Because of today’s global uncertainty, a lot of companies are investigating repatriating all or some of their production. If your company is looking at installing a new SMT or Through-Hole assembly line, or looking to modify one, it can be daunting; managing multiple vendors supplying very complex (and expensive) machines or tools, each one with different shipping lead times and logistics, set up procedures, and software compatibility issues. It can be a project management nightmare, especially when you are running your business.

• Teaming up with our pick and place partners, Restronics Northwest will help coordinate and manage this overwhelming task. By partnering with our SMT pick and place partner experts, we can:
• Source all the machines you need for the line (even if we do not have a direct relationship with them).
• Manage the delivery logistics, being sure everything arrives on time and together.
• Manage the installation and line bring up.
• Manage the SW compatibility between the different machines from the different manufacturers.
• Make sure your people are trained.

WHAT IS SMT ASSEMBLY?

SMT (Surface Mounting Technology) is a process to manufacture electronic circuits that places components directly onto the circuit board’s surface. SMT assembly is an updated alternative to the through-hole method of PCB manufacturing, which was developed in the 1970s and 1980s.

As electronics manufacturing continued to gain momentum, a more efficient, better process was needed. SMT assembly grew out of this need.

WHAT IS THROUGH-HOLE ASSEMBLY?

Through-hole technology (also spelled "thru-hole") describes the mounting scheme used for electronic components that use leads on the components that are inserted into existing holes in printed circuit boards (PCB) and soldered to pads on the alternate side by either manual assembly (manually placing components by hand) or by the use of automated insertion mount machines.

Solder joint quality is important for numerous reasons. The solder joint is the actual connection between components and the board. The quality of the solder joint is equivalent to the quality of the connection itself. The appearance of the solder joint is less important but is often indicative of the quality of the solder joint.