Ep.40:Alternative Component Mounting
In today's episode, Chris teaches us about different categories of components that don't use a traditional surface mount or through-hole mounting methods. Think epoxy mounting, press-fit, mechanical assembly, swaging hardware, snap sockets, dome switches, hot bar soldering wires and cables, adhesive tape, and RTV.
Exciting news, Chris is a guest host on Hackaday Chat! Join him on Wednesday, February 9, 2022, 12:00 pm PST (3 PM eastern): https://hackaday.io/event/183578-pick-and-place-hack-chat
Episode links:
Epoxy capacitor mounting explained
TE whitepaper discussing the details of press-fit parts
Press-fit design and assembly considerations
How to determine a torque specification
Snap socket example
Dome switch example
Hot bar soldering machine
3M VHB Tape
MG Chemicals RTV
Surface mount heat sinks:
Ep.39:How to keep morale high in a high-stress manufacturing environment
We talk a lot about equipment and techniques used to assembly PCBs, but wanted to dedicate an episode to focus on the people who are actually getting the work done.
In this episode, we talk to Worthington employee, David Mulherin, about how to keep work output high in a high-stress manufacturing environment while also making sure factory workers feel like they are valued.
Ep.38:How Chinese New Year Impacts Manufacturing
Chinese New Year (aka Lunar New Year or Spring Festival) is a welcome and well-deserved break for Chinese workers. However, it is also a notoriously stressful time for the global manufacturing industry. In today's episode, we give you a manufacturer's perspective of why it is usually such a disruptive period.
Links:
Some fun (non-manufacturing related) facts about Chinese New Year
Information on 2022 Chinese New Year closures
China post-Lunar New Year job exodus
Ep.37:Showstoppers that delay PCB assembly w/ Production Manager, Rob OConnell
We love it when PCB orders run through the assembly line smooth as butter. Inevitably, however, sometimes things do get delayed. On today's episode, we sat down with CircuitHub Production Manager, Rob OConnell, on the biggest showstoppers that cause orders to run late and some things customers can do to prevent this from happening.
Chris' KiCon 2019 Talk - Your Manufacturer is Stupid
The Perfect 0402 Footprint
Ep.36:When to request first articles
First articles, also known as batch run or first-run amongst other terms, is when a customer requests the first several finished PCBAs from a production run be delivered for inspection before the entire quantity is built. In this episode we go over when it's appropriate to request first articles (and when it's not), the difference between first articles and prototypes, examples of how using first articles has benefitted our customers. Chris also introduces us to his fascinating new theory regarding the pen industry.
How to request first articles from CircuitHub
Ep.35:Evaluating Pick and Place Machine Suppliers
Worthington is in the process of upgrading its pick and place machinery. In order to do that requires a long process of evaluating potential new suppliers. Chris walks us through what that journey is like, why a contract manufacturer may need to upgrade its equipment, his recent in-person visit to one of the suppliers they've narrowed down to, and more!
Ep.34: What are fiducials and why you should use them
This episode is dedicated to fiducials which, for those who are unfamiliar with the term, are the small copper dots you may have seen on your bare PCB. We get into the details of what they are, where and why are they are use, and how you can use them in your design.
https://www.worthingtonassembly.com/blog/2014/12/29/what-are-fiducials-and-why-are-they-useful
If you are already using fiducials in your designs tweet us a photo or screenshot of them with the hashtag #fiducialsFTW :)
Ep.33: Get to Know Melissa & Chris
To celebrate reaching 10,000 downloads of the podcast, Chris and Melissa mix things up and interview each other so that you can get to know your hosts better!
We talk about what we were doing before joining CircuitHub and Worthington, our journeys towards getting there, imposter syndrome, our love affair with Grape Nuts, and more!
Ep.32:An EDA Tool Walks Into a CM w/ Fusion 360 Electronics Product Manager, Ben Jordan
We're very excited to be joined on this episode by Ben Jordan. Ben, who was previously at Altium for many years, now works at Autodesk as a Senior Product Manager for the Fusion 360 Electronics product.
We chat about:
A brief history of Altium's founding in Australia as Protel Systems
Chris' love for Australia
Lots of Ben's dad jokes
The Coriolis Effect, Ben's new show with Bil Herd
Fusion 360 - the benefits of using a unified ECAD-MCAD-SIM software platform
Chris has finally found a perforated cardboard tab that actually works: https://www.packworld.com/issues/sustainability/article/21136720/nespresso-coffee-capsule-made-from-80-recycled-content
Ben's pet peeve - people who abuse nonstick pans
Ep.31:The basics of the PCB drilling process w/ CAM Engineer Dave Wilcox
As a continuation of last week's episode with CircuitHub CAM Engineer, Dave Wilcox, we discuss the basics of what happens during the PCB drilling process. We also drill into some fun topics including the confusing inconsistencies regarding the recommended tolerance on JST connectors and why NC drill data is so difficult to interpret.
Listen to these other great episodes with Dave!
The PCB CAM Process
Bare PCB Materials
An Overview of Bare PCB Fabrication
Inner Layer Production
Ep.30: Inner Layer Production w/ CAM Engineer Dave Wilcox
We're joined again by CircuitHub CAM Engineer Dave Wilcox to talk more about bare circuit board manufacturing. In this episode we Dave teaches us what happens during the inner layer production process.
Check out more episodes with Dave!
The PCB CAM Process
Bare PCB Materials
An Overview of Bare PCB Fabrication
Ep.29:Small PCB layout decisions that have a significant impact on assembly
In today's episode Chris, a self proclaimed novice engineer, touches on the layout process and how small decisions can have a significant impact on assembly. We provide some on advice on the best proximity of vias with adjacent pads and plated thru-holes, edge clearance, fiducials, and more.
Useful articles:
https://www.worthingtonassembly.com/blog/2014/12/29/what-are-fiducials-and-why-are-they-useful
https://www.worthingtonassembly.com/blog/2018/6/20/recessing-your-pcb-edge-for-perforated-tabs
Ep.28: Our top suggestions for customers w/ CircuitHub Account Manager, John Jacquinet
Although we like to keep our episodes targeted towards anyone who is interested in PCB assembly as a whole, we know that many of our listeners are CircuitHub customers. In this episode we sat down with John Jacquinet, who is an Account Manager at CircuitHub.
We talk to John about how his work experience as en electrical engineer influenced his views when moving over to the assembly side, how to take advantage of the Account Manager team's help at CircuitHub, and customer best and worst practices.
P.S. If you're only interested in listening to Chris' 15 minute rant regarding poorly designed pull tabs, feel free to skip to 59:30.
Useful documentation:
http://docs.circuithub.com/en/articles/62935-how-do-i-consign-parts-to-the-factory
https://circuithub.com/pcb-stackups
Ep.27: When to use through hole vs surface mount components
When are through hole components recommended over surface mount components, and vice versa? The answer is not always straightforward. In this episode we break down the cost, reliability and application implications of using SMT vs through hole parts in your design.
Bare board de-stacker: https://youtu.be/b94-3rr_BHg
Test Point Part Numbers
Harwin - S2761-46R - https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/harwin-inc/S2761-46R/5250500
Keystone - 5019 - https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/keystone-electronics/5019/3907343
KOA Speer - RCUCTE - https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/koa-speer-electronics-inc/RCUCTE/11476561
Ep.26: The role of electronic components distributors w/ Digi-Key
In this episode we continue our conversation with Mike Rankins and Gary Shanahan, supply chain specialists at Digi-Key. (If you haven't listened to the first half about the global electronics parts shortage, we definitely recommend it). In the second half we take a broader look at what electronics distributors like Digikey are, what role they play, and what value adds the provide in addition to selling components.
Ep.25:Discussing the Global Electronics Parts Shortage w/ Digi-Key
The current global electronics parts shortage is affecting all of us in this industry. We had the pleasure of chatting with Mike Rankins and Gary Shanahan, supply chain specialists at Digi-Key, to break down the details of the shortage from their perspective. We discuss how this parts shortage is different than those in the past, what is causing it, how Digi-Key is navigating it, and more.
Ep.24:Board Cleaning w/ Mike Konrad (part 2)
In the second half of our conversation with Mike Konrad of Aqueous Technologies we talk all about how to implement a board cleaning process.
If you're just tuning in we recommend that you listen to the first half of our conversation with Mike where we learn about the history of board cleaning and why board cleaning is useful, before listening to this one.
Ep.23:Board Cleaning w/ Mike Konrad (part 1)
In this episode we are joined by Mike Konrad to chat about board cleaning. Mike founded Aqueous Technologies in 1992 in response to the Montreal Protocol and the resulting international treaty banning most popular cleaning/defluxing solvents. Their board cleaning equipment assists manufacturers with increasing product reliability while saving both water and energy, reducing the industry's environmental impact.
In addition to being the president of Aqueous Tech, he is also a fellow podcaster and runs the Reliability Matters Podcast, which discusses reliability of circuit assemblies, reliability "best practices" and success stories.
In the first part of this conversation we delve into the history of board cleaning, the electronics the industry's transition to primarily using no-clean flux, and why more and more companies are reintroducing board cleaning back into their assembly process.
If you want to listen to us get into the nitty gritty details of how to implement a proper circuit board cleaning process, make sure to listen to the second half of this episode.
Ep.22: How to safely and successfully ship assembled PCBs w/ Nicole Poirier
On this episode we are joined by Nicole Poirier who works in the receiving and shipping department at Worthington. She walks us through how we prepare the boards to leave our facility on their end journey to your doorstep. Although it might not seem like the most glamorous step of pcb assembly, we cover a lot of important topics including:
Importance of using ESD packing materials.
Different types of filler material
Importance of packing slips
Dealing with international shipments and customs
Packing boards with weird board and/or part geometries
Ep.21:The PCB CAM Process w/ Dave Wilcox
On this episode we have CircuitHub CAM engineer, Dave Wilcox, back on the show to walk us through the PCB CAM process.
What is the CAM process all about? What is its purpose?
Dave briefly discusses how CAM used to be done "back in the day"
We go through the main steps of the CAM process.
1. Silkscreen
2. Soldermask
3. Copper
4. Drill
6. Route
Have a pet peeve you'd like to get off your chest? We'd love to include it in the show!
Want to get in touch? Email us at contact@pickplacepodcast.com or tweet us @CircuitHub or @WAssembly.