Spectrum Assembly Reconfigures Its SMT Production Area

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Spectrum Assembly Inc. (SAI) has added equipment and is reconfiguring its SMT area utilizing Lean manufacturing principles to increase flexibility and throughput. The company added a third Heller 1707 XLM Mark III 7-zone reflow oven with a built-in KIC system for profiling. The new oven is identical to SAI's existing reflow soldering capability. As with the unit purchased last year, it does not include nitrogen capability.

The SMT area is being reconfigured to improve flexibility and throughput. One line will be a Mydata Synergy line with two MY100 placement machines while the other lines will have a MY100 and a MY200DX, respectively. The placement capability of the machines is identical, however, the MY200 has two hydraheads which gives it twice the speed. The line with two placement machines side-by-side can either run a top and bottom side placement sequence or run independently of each other, essentially "adding a line" on demand.

The lines utilize Mydata's Manufacturing Process Management (MPM) software suite which features a web interface and Autoteach system. The AutoTeach system can measure all geometrical data from an unknown package. The operator performing setup simply needs to show the package to the machine's vision system. MYSpeed optimization and line-balancing software will help ensure the lines are correctly balanced for optimum throughput.

Additional feeders have been ordered to enable offline setup and teardown. This reduces changeover time to about 10-15 minutes, since the reels and magazines can be pre-loaded offline and then de-kitted while the next job is running. Additionally, it enables the stock-room team to handle feeder and magazine loading, freeing up SMT technicians for production-related activities.

"The new configuration supports the growth we are seeing in our board-level production. At the same time, it gives us the flexibility to efficiently support a wide range of product configurations from short runs to more complex, high volume production. Our standardization on Mydata equipment from component towers through deposition systems and placement equipment ensures that we can capitalize on the synergy of their software suite of tools, as well," said Adrian Nishimoto, Director of Operations.