-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- design007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueSignal Integrity
If you don’t have signal integrity problems now, you will eventually. This month, our expert contributors share a variety of SI techniques that can help designers avoid ground bounce, crosstalk, parasitic issues, and much more.
Proper Floor Planning
Floor planning decisions can make or break performance, manufacturability, and timelines. This month’s contributors weigh in with their best practices for proper floor planning and specific strategies to get it right.
Showing Some Constraint
A strong design constraint strategy carefully balances a wide range of electrical and manufacturing trade-offs. This month, we explore the key requirements, common challenges, and best practices behind building an effective constraint strategy.
- Articles
- Columns
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - design007 Magazine
Ucamco Bridges the PCB Assembly Gap
April 12, 2019 | UcamcoEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
Before any electronic product reaches its final customer, it will have gone through multiple processes carried out by a series of independent specialist manufacturers who rarely communicate directly with each other. For the most part, this works, but it can be a problem for assembly companies who must put bare boards and components together. They need detailed information about both elements in order to make valid decisions about how to place components, and whether the design constraints are in line with their own manufacturing capabilities and specifications. Intelligent integrated solutions that combine data about bare boards and components are scarce or come at a premium, so many companies are using ad-hoc systems that are neither streamlined nor efficient.
With a decades-long commitment to developing leading-edge integrated production software that truly responds to and grows with the needs of the PCB manufacturing industry, Ucamco makes it a priority to listen to its customers and work closely with them. So when Ucamco was asked for help in improving assembly front-end processes, the company stepped up willingly.
“What was needed was an easy way for assembly companies to understand the PCB, identify the components and placement requirements, and see and analyse board and component characteristics,” said Ucamco’s Adam Newington.
All fairly straightforward information that should normally be provided by the design company but is not always forthcoming. As it happens, the board designers generally output this information in Gerber and/or ODB files together with the bare board data that PCB manufacturers need. It’s a data format that UcamX handles every day, all over the world, so it was a natural enough step to extend the platform to encompass assembly-specific data management.
UcamX Assembly Seat identifies the assembly data and reads it into a job database, putting it into an easily understandable visual format that can be interrogated, zoomed in on, collated and analysed to clarify quickly and easily exactly what the assembly process requires, while annular ring and solder pad land sizes and clearances can be analysed to see how they impact assembly. UcamX Assembly Seat allows interrogation of components singly and by type, reference designator information or part name, PIN numbers and reference net names. Components, connections and net designators can be traced back to the designer’s original schematic, and BOMs and production documents can easily be generated. And there is potential for a whole lot more functionality.
Ucam has been facilitating front-end PCB manufacturing processes for decades. Now, with UcamX Assembly Seat, this powerful front-end electronics manufacturing solution takes a momentous first step across the PCB-assembly bridge, supporting assembly companies with intelligent, integrated functionality, all delivered with Ucamco’s trademark ease of use and simplicity.
Find out why PCB manufacturers all over the world turn to Ucamco for solutions they can trust, and discover what UcamX Assembly Seat can do for your assembly business.
About Ucamco
Ucamco (formerly Barco ETS) is a market leader in PCB CAM software, photoplotting and direct imaging systems, with a global network of sales and support centers. Headquartered in Gent, Belgium, Ucamco has over 35 years of ongoing experience in developing and supporting leading-edge photoplotters and front-end tooling solutions for the global PCB industry. Key to this success is the company's uncompromising pursuit of engineering excellence in all its products. Ucamco also owns the IP rights on the Gerber File Format through its acquisition of Gerber Systems Corp (1998).
For more information, please visit www.ucamco.com.
Testimonial
"We’re proud to call I-Connect007 a trusted partner. Their innovative approach and industry insight made our podcast collaboration a success by connecting us with the right audience and delivering real results."
Julia McCaffrey - NCAB GroupSuggested Items
Breakthrough in Non-Contact Solder Removal Earns Kurtz Ersa 2025 Mexico Technology Award at SMTA Guadalajara
09/18/2025 | Kurtz Ersa Inc.Kurtz Ersa Inc., a leading supplier of electronics production equipment, is proud to announce that it has been awarded a 2025 Mexico Technology Award in the category of Rework & Repair for its HR 600P Automatic Rework System.
Knocking Down the Bone Pile: Best Practices for Electronic Component Salvaging
09/17/2025 | Nash Bell -- Column: Knocking Down the Bone PileElectronic component salvaging is the practice of recovering high-value devices from PCBs taken from obsolete or superseded electronic products. These components can be reused in new assemblies, reducing dependence on newly purchased parts that may be costly or subject to long lead times.
Koh Young, Fuji, and Kurtz ERSA Drive Smart Manufacturing Solutions for EV and Automotive Electronics at Kunshan, China Technical Seminar
09/11/2025 | Koh YoungKoh Young Technology, the global leader in True 3D measurement-based inspection solutions, partnered with Fuji Corporation and Kurtz ERSA to host an exclusive technical seminar for leading automotive manufacturers in East China. Held on September 4 at Fuji’s factory in Kunshan, the event gathered participants representing over 35 companies.
MacDermid Alpha Presents at SMTA New Delhi, Bangalore Chapter, on Flux–OSP Interaction
09/09/2025 | MacDermid Alpha Electronics SolutionsMacDermid Alpha contributes technical insights on OSP solderability at the Bangalore Chapter, SMTA reinforcing commitment to knowledge-sharing and industry collaboration.
Electra’s ElectraJet EMJ110 Inkjet Soldermask Now in Black & Blue at Sunrise Electronics
09/08/2025 | Electra Polymers LtdFollowing the successful deployment of Electra’s Green EMJ110 Inkjet Soldermask on KLA’s Orbotech Neos™ platform at Sunrise Electronics in Elk Grove Village, Illinois, production has now moved beyond green.