics. I would like to use this opportunity to thank my guests, our syndication partners, and, of course, my audience for making this podcast so successful. We have a full season ahead in 2023 and I'm excited to share those episodes with you. Please keep your questions and topics suggestions coming. Send them to mike@mikekonrad.com. A huge sho...

Industry 4.0, the fourth industrial revolution. Beyond the buzzwords, what does this mean? My guest today is David Graham, Chief Technology Officer of 4IR.UK, a wholly owned subsidiary of Internet of Things focused, British Systems. 4IR.UK specializes in creating Monitoring, Control and Automation solutions, often based on the MultiPlug Edge Computing Platform, for manufacturing environments. They...

Welcome back to another episode of the reliability matters podcast. For those who are counting, this is episode number 108. SMTA is well known for producing high-quality relevant technical conferences and symposiums. This includes, among others, the technical conference held at SMTAI, the High reliability cleaning and coating conference, the symposium on counterfeit parts and materials, the Advanc...

Like most manufacturers, the electronic manufacturing industry relies on countless suppliers to fulfill its manufacturing needs. I'm quite certain there is no one within the EMS space who fabricates their own boards using materials produced in house, operates their own semiconductor foundries, designs and manufacturers their own components, and produces soldering materials for their reflow process...

It's been said, on this show, that one key factor to international competitiveness is automation. While labor rates vary widely across the world, automation helps to level the field. My guest today is Michael Mchale, CEO of Production Systems Automation, otherwise known as PSA. Michael graduated from Drexel University with a BS degree in mechanical engineering. Just to put our upcoming conversatio...

A new episode of the Reliability Matters Podcast is now available. Episode 105: Conformal Coating Material Selection Best Practices Today, we’re diving into conformal coating best practices. With the explosion of IOT, the electrification of vehicles, and the miniaturization of circuit assemblies and associated components, many of which are operating in harsh environments, the need for conformal co...

Surface Mount Technology International 2022 is quickly approaching. My guests today are SMTA President Dr. Martin Anselm, a Professor at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and Technical Committee members Julie Silk of Keysight Technologies and Raiyo Aspandiar of Intel. Together, my guests review the technical conference tracks as well as special events taking place at the Expo. Surface Mount...

Modern electronics assembly has seen so many changes over the years. In today’s era of IOT, the electrification of vehicles, the explosion in the use of bottom terminated components, the increasing implementation of electronics into harsh environments have all contributed to the increasing complexity and difficulty of building electronics. While so much has changed, there are some things that have...

Today, we're going to talk about low-volume electronic assembly. We all know who the “big players” are when it comes to solder paste printers, pick and place machines, reflow ovens and other assembly equipment. But what choices does one have if they need to produce low-volumes of electronic assemblies such as prototypes and other low volume applications? Let’s face it, most assemblers can’t justif...

Today, we're going to talk about contract manufacturing. Do you have a circuit assembly that needs to be built? Don’t have the equipment in-house or enough bandwidth or specialized expertise to build it? You may be best served by utilizing the services of a contract manufacturer. Contract manufacturers come in all shapes, sizes and capabilities. Should I seek out a Tier 1 manufacturer? How about T...

It seems today, the entire world is experiencing supply chain challenges in nearly all product categories. In the electronic assembly industry, the focus has been within the semiconductor market, especially in North America. Why is this? How did the US allow this to occur? Was it short sightedness, greed, an over-reliance on foreign suppliers, other factors, or a combination of all these factors?...