CELEBRATING OUR 4TH YEAR OF PUMANEWS™ |
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As I See It!
Equipment: A Great Add to our Product Offering
AUGUST 2022
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By welcoming Electronic Technologies (ETI) to our family we have taken another definitive step to bringing high quality equipment to Insulectro’s offering.
It’s a perfect fit for our portfolio which consists of:
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Best-in-class materials from World-class manufacturers supported by an array of Product Managers focused on your results
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Support and Education on how to maximize performance results and yields utilizing our network of Field Application Engineers and technical experts
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Equipment Sales and Service to provide automation and greater process efficiency for highly- engineered materials
ETI brings Universal Circuit Board Equipment (UCE) high-end equipment to your shop with its variety of PCB manufacturing equipment, especially for the wet process area. Along with recent additions like the InduBond® Induction Lamination Press (which is getting lots of attention) and Kyocera Precision Cutting Tools (which is a great complement to our robust drill room offerings), Insulectro continues its pledge to cover all of your needs and to help you efficiently strengthen your business.
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PCBAA, the Printed Circuit Board Association of America, welcomes their newest members: DuPont and Nano Dimension.
Existing members include AGY, Amphenol, Bowman, Calumet, Insulectro, Isola, Summit Interconnect, TTM Technologies, Denkai America, MacDermid Alpha, Nano Dimension, Pacothane Technologies, Sanmina, Uyemura, and Rogers Corporation.
The Printed Circuit Board Association of America is a consortium of companies, representatives, and enthusiasts who are advocating for U.S. manufacture of printed circuit boards.
Insulectro is proud to support PCBAA's effort as a founding member.
We encourage you to not stand on the sidelines but get involved to support PCBAA's three main objectives:
- Support the Domestic Production of PCBs
- Enhance Domestic Supply Chain Security
- Advocate for Initiatives that Create Fair Market Conditions
This organization is your voice in Washington.
Visit PCBAA.org today to learn more about membership. See below for more information and a link to inquire about membership.
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PCBAA LEADERSHIP SPEAKS OUT |
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"Suppliers are the foundation of every successful company.
"The best suppliers even provide technical assistance, industry insight, and strategic guidance at every step.
This is valuable assistance for manufacturers like Royal Circuits in Hollister.
For example, we needed assistance to etch a panel that was 410mils thick…and our machine limitation was 350mils.
Chris Hunrath and Pedro Rosales sprang into action to bring the panels to a local shop for etching over a weekend!
We are sincerely appreciative of all the support and guidance provided by Insulectro’s team.
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Milan Shah
CEO
Royal Circuits Solutions
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Reshore! Bring it Back home!
IPC Lauds Passage of
'CHIPS and Science' Act
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Electronics Industry Calls for a Holistic Approach to Reviving Domestic Electronics Capabilities
The following statement is issued by John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO, to comment on President Biden’s signature on the “CHIPS and Science Act”:
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“Electronics manufacturers are pleased that this bill has become law, and they welcome the added innovation and resiliency it will bring to the global electronics supply chain. Billions of people will benefit from faster, more secure access to the next-generation technologies that this bill will help to speed to market.
“We are especially pleased that the bill includes at least $2.5 billion for a new National Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program, which is aimed at making the United States a world leader in the post-Moore’s-Law only era of microelectronics. In the mid-1960s, Intel founder Gordon Moore predicted that the number of transistors that would fit into an integrated circuit would double about every two years, allowing the production of ever more powerful electronic products with greater cost efficiencies.
"Moore’s Law held true for decades, but today, is dying, and designers are increasingly relying on advancements in the packaging of silicon chips into ever-smaller integrated devices to achieve the greater functionality and efficiencies that they previously realized through silicon scaling. Today, packaging is king, and this legislation will help position the United States as a leader in this crucial technology.
“Most urgently, the United States needs to invest in the development and production of the most advanced integrated circuit (IC) substrates, i.e., circuit board surfaces, for which there are only nascent capabilities domestically.
“Companies engaged in standing up packaging and IC substrate facilities will have opportunities to tap into U.S. Government funding for R&D, new facilities, and workforce training through the programs funded by this bill. IPC is urging federal officials to structure these initiatives to deliver benefits holistically across the electronics manufacturing industry.
"Increasing domestic chips production without bolstering related manufacturing capabilities will actually lengthen the semiconductor supply chain, as chips made in California or Ohio will still need to be sent to Taiwan, Japan, or South Korea for packaging and assembly into finished products.
“It’s also important to keep in mind this is only one step in a long journey toward rebuilding the U.S. electronics manufacturing industry. The Executive Branch and Congress must continue to support – through long-term policy and funding – the larger ecosystem that sustains innovative, resilient, and secure electronics manufacturing.”
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SALES & OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT |
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Ken Parent Speaks Out!
Take the Step with Us
AUGUST 2022
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Insulectro continues to find ways to engage with our customers in technical, educational, OEM programs, and business practices to help make us and our customers successful. I am going to be very intentionally short in my writing this month as I want to share one thought.
Our mutual collaboration with you can be flexible and specific to your needs, we have your best interest in mind when we say we want to be the easiest supplier to do business with. Please continue to work with your Insulectro resources to drive growth and profitability into your business. Take the step with us.
Enjoy your August and summer activities.
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Ken Parent
Chief Operating Officer
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Livin' in a Material World!
Equipping Ourselves
with Equipment
AUGUST 2022
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A new month has past, and we are fortunate to have yet another big announcement of enabling solutions for our customers.
The intersection of industry aging Equipment and the demand for advanced technology, creates a need for innovative Equipment Offerings and a talented Equipment service team. The acquisition of Equipment Technologies Inc. (ETI) leverages the strengths of ETI’s service capabilities and expertise in delivering novel high-end Equipment solutions with Insulectro’s desire to support our customer’s shift in market driven advanced manufacturing capabilities.
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Kevin Barrett, Insulectro Equipment Product Manager, will now coordinate all Equipment inquiries, Service needs and Equipment installation activities with our new Partner, ETI. This new role for Kevin builds on his Equipment expertise, preventative maintenance passion, hands on printed circuit board manufacturing knowledge, and customer engagement.
We look forward to building on this new relationship with ETI, and enabling our customers with expanded services and solutions.
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Michelle Walsh
Vice President of Product Management
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EQUIPMENT TECHNOLOGIES ACQUIRED
BY REDFERN COMPANIES
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For immediate release
Hudson, NH-based Equipment Technologies, Inc. (ETI) announces it has been acquired by The Redfern Companies. ETI specializes in selling and installing new equipment and offering maintenance services to the circuit board industry worldwide. ETI product and service offerings will be supported by Insulectro, the largest distributor of materials and services for PCB manufacturers in North America.
“ETI looks forward to taking this next step with Insulectro”, commented Jon Pelletier, ETI President. “In bringing UCE’s new equipment lines and our highly skilled technicians and pairing them with the Redfern Companies’ extensive portfolio of resources; we expect an unprecedented opportunity for growth and expansion. I feel this is a great opportunity for both ETI and our customers. I look forward to personally continuing with the new company and helping to grow and provide cutting edge solutions to our industry.”
Speaking on behalf of the Redfern Companies, Patrick Redfern commented, “Effective August 1, 2022, we will acquire the company ETI to augment our current offering of equipment sales and service. This is a big step toward supporting our customers as they automate their manufacturing process. Inclusive with ETI, Insulectro will be able to offer ‘connected factory’ solutions by bringing our world-class materials, and cutting-edge equipment along with our custom process control systems (provided by our Focus Tech chemical company) for every process in the fabrication facility.
“I am excited to welcome the ETI team to our family. Jon, who will remain President, has 30 plus years of equipment experience and strong relationships in the industry worldwide” continued Redfern. “ETI will relocate to our Londonderry, NH, facility to better leverage our resources and provide a base for the introduction of new equipment from Universal Circuit Board Equipment Co., Ltd. (UCE) which is a higher-end equipment manufacturer selling a variety of PCB manufacturing equipment, especially in the wet process area.
“We plan to combine our game-changing InduBond® induction press offering with new offerings from UCE to expand dramatically into the new equipment sales market. Combining ETI’s connections and experience with our nationwide presence and reputation in the industry, we look forward to engaging our customers in new ways.”
Redfern concluded, “Another step to enable our customers to build better boards, faster.”
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It's All About the Batteries!
DuPont Technology at the Forefront of Next-gen
Lithium-ion Batteries
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As electric vehicles become more prevalent, scientists and engineers are working on new battery designs to increase the range of these vehicles, while reducing the dependence on scarce metals such as copper and aluminum.
Recently, DuPont Electronics & Industrial (E&I) partnered with Steinerfilm, which produces high-performance metallized dielectric films, and Polaris Battery Labs—all part of the Soteria Battery Innovation Group (BIG)—to develop a next-generation battery for electric vehicles.
The result was a new Lithium-ion battery with 26 percent higher energy density which also uses 80 percent less copper and aluminum than comparable batteries made with traditional materials. The improved energy density of these batteries will increase the range of electric vehicles, make electric aviation more feasible, and improve portable electronics.
More significantly, this new battery technology can reduce the dependence on copper and aluminum that are needed for the other parts of electric vehicles. With copper consumption in electric vehicles predicted to increase to 4 million tons annually by 2040, this could save millions of tons of copper.
The conventional metal-foil current collectors used in batteries were replaced by thermally stable, high strength DuPont™ Kapton® polyimide film that was metallized by Steinerfilm to have 500 nanometers of copper or 1000 nanometers of aluminum on each side.
The copper current collectors were only 5 microns thick, and the aluminum current collectors were only 6 microns thick, making them the lightest, thinnest current collectors for lithium-ion batteries available, and using only 17 percent of the aluminum and copper found in typical batteries.
Polaris Battery Labs combined these in a traditional format to produce a battery with over 26 percent higher energy density than the batteries made side-by-side with traditional aluminum and copper foils.
This significant technical advancement required the expertise of all three companies. All three are members of the Soteria Battery Innovation Group consortium, which promotes industry collaboration for advanced battery and safety technology. The consortium now has over 110 members including NASA, Mercedes-Benz, Bosch, Motorola, Lenovo, DuPont, Applied Materials, and others.
“DuPont is a global innovation leader with technology-based materials and solutions that help transform industries and everyday life,” said David Reichert, Global Business Development Leader for DuPont Electronics & Industrial. “We work closely with customers, academia, and institutions providing solutions, products, and technical services to enable next-generation technologies.
The collaboration with the Soteria consortium enabled the team to take commercially available DuPont™ Kapton® film and build a higher energy density lithium-ion battery with less metal consumption. It is also another example of how DuPont technology helps advance sustainability goals in a number of industries and applications.”
The achievement of helping develop a new Lithium-ion battery is one example of how DuPont technology is helping to solve issues facing the automotive industry’s future growth. As the next generation of automobiles require innovative solutions for high-voltage electrification, 5G signal integrity for navigation and autonomous driving and thermal management, DuPont is playing a key role in addressing these challenges.
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Vice President of HR
Dawn Kazoleas
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Dawn Kazoleas has joined the team as new VP Human Resources for The Redfern Companies. Dawn brings years of experience setting teammates up for success in her prior roles.
She will be a great addition to our HR team alongside Laurie Dedo and Ivette Cordova. The HR Team shares the vision for how HR can be a vital resource in developing leaders at all levels of our companies.
Dawn has over 30 years of HR experience in a variety of industries, from Oil & Gas (with Mobil Oil) to Automotive (with Mitsubishi Motors) to Aerospace (Weber Metals & Parker Hannifin). In addition to leading traditional HR functions such as compensation, benefits, talent acquisition, labor relations, performance management, career development and training; she also has been responsible for real estate, maintenance & facilities, security & safety.
Dawn has 2 daughters and a son, all pursing their professional careers. She loves to paddle board and watch the LA Kings play hockey.
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OPERATIONS & SUPPLY CHAIN
WORLD-CLASS MANUFACTURING
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WCM: Engaged People,
Safely Driving “JIT” Delivery
Living The “3A”s & GSD’ing on
New Product Lines
AUGUST 2022
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DATELINE: LAKE FOREST, CALIFORNIA |
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In the last 30 days, our Lake Forest, California Operating teams have been bustling with much Safety & “GSD” activity for our customers.
The teams have achieved some impressive safety milestones during this time:
- LCOA: 2 years without a reportable injury
- Insulectro: 1 year without a reportable injury
- CAC: 1 year without a reportable injury
Working safely to realize these results demonstrates an employee commitment to embrace the “3As” of Safety:
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Accountability For Your Own Personal Safety – Work Safe!
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Approach Others Working Unsafely – See Something, Say Something!
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Accept Feedback – Realize your Teammates have your best interests in mind - Thank them for caring!
“Taco Fiesta” celebrations were held at all companies to celebrate these notable milestones:
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In addition to achieving these fantastic safety results, the Insulectro Lake Forest Supply Chain and Operations teams have been diligently preparing to support the Kyocera drill product launch.
Montse Barcelo, Diana Le, and Zach Dang headed up our Supply Chain readiness efforts with expedited focus on part # set up, pipeline inventory fill, and systems configuration for ongoing replenishment.
Felix Martinez, Jaygee Gozum, and Dave Klebba drove the Operations team’s execution to ensure we were ready to receive, store, and fulfill customer orders on an ongoing basis. For daily ongoing order fulfillment we enlisted the help of Alfonso Vergara and Humberto Castro of our Lake Forest Operations team. These guys are the “real deal” and are OWNING it.
They are engaged and focused on doing whatever it takes to GSD for our customers!
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We are now a few weeks into the transition, and all the hard work to prepare is paying off, as the teams have not missed a beat! Thanks to Geraldine Arseneau, Product Manager for Kyocera (and Pacothane and LCOA) for her dedicated support during start-up to help make the right connections to execute effectively out of the gates.
Thanks also to Dan Diesel for keeping the collective project teams on track each week – truly a Team effort across all functions that yielded fantastic results!
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And thanks to everyone for another remarkable month.
Jason Shuppert
Vice President of Operations
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Insulectro PumaNews™ will write, curate, and publish provocative articles on innovation, vision, and thought leadership in our industry spotlighting people who make a difference.
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Current & Challenged
Meet Erika James
Sales - Aerospace & Defense
Summit Interconnect
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I was born and raised in California. I went to Santa Fe High School and was always involved in Sports. Cross Country, Track and Field, Clubs, ASB, Business Academy. Senior Year, I was crowned Homecoming Queen. Four years went by in a blink of an eye, I made sure I tried everything once!
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I received my Associates Degree in Paralegal Studies from Fremont College. Still trying to figure out what I really wanted to do I knew I had to get a job and help my family.
In 2001, I got a job working with TransUnion and Experian the credit bureau. I loved the experience and enjoyed learning all that I could about the credit bureau industry and how important it is to keep a good credit score! In 2005, Jobs were starting to shift overseas to India and our call centers here in he US were now a thing of the past. If you cannot beat them, you better join them! Embrace the change. I traveled to Mumbai, India and helped train folks at our call center.
In 2007, I had an interview with TTM Technologies, Inc. I had no idea what printed circuit boards were! Trying something new! Accounting here we come!
I was the Corporate Credit Manager with TTM for 5 years. I learned so much and enjoyed working with amazing people that to date I still keep in contact with. I helped write an accounting process that cleared audit with various sites and had a system in place for accounts which were “deemed uncollectible” and made them collectible.
Again, after 5 years I felt like I had accomplished what I could and wanted a change. I am bilingual, fluent in Spanish and was asked if I was interested in a Global Account Manager position. Something New. I was thankful for the opportunity!
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I traveled all over the world to see customers and enjoyed every minute of it. I learned to fall in love with the printed circuit board industry! At this point in my life I was married with 3 beautiful kids. Aryana 17, Matthew 8 and Attison 4. I learned to multitask and make things work with travel, homework, play dates, practices, softball and baseball games, school plays and muffins with Mommy.
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Until I found myself missing homework, play dates, practices, softball and baseball games, school plays, muffins with mommy and rough days at school. I realized that I was only going to enjoy my babies a short period of time at that age only once and they would move on to different struggles as they got older. Hotel Facetime became harder and harder.
My mom and husband made it work for me but my kids deserved to have mom at home too. Hard to balance but my focused was now on how I was a going to make it all work and continue to do what I love and stay in an industry that I know I belong in.
In 2017, I joined Summit Interconnect. I knew this was going to be an exciting change for me. I have always admired and looked up to Shane Whiteside as a mentor and someone that I always wanted to work with and for again. To date, I feel like I have found a place where I can grow old and my ladder is leaned against the right building.
My travel changed to US only. Score! This was a way for me to make it work and stay on a career path that I love and still be a wife and mommy to my babies!
I love the challenge that this job brings and the Aerospace and Defense Industry will always hold a special place in my heart.
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My husband is a Marine Corps Veteran. I have three brothers and a nephew currently serving our country. 30 Year Navy - Master Chief, 28 Year Navy Chief, 19 Years Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant. Nephew, 10 years Torpedoman 2nd Class Petty officer. I am extremely proud of my brothers. Forever grateful for the men that they are and their love for our country.
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Volunteer? I am the Queen of Volunteers!
While my brothers were on deployment in Afghanistan I wanted to send them a care package from home. Anything to let them know we were thinking about them and what they were doing for our country matters.
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I came across a non-profit FOR THE TROOPS . ORG. I went on the website and requested a “We Care” Package at no cost to me. A few weeks later I get a message from my brothers that they received care packages for everyone in their unit. Over 200 boxes. No questions asked.
I knew that very moment I was going to do everything I could to help support this organization and adopted FTT as part of a James Family Tradition! For 10 years now, my kids and I have been volunteering on a monthly basis collecting items from friends, family, and all-around Orange County! Anything for our Men and Women! To date we have shipped over 269,172 to our brave men and women all over the world!
If your husband could change one thing about you, what would it be?
Watch less murder mystery shows and cook more. I have a sweet tooth so I tend to bake more than cook!
How would your teammates describe you?
Demanding with a smile on my face. I do, and ask for forgiveness if at all, later. Always willing to help and drinks on me after work!
Great weekend for you is?
Having a clean house, Murder Mystery on Discovery Channel. Bottle of Champagne in the fridge to enjoy with breakfast with a back-up for dinner! Warm Banana Nut Bread. More Murder Mystery shows.
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Favorite Football Team?
Buffalo Bills! – Have been obsessed with Jim Kelly for years and now I have a younger version with Josh Allen! WE WILL GET THAT SUPERBOWL WIN IN 2023! CIRCLE THE WAGONS BABY!
What’s your beverage of choice?
Champagne- Mumm Napa, Macallan Whiskey, Gin and Tonic
Where do you see yourself in the industry over the next 5 years?
I think in terms of where I want to be, perhaps leading a small team of like minded people who will focus on the customer experience like I do.
Continuing to bring the technical expertise that companies like Summit can provide to improve the design process/ manufacturability/reliability of the electronics, we help our customers build. Help to continuously improve the experience customers have working with Summit.
Learn something new every day and push to leave a positive footprint in this industry.
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Precision Cutting Tools at a Glance
End Mills and Routers and Drills, Oh My!
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As of August 1, 2022, Insulectro is proud to be the exclusive North American distributor for Kyocera PCB products.
Kyocera has a full line of products to support our customers needs in both the drill and fabrication areas.
Highlighted in this newsletter are the multiple drill bit series available to support all ranges of technology and are ideally suited to meet the quality needs and challenges seen in the drill room today.
Below is a list of the drill series stocked and available at Insulectro today to support our customers as they strive to exceed the needs of their customers.
Drills
- Series 100 – Medium Non-Undercut Diameter Drills
- Series 102 – Tapered Blind Via Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 150 – Large Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 240 – Flex Circuits Straight Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 240FP – Back Drill Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 405 – Short Flute Pilot Undercut Drills
- Series 430 – Hybrid Flute Undercut Drills
- Series 460 – Standard Undercut Drills
- Series 480 – Extended Flute Undercut Drills
- Series 560 – Standard Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 580 – Extended Flute Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 700 – Standard Slot Non-Undercut Drills
- Series 750 – Extended Flute Non-Undercut Slot Drills
Kyocera is unique in the North American market as they alone can design, develop, and manufacture drills, routers and endmills for specialty applications, quick turn requirements, and bring new designs faster to ever changing market needs all right here in Orange, California USA.
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Along with our industry leading backer and entry products from LCOA®, Insulectro has what you need to build better boards faster.
Please contact me for additional information, technical support, or process related questions. Our Insulectro team looks forward to assisting in you!
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Geraldine Arseneau
Product Manager - Kyocera Precision Cutting Tools
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Open A New Window!
InduBond® Induction Press Conquers Installation Challenges
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Having the right equipment and the technical support to back it can make all the difference!
Not only are we supplying quality consumables and equipment for the lamination room with InduBond® and the XPress, we now have expanded into the wet process area as well.
With technology-driven customers already using and growing with the UCE equipment lines, and having our technical service team to support preventative maintenance programs at facilities as well, we are excited to be able to support our customers even further.
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With the acquisition of (ETI) Equipment Technologies, we have added the lineup of UCE Wet Processing, Scrubbing, and Plating Equipment which complements well with our high-performing Focus Tech Chemistry line. This acquisition has also added more Service Technicians to our team to support you even more!
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Please reach out should you like to discuss any of these topics further. |
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Thank you.
Kevin Barrett,
Product Manager - Equipment
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An Impressive Press!
APCT Installs First InduBond® Induction Press on West Coast
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APCT has installed a new lamination press, an InduBond® X-Press 360 experiencing throughput gains and the ability to load resin recipes exactly per the manufacturer’s guidelines.
No guessing due to lagging material or poor heat transfer, resulting in a 20% cycle time reduction!
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The induction press was installed and operational in less than 2 days and represents the first InduBond® Induction, Fusion-Capable lamination press on the West Coast! Thank you APCT for being a trendsetter.
The press was installed by the Insulectro equipment team including Kevin Barrett and Pedro Rosales supporting Victor Lazaro who is actually the inventor of the InduBond® press.
It is now being pushed to the limits on a daily basis.
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The system has been reducing cycle times due to its accurate and efficient rate of rise, accepting mixed (but similar) resins per load, pressing up to 30 twenty-layer panels with a 370HR construction as an example and all whilst producing panels with a flatness tolerance of +/-1 mil.
The team has utilized CAC, Inc's Copper–Steel -Copper (CSC™) from 1/4oz to 1oz so far to enhance the heat transfer properties resulting in more panels per press load than a traditional system. Increasing panels per man hour and running 2-3 cycles a day.
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Thank you.
Mark Satchwell
Product Manager
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Geoff shouts: Interra™ HK04M & HK04J in Stock!
Get Flexible with Embedded Capacitive Alternatives
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Both Interra™ HK04M and now HK04J are in stock at Insulectro. With a robust supply chain for Interra™ HK04M, HK04M provides the same embedded capacitance performance as HK04J.
With an improved Polyimide formulation HK04M is ideal for any embedded capacitance project that need 12 micron dielectrics.
With R&D work ongoing for 8 micron, HK04M is ready for next gen technologies. For any design requiring 25 micron (1 mil) polyimide, HK04J is the tried and proven work horse.
But why an embedded capacitive material? Why HK04M or HK04J?
Embedded capacitance is the one of the most efficient and reliable way to deliver power to IC’s on the surface.
By turning your whole PCB’s power ground plane into a capacitor, you can reduce inplane inductance, increase available power to chips, reduce passive components on the surface and increase high-pot yields (compared to equivalent epoxy/fiberglass products).
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The benefits that give Interra™ an edge when compared to alternatives are inherent to the film-based substrate. Films are homogenous in nature, no glass, which prevent CAF failure that can grow along the glass weaves of epoxy materials.
Films are flexible, which is a benefit during fabrication because when handling the material it can bend and not fracture. Epoxy/fiberglass must be handled delicately or it will fracture and break. Finally, films can be made thinner which allows great capacitance to form between the charged plates of the power-ground planes.
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Geoff Leeds
Product Manager, DuPont Flex Laminates
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PCBAA LEADERSHIP SPEAKS OUT |
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PRINTED ELECTRONICS INKS & PASTES,
SUBSTRATES & FILMS
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Kevin Miller Can See it!
PE Customers Interviewed for Design007 Magazine
AUGUST 2022
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Last week, Insulectro collaborated on the first of three articles for Design007 magazine on printed electronics and flex circuits. Kevin Miller VP of Sales was interviewed by I-CONNECT007's Andy Shaughnessy along with three Insulectro customers. |
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Mike Wagner
Chief Operating Officer & Chief Innovation Officer
Butler Technologies
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Tom Bianchi
Vice President &
Managing Partner
Eastprint
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John Voultos
Vice President of Business Development
Sheldahl Flexible Technologies
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INTERVIEW BY ANDY SHAUGHNESSEY
I-CONNECT 007
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We recently held a roundtable with a team of printed electronic circuit experts from companies that run the gamut: John Lee and Kevin Miller of Insulectro, Mike Wagner of Butler Technologies, Tom Bianchi of Eastprint, and John Voultos of Sheldahl Flexible Technologies.
In this first part of the roundtable, the participants dispel 10 common myths that have been floating around regarding printed electronic circuits (PEC). They also discuss the progress that’s been made in PEC development in just the past decade, and what the future may hold for this technology.
Andy Shaughnessy: Welcome to the printed electronics roundtable. How about a quick introduction? John, why don’t you go first?
John Lee: I oversee Insulectro marketing and brand strategy for both the PCB side of our business and the printed electronics side.
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Mike Wagner: I serve in two roles: chief operations officer and chief innovation officer for Butler Technologies. We’re located in western Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. We design and manufacture graphic overlays, membrane switches, and other printed electronics, and we have a big focus on flexible wearable technology.
Tom Bianchi: I’m a vice president and managing partner of Eastprint. We have factories here in North Andover, Massachusetts and Juarez, Mexico, manufacturing human-machine interfaces, keypad assemblies, and various types of printed electronics, whether it be a wearable patch or a screen-printed electrode.
John Voultos: I’m glad to be here, and I think most of the characters on this call know me. I’m the vice president of business development for Sheldahl Flexible Technologies. I’ve been with the company over five years. Prior to that, I had 29 years with DuPont.
Kevin Miller: I am VP of national sales at Insulectro
and have been with them for 28 years. I started off in the PCB part of the business, supporting that industry for probably 20–25 years. About five years ago, I moved into printed electronics to start up that division and I am responsible for sales, but also play a role in operations and other things within printed electronics.
Shaughnessy: So, Chris Hunrath with Insulectro sent me a list of 10 popular myths about printed electronics, so let’s address those. The first myth: Printed electronics is only for single-sided, low-end applications. Is there any truth to that?
Bianchi: That’s a complete myth. We produce ECG electrodes with printed through-holes on two-sided polyester circuits. I would consider that a critical component.
Wagner: Yes, I can add to that. Butler Technologies will print two-sided circuits for membrane switches, especially in some high-density applications where there’s just not enough room with one-sided. So, it’s pretty straightforward. We’ve been doing this for more than 10 years.
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To read the entire article in DESIGN007 Magazine, click the link below. |
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Please call INSULECTRO at 1-855-955-0200 with any questions regarding these product offerings or visit our E-Commerce site at the LINK BELOW.
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Kevin Miller
VP of Sales - Insulectro Printed Electronics
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Chris Hunrath on Future Tech
Multilayer PCBs and CTE
AUGUST 2022
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Even complex PCBs can be boiled down to conductors, copper, and dielectrics, laminates (embedded components notwithstanding). It is well known that the dielectrics and conductors have very different coefficient of expansions (CTE’s).
This was less of an issue in the x-y direction as things can move around. Sure, the total x-y expansion can add up during the heat of assembly, but for individual traces, it’s not enough to cause an issue. The exception to this would be power and ground planes but the glass fabric has more strength in the x and y and stabilizes the board.
The z-axis is another matter, especially when we stack solid copper vias. Unlike a plated through hole walls where the thinner copper can “stretch” with the expansion, the solid slug will resist the movement.
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Neat (no glass fabric or fillers) epoxy resin CTE can be as high as 150 ppm/°C below the Tg (or alpha 1). Glass fabric provides a reduction in all directions but more so in the x and y. We commonly see CTE’s in the z axis below the Tg at 50 ppm/°C.
With copper somewhat lower at around 17, one would wonder why this works at all. It does so because things move in 3 dimensions, stretch and so on. This is especially true with some flex materials as they don’t contain glass fabric and often no fillers. As long as they don’t undergo any decomposition and soften to the point of delamination, the part can survive the heat of solder reflow during assembly.
Looking at the building blocks the rigid PCB industry has evolved to, that is prepreg and cores, we make complex multilayers ensuring electrical properties (impedance, skew,etc.), overall thickness and a void free structure (voids will likely cause delamination at assembly).
Because of these goals, we may not use the building blocks that provide the lowest z-axis CTE. There are trade offs and they work most of the time. I have personally measured the CTE of two different cores of the same laminate type, one with a single ply of thick glass and the other with multiple plies of thin (high resin content).
As expected, the thick glass core had half the CTE of the other. So why not always use high glass/low resin cores and prepregs? The reason is you can’t get the other very important properties that way.
A word of caution on TDSs for different laminates. The listed CTE value while being accurate for that material, it is highly dependent on the construction of the sample tested. I have tested the same stack-up on two different resin systems with two different z-axis CTE’s listed on the TDS. The total expansion to 260 °C was virtually the same.
As the industry looks to build more complex, higher density interconnect systems, we will have to continue to look at the entire system from metallization to composite materials.
I look forward to lively discussions on this subject with my colleagues and friends in the industry.
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Chris Hunrath
Vice President of Technology & Vice President of Sales - Western Region
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Riston® DI3000 Dry Film
Eliminate Donut Adhesion Issues
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Riston® DI3000 dryfilm is the next generation print and plate dryfilm. This is a dual wavelength film that is optimized for use on today’s direct imaging systems. This film delivers great resolution and optimal adhesion of small features like donuts and thermal reliefs, even on flash plated foil.
It is available in 38, 50, and 62 micron thickness.
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Please contact me or your local Insulectro TAM. |
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Jeff Johnson
Product Manager - Dryfilm/Chemistry/Paste & FAE
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Flex Interconnect's Own
Chetan Shah to Compete in Men's Over 60 Cricket World Cup in Australia
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The globe’s best senior cricketers are poised to battle for World Cup glory on the Sunshine Coast. Chetan Shah, President and CEO of Flex Interconnect Technologies, will be traveling to Australia to compete in this first inaugural game.
The first ever Over-60s Cricket World Cup will be contested at Maroochydore, Caloundra and Yandina, from September 3 to September 14.
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Twelve nations will be represented, including hosts Australia, India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, New Zealand, West Indies, Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Wales, USA, Canada and the Rest of the World.
The teams, comprising about 300 people, will stay in the region and will play one-day games on eight days, along with with six days of rest and relaxation, including visits to the Coast’s top tourist sites
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Getting to Know
the Midwest
OMG!! The summer is flying by as it always does up here in the Northland.
We are all so busy enjoying the brief season with family and friends, while not losing focus on doing whatever it takes to get our customers the materials and assistance they need to be successful.
A great example is Dino, Nate, and Rob at our Eden Prairie facility. Even though deliveries aren’t as predictable as they once were, they receive, process, load on our truck, and on the road to our customers within a matter of minutes when necessary.
Thank you guys, for rolling with the punches and getting the job done! Also, thank you to our amazing customers for their patience and flexibility!
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Insulectro COO Ken Parent and Director of Operations (East & Midwest) Joe Harbour heard the pizza was good in Chicago and visited the Bloomingdale branch. Also pictured from left, Ruben Zambrano, FAE; Mike Freebery, Technical Account Manager; and Kevin Barrett, Product Manager.
Next Friday, Insulectro will be hosting the 2022 Midwest Circuit Association Golf Tournament at Majestic Oaks, just North of Minneapolis. Once again, customer and supplier participation/sponsorship has been outstanding. What a great opportunity for us to connect, relax, and have some fun together.
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Garret Shepard
Technical Account Manager
Midwest Region
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@Mike Creeden
Advanced Via Solutions (Part Two)
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Advanced circuit requirements are presenting new challenges every year.
These challenges are driven by the ever increasing circuit needs to be smaller, faster, accomplish more, be cheaper, and often must be completed quicker.
So, each year we try to meet these needs by working smarter, faster, more efficiently, adding technology and innovation. One of the most challenging features on our circuit boards are the vias by which we make Z-axis interconnects. Advanced challenges require advanced innovations. We will continue to take a look at the challenges that vias are facing over these next two articles.
Z-axis Interconnects can be completed by a technology called, Transient Liquid Phase Sintering (TLPS) materials, which is the use of copper sintering paste, i.e., Ormet® Paste Z-Interconnects, this can be a very helpful alternative solution to conventional microvias. Ormet® Paste is an alloy compound of Copper (Cu), Tin (Sn), and Bismuth (Bi) used as the binding agent.
- TLPS is processed at temperatures well below the final usable temperature limits, forms alloys that does not re-melt under lead-free reflow conditions
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TLPS establishes metallurgical connections with copper interfaces, maximizes electrical and thermal transfer with solderable adherents
- TLPS creates z-axis interconnects during lamination, reduces lamination cycles
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Ormet® Sintering Pastes have been utilized in the industry for well over a decade. In fact, every reader of this article probably has these contained within the phone in your pocket or on almost every BGA interposer on your circuit boards. The current needs of everyday designs have now caught up to the advanced requirements used in telecom and BGA package designs with thin, high-layer count interposer boards.
Today’s circuit boards often contain extremely high-speed circuitry and the use of vias can cause unwanted radiating emissions from via stubs when a signal is routed on an inner layer but under a GND layer. . .
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Contact any of our Technical Account Managers or call any of our branch offices to schedule your Virtual Training Session soon.
Stay safe, happy, and healthy!
Mike Creeden CID+ MIT
Technical Director, Insulectro Design & Education
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Making An Impact!
The Hustle & Bustle of People & Machines
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In the few months I have been with Insulectro, I have had the opportunity to visit several PWB fabrication shops around the US. Although each shop has its own uniqueness, the sounds and smells are the same. There is something about the lively hustle and bustle of people and machines moving product through the shop that will always be exciting to me.
What I have noticed during these visits is the PCB industry investing in new equipment, new processes, new materials, and people. What energizes me most is the investment in people and the opportunity to educate these people on PCB processes and future bleeding edge technology.
I am excited to visit a university with one of our customers this month to explore a PCB technology partnership.
Education of the next generation of PCB builders is something I plan to make an impact on.
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Laura Martin
Director of Technology
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PCBAA LEADERSHIP SPEAKS OUT |
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12 Trends from RankRed.com
Emerging Technologies that Will
Change Our Lives
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Hit the link below to read a fascinating article on gamechanging electronics technology that is now emerging.
As a taste of what's to come in the future, here's a list to get you thinking:
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Flexible Display - OLEDs and such
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Memristor - semiconductors used to create low power consuming storage devices
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Electronic Skin & Tongue - stretchable, flexible, and self-healing materials that can mimic the features of an animal or human skin
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3D Biometrics - includes 3D fingerprint, 3D palmprint, 3D ear, and 3D face recognition techniques
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Electronic Nose - identifies certain components of an odor and analyzes its chemical makeup
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Molecular Electronics - uses molecules as the primary building block for electronic circuitry
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Nanoelectromechanical System - integrates nano-size electronics elements with mechanical machines to form physical and chemical sensors
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Spintronics - refers to the intrinsic spin of the electron and its associated magnetic moment in solid-state physics
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E-Textiles - like DuPont™ Intexar®, for example
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Molybdenum Disulfide - used in electronics as a dry lubricant because of its low friction and robustness
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Thermal Copper Pillar Bump - micro-size thermoelectric device used for the packaging of electronics and optoelectronics
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Digital Scent Technology - wearable scent devices that can be controlled via smartphones and PCs
Today's science fiction is tomorrow's science fact.
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Welcome to the August Edition of Insulectro PumaNews™ Magazine - East Coast Edition…GSD ”Getting Stuff Done”
Growing…to serve our customers, Insulectro continues to expand our offerings and our resources to serve customers so they can “Build Better Boards Faster.”
Consider this headline in our Corporate Overview Presentation:
"Five decades of Strategic Acquisition to achieve Brand & Marketplace dominance."
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It's a fact, Insulectro never stops moving forward and we don’t rest on our laurels.
This fact is a key differentiator in our business and allows Insulectro to serve our customers in ways that are unparalleled today. Our market changes at a rapid pace and technology and design challenges do not idle and nor does Insulectro.
Of course, you can have World Class Products and Technology but if you don’t have a team of experts and doers, you’ll be driving an empty bus. That is why we are also expanding our resources adding new teammates that bring value to Insulectro and all our customers.
Insulectro is proud and honored to be such an integral supplier to our customers who are winning the battle everyday to product high quality and reliable PCBs. Insulectro stands with you all.
And for all the right reasons-
Insulectro is going to keep on rolling!
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Ron Murdock
Director of Sales - Eastern Region/ Canada
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PCBAA LEADERSHIP SPEAKS OUT |
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Isola's Fandy Wei Explains
Circuit Materials Meet Critical Needs
for LEOS
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Written by Fandy Wei, Senior Director of OEM Marketing - Asia, Isola Group.
Thousands of satellites surround the Earth in their own orbital slots and even their own constellations, at distinct altitudes.
They help communicate with distant places, track weather, and, with the Global Positioning System (GPS), find distant places here on Earth. Closest to Earth, low Earth orbit satellites (LEOS) are in the greatest numbers with totals growing rapidly.
Circuit designers and manufacturers in need of circuit materials for RF/microwave and high-speed-digital (HSD) circuits for LEOS must seek substrates that can handle the rigors of a long, orbiting lifetime while meeting rigorous size, weight, and power (SWaP) requirements to keep a LEOS flying. LEOS (as well as their Earth stations) have a special set of needs for circuit materials and knowing those requirements can prevent a LEOS from getting lost in space!
Printed-circuit boards (PCBs) are typically tasked with carrying analog, digital, and even photonic signals within a LEOS under the extremely hostile operating conditions of space. Due to its orbiting motion, a satellite is facing the sun or shielded from it by the Earth, constantly going through thermal cycling as a result.
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Any circuit materials for LEOS should be thermally robust, over a wide temperature range and for a prolonged period. Circuit materials for space are typically fabricated to withstand a temperature range of -55 to +125°C without mechanical change or degradation in electrical performance.
Circuit materials integrated in an orbiting satellite, such as a LEOS, must be capable of handling greater thermal stress than the circuit materials supporting HSD or mmWave signals back on Earth because of the way temperature changes while in orbit.
Temperatures drop rapidly while in the shadow of Earth and rise quickly when a satellite returns into direct sunlight. Circuit materials with good thermal conductivity characteristics can help dissipate the heat produced by direct sunlight.
Select the following link as Fandy Wei explores this subject further.
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About Isola
Isola is a leading global material sciences company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets laminate materials used to fabricate advanced multilayer printed circuit boards, which provide the physical platforms for the semiconductors, passive components, and connection circuitry that power and control virtually all modern electronic products. Isola operates a network of factories worldwide.
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Norm Berry
Director, Laminates & OEM Marketing
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News about Shikoku Chemistry
Next-gen PCB Manufacturing
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Shikoku Chemistry offers three products to the North American Market for next generation printed circuit board manufacturing:
Glibrite® GB-4300: Soldermask and dry film adhesion promoting microetch that offers excellent adhesion with a lower etch rate. It is ideally suited for next generation substrates which demand finer copper features and high frequency requirements.
GliCAP™: Newly developed process to improve the adhesion between copper and a variety of resin systems without roughening the copper surface by application of a very thin organic coating, composed of novel organic azole compound, which is developed by Shikoku’s organic synthesis technology. Smooth copper surface produces excellent signal integrity, especially in the high frequency ranges, and is suitable for fine pitch copper circuit applications.
Glicoat™-SMD F2(LX): Forms uniform, very thin and transparent organic coating on the copper surface, even in via-holes, by chemical reaction between the active ingredient, substituted imidazole derivatives, and copper. Glicoat-SMD F2(LX) coating has excellent heat-resistance and compatibility with non-clean soldering fluxes and solder pastes, as well as lead-free solder, so that it is suitable for PWB’s with surface mount technologies as a replacement of HASL and other final finishes.
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With Insulectro’s acquisition of (ETI) Equipment Technologies, effective August 1, 2022, we have added the lineup of UCE Wet Processing and Plating Equipment, which compliments well with our DuPont, Shikoku & Focus Tech Chemistry lines. This acquisition has also added more Service Technicians to our team to support you even further.
We are actively looking for opportunities to combine our world-class chemistries with world-class equipment, and this acquisition of ETI positions Insulectro to offer COMPLETE PACKAGE DEALS to upgrade your manufacturing lines.
Our team of Technical Account Managers (TAM) will be reaching out to see how we can help our fabricator customers improve yields, increase productivity and quality, and upgrade equipment sets. If you are ready to have that conversation, please reach out to your local TAM or me and we can get the process started.
For any questions, technical process or training and education needs, do not hesitate to reach out to me:
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Paul Welter
Product Manager - Chemistry
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At-A-Glance
The DuPont Chemistry Line
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With the acquisition of East Coast Electronic Material Supply (ECEMS) in late March, Insulectro has brought another best-in-class product line to our customers. The addition of the DuPont Electronics Imaging & Interconnect Solutions (ICS) chemistry line, which was legacy Dow Chemicals before the Dow-DuPont merger, adds a complimentary piece to an already robust Insulectro product offering.
DuPont ICS is innovating new metallization technologies across many platforms:
Electroplating Applications
HDI
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Microfill™ EVF-III for advanced via filling and through-hole plating
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Microfill™ LVF-IV for next generation SLP applications
MLB
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Copper Gleam™ PPR-II for high aspect ratio pulse plating
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Electroposit™ EP-1600 for high aspect ratio DC plating
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Copper Gleam™ HS-200 for horizontal DC plating in FPC applications
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Copper Gleam™ ST-920 for DC vertical continuous plating (VCP)
IC Package Substrate
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Microfill™ SFP-II & Microfill™ LVF-IV for advanced SAP applications
Making Holes Conductive
Electroless Copper Solutions:
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Circuposit™ 3350-1 Vertical Electroless Copper
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Circuposit™ 4000 Horizontal electroless copper for FPC/RFPC
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Circuposit™ 6700 Horizontal Ionic Catalyst for Advanced HDI applications
Direct Metallization Solutions:
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Next Generation Crimson™ & Conductron™ palladium-based systems
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Next Generation Graphite 2000™ carbon-based system
ENIG:
Duraposit™ SMT-88 & Aurolectroless™ SMT 520
Process Chemistries:
DuPont offers a full line of cleaners, developers, strippers and other ancillary products to support printed circuit applications.
General Metal Finishing:
Full line engineering, decorative and precious metal offerings
As you can see, through this addition of the DuPont ICS chemistry line, Insulectro is now providing chemistry and technical support to the general metal finishing, plating-on-plastics, and wire plating industries, which we see as an area of growth.
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Ormet® PCB-710
Eliminate Lamination and Plating Steps
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Ormet® PCB-710 is a lead-free, copper-based, paste formulated for creating microvias in printed circuit boards. This can be done to replace stacked via designs with multiple lamination steps, or to bond subs together without requiring a through-hole drill to electrically connect the subs.
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The Ormet® paste is processed at normal PCB lamination temperatures. The final product offers superior thermal and electrical performance.
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For more information on Ormet®, please contact me. |
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Jeff Johnson
Product Manager - Dryfilm/Chemistry/Paste & FAE
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Our teammates in San Jose continue with GSD (Get Stuff Done) through a month with lots of vacations, various shipping challenges, and customer needs.
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We recently had the opportunity to meet with our DuPont friends at the Silicon Valley Tech Center for a quarterly review. It’s great to be able to discuss technology, new products, and the direction of the industry. We are going on 20 years with them and looking forward to the next 20.
We also had the chance to share a meal at a popular Silicon Valley Spot.
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A reminder. . . DuPont's Silicon Valley Tech Center is available to our customers for everything from material testing to brainstorming. Let us know if we can use this resource to help your business.
To sign-up for the Insulectro Customer Portal, send an email with your Company name and Contact information to: portal@insulectro.com with the subject “Sign me up.”
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Chris Hunrath
Vice President of Technology &
Vice President of Sales - Western Region
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PRINTED ELECTRONICS INKS & PASTES,
ADVANCED SUBSTRATES & FILMS
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Growth in Advanced Substrates
Printed Electronics Material Tips for Processing Membrane Switches
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All layers of a membrane switch perform a certain function or functions, the materials specified for these functions should be manufactured and converted to provide maximum performance for end use.
Base Films
Insulectro carries several types of film for the screen-printing of the top and bottom circuits of membrane switches. We slit and sheet treated and untreated Polyester films as well as Heat-stabilized and unstabilized materials for a wide range of conductive inks, dielectric inks, as well as Carbons and solvents.
We carry films suited for use in applications such as Medical, Industrial, Automotive, and other market segments. These films are also conditioned for excellent handling and accurate screen-printing.
Graphic Overlay Films
Insulectro carries hardcoat films that are ideal for membrane switch overlay applications. Polycarbonate and polyester substrates that have been treated so their surfaces can be selectively textured, embossed or printed with UV inks. Available in finishes ranging from glossy clear to textured matte
Hardcoat films resist scratching and marring from a wide range of cleaners and contact points, For special applications these materials are suitable for Thermoforming as well.
Insulectro offers Polycarbonate film under our Clarity brand, These materials offer outstanding optical clarity, mechanical strength, and ease of processing in finishes from Gloss/Gloss to Matte as well as previously mentioned hardcoats.
Available in optically clear, hazy and opaque white, our films offer a range of display options. Offering a wide variety of polyester films that are printable and can be heat stabilized, and solvent resistant. Most varieties provide excellent adhesion to a broad range of Conductive inks and Dielectrics inks.
For binding together the different layers of a membrane switch, Flexcon® laminated adhesives are also used to hold the layers together. Double-liner adhesives are specially constructed sheets of non-adhesive carriers held together by a Flexcon® pressure sensitive adhesive. This design gives the spacer film the structural integrity to be die-cut in intricate patterns without breaks. These spacer allow intermittent contact from Layer to Layer when pressure is applied to activate switch function.
Flexcon® membrane switch spacers are available in roll or custom sheet form in a variety of thicknesses and liner types, Kraft liners provide stiffness for die-cutting and clean edges. Lay flat liners provide more stiffness to the spacer film for better handling, easy kiss-cut die-cutting, fewer liner breaks, easier lamination without wrinkles and more versatile product configuration.
Flexcon® laminating adhesives are used to bond together the different layers of a membrane switch, These laminating adhesives are engineered to perform with a large selection of substrates, in a wide range of conditions, under a variety of pressures and against a list of environmental factors.
Flexcon® laminating adhesives are pressure sensitive adhesives are designed to adhere to most surfaces. The adhesion strength of these materials provides excellent resistance to the effects of chemicals and temperature and are engineered for permanent bonding applications.
Conductive inks include a variety of products that bring single layer and multi-layer designs within reach of virtually every switch designer.
Insulectro carries the industry leading line of DuPont Microcircuit inks for a wide variety of applications. Collaboration with our technical team during design can lead you to the complete package of inks to support your end customers performance goals, Custom options are attainable based on application demand.
The Industry's Leading Custom Membrane Switch Components provider Insulectro is the leading distributor for components required to design and produce a successful membrane switch, through our collaboration with our technical resources and our partners resources we can provide you solutions, Please contact us for your next project.
Our customers are our family!
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Bob Lee
Technical Account Manager - Insulectro PE
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Opportunities in the Circuit Board Industry for Next Generation Employees
It is an exciting time to be in the circuit board industry. PCBs (with assembled components) are used in almost everything requiring electronic controls.
Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs – such as aerospace or electronic companies) continue to demand prototype circuit boards as well as low volume production in the US to be used in high-tech applications.
Jobs in the industry include planners, expeditors, entry level design engineers and processing engineers. Planners determine process steps (create job travels) and resources required to make circuit boards, production expeditors see process steps are followed and product passes quality requirements, entry-level design engineering supports sales and production and entry-level process engineering positions specialize in different areas of the manufacturing processes.
Learning these positions can come from hands-on processing experiences and mentoring from experienced leaders. Engineering degrees are desired, but not required for process engineering positions.
Opportunities for growth include learning how to make circuit boards – rigid, flex and rigid-flex circuits boards. And moving into leadership roles within different departments depending on the types of experiences gained.
Continuous improving goes a long way and will be noticed. Circuit board manufacturing has demands that can be rewarding when performance is accomplished for individuals and team members in this industry.
And there are lots of opportunities for individuals new to the workplace. Promoting these opportunities will continue to strengthen this industry in a very positive way.
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Mike Carnarius
Field Application Engineer - Southern California
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A Super Matchup!
Make Your InduBond® Press
Sit Up & Take Notice
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Bacon and eggs. Black and tan. Mac and cheese. Bert and Ernie. InduBond® and Copper-Steel-Copper!
Bonded Copper foil including VLP profiles onto a Steel carrier ensures that not only the low-profile topography is protected but the surface is clean, free from causing signal integrity defects as all FOUR edges are sealed. It's a star performer in an InduBond® press!
Carrier foil is available from 1µm up to 5µm, now CSC bridges that gap offering foils from 6µm to 140µm.
CSC is available in 8 mil which has twice the image transfer resistance as 15 mil aluminum AND can replace up to SEVEN standard 62 mil steel separators. Those separators not only cause circuit surface imperfections impacting trace lines but reduce stack height allowing more panels per lamination cycle.
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I've got a lot to tell you about this matchup!
Mark Satchwell
Product Manager, Foil & CAC®
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The People
Behind the Puma
Meet ERIC TRAUE
Distribution Sales Manager
Silicon Valley
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BIO
I started my career as a inside sales rep in a small distributor of electronic components in Wallingford, CT called Midstate Electronics. After the 2008 recession, I moved over to HESCO, an automation distributor in Rocky Hill, CT where I became an Account Manager.
After about 6 years in that position, I was contacted by a recruiter out in Mountain View, CA that told me about an opportunity with Insulectro as an inside sales manager.
I have to say, the allure of moving from the northeast to sunny California and the pitch from Ken Parent, Chris Hunrath and Sean Redfern hooked me immediately into joining the team, and I am so happy that I made that decision because I love this job!
I pride myself on my relationships and friendships with my customers and all my teammates and suppliers. I look forward to a long career with Insulectro and a further great relationship with all of our customers, suppliers and all of my great teammates
Eric's known for GSD and his sense of humor.
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When you were in grade school, what did you want to grow up to be? Hockey Player
What three values did you learn from your parents that you still honor today? I value my friends, job, and personal time.
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When you were in high school, did you have any nicknames? Scooter
When you see pictures of yourself in your yearbook, what goes through your head? Oh geeze!
Best subjects in school? History
Do you recall any past wardrobe choices that make your eyes roll today? Flannel Shirts
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What is your strongest memory of your first day on the job? Mario’s Pizzeria down the street from the Mountain View Branch
A relaxing evening at home for involves reading a book? Watching television? Sipping a cocktail? Or what? Watching Games on ESPN
Your favorite comfort food and your favorite sneak food? Comfort = Rosie’s New York Pizza, Sneak Food = Gummie Bears
How would your friends describe you? Quick wit and good humor.
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Looking back, what is the worst vehicle you’ve ever driven? Used BMW, a total money pit.
What embarrassing thing you’ve done still haunts you today? Spilling water on Patrick Redfern during a branch dinner.
Favorite musical group or singer? System of a Down
Contrast how you feel at the beginning of your work week with the end of the week. Helping customers with their needs can be hectic. By weekend, exhausted but relieved.
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If a biop movie was made about you, what actor would be play you? Mike Myers.
What recent comment from a fellow teammate made you feel good? “You’re a smart guy”
Name three things your teammates don’t know about you? My teammates know me too well, LOL.
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What do you do to really let your hair down? Go to a game with Pedro, Hilton, and Jaygee. [LEFT: Eric tailgating at a soccer game with San Jose teammates]
How would you like to be remembered at Insulectro? For our customers, I am their GSD guy.
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Contact your Insulectro or Isola sales representative for more information.
Norm Berry
Director of Laminates & OEM Marketing
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Join our
Puma Team!
Help us define the future of Printed Circuit Boards and Printed Electronics!
Join our Puma team and be a part of our growth.
Business Development
Operations
Pricing
Production
Warehouse
Others
Click on the ad (left) to see various positions we are recruiting.
As advertised in i-connect007's PCB Magazine
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Click-Out our
Pyralux® Flexible Laminates Selector Guide. . .
(click on product name)
The standard copper clad laminate systems for any flex or rigid flex designs.
The standard copper clad laminate systems for any flex or rigid flex designs.
Single sided flex copper clad substrate
Standard acrylic adhesives for building multi-layer flex designs. Offered as coverlay, sheet adhesives and bondplys.
Standard acrylic adhesives for building multi-layer flex designs. Offered as coverlay, sheet adhesives and bondplys.
An epoxy-based adhesive system demonstrating both low loss and high reliability, specifically designed for OEMs and PCB design manufacturers. Offered as coverlay and sheet adhesive.
High temperature flexible adhesive system with an MOT of 225C.
Teflon®/Laminate system offered as a clad laminate or bondply. Ideal for RF designs.
Embedded resistance double sided laminate
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Geoffrey Leeds
Flex Product Manager
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It's Not Too Late!
Past OEM FORUMS Available for Viewing
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MOST OF OUR OEM FORUMS available for viewing
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QUALITY CONCERNS
JUNE 24, 2021
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The Undisputed "Made-in-America" Leader
Pacothane PLUS®
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PACOTHANE PLUS® is a conformable release film that is specifically engineered for use as a component of the Pacothane PLUS® System for the production of Flexible Printed Circuits.
- Two-side Releasable
- Extremely low X-Y axis movement
- Smooth Surface Finish with superior Conformal Properties
- Operating temperature to 425°F (218°C) at lower Ram Pressures
- Eliminates Fiber Pattern Transfer to cover layers
- Clean, inert with no out-gassing of contaminants or solvents harmful to Vacuum Systems
- Environmentally friendly with no ozone-depletinChemicals or Fluorine’s. Suitable for incineration or landfill disposal
- Proven worldwide performance since 1986. The Industry Standard for Rigid-Flex Laminations
PACOTHANE TECHNOLOGIES and INSULECTRO – don’t work with those who follow – join those who lead!
PACOTHANE TECHNOLOGIES Proudly Produced in the USA with American Labor and American Materials!
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Geraldine Arseneau
Product Manager - Pacothane® Products
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And, don't forget, recently published Pacothane® Product Sample Guide available. Contact me for details. |
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Geraldine Arseneau
Product Manager - LCOA®
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CAC, Inc.
Superior surface quality,
supporting thinner foils
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Remove those hard to clean, defect causing and throughput limiting separator plates.
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Reduce stack height - More panels per book per opening, CSC 7.5x thinner than separators
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Eliminate surface defects as the factory finish copper surface and profile is protected
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Production Efficiency gains by reducing the overall mass to heat AND cool in a cycle
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Layup Efficiency – No separators to clean, resurface or polish - labor intensive & costly
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Consistency in press stack mass CTE to copper & prepreg with CSC
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Increase quality assurance as image impressions and FOD concerns are minimized
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For additional information, samples, or data sheet, please contact me.
Mark Satchwell
Product Manager, Foil & CAC®
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Design Education - An Insulectro Priority
Insulectro Sponsors New Design Trade Association
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Printed Circuit Engineering Association™ (PCEA) is an international network of engineers, designers, fabricators, assemblers, and anyone related to printed circuit development.
Our mission is to promote printed circuit engineering as a profession by encouraging and facilitating the exchange of information and the integration of new design concepts through communications, seminars, and workshops.
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If you are a professional serving in the printed circuit industry from any associated discipline, you are encouraged to join. Membership is free and you’re encouraged to be involved as we all seek to collaborate, educate and inspire one another. Visit the web-site at: www.pce-a.org
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As advertised in i-Connect 007's PCB Magazine.
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INSULECTRO'S COPPER & COPPER FOIL OFFERINGS |
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Not All Copper Foil is Created Equally
Copper Complexity and Clarification
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Copper foil is a technology enabler!
For this month’s Puma newsletter let us discuss chemistry, specifically Arsenic (As) which is used in trace amount within the barrier layer of many copper foil.
The barrier layer chemistry will protect the copper dendrites which are deposited during the nodulation process needed to support the mechanical anchor points for the resin during the lamination cycle.
Arsenic is an effective substance in the anti-tarnish treatment layer which prevents oxidization, visually noticeable in the form of surface discoloration or stains which can ultimately lead to panel delamination. Depending upon your etchants and processing chemical selection such as chlorides and mineral acids which remove/reduce the zinc component of the foil’s barrier layer, Arsenic is needed to prevent de-zincification, another failure point during the PCB panel development.
Finally, If a brominated (flame retardant) resin system is being used to create the panels a copper foil with an Arsenic barrier layer is required, even if it’s trace amounts to prevent adhesion fraction points.
Before we make the reaction to request As-free foils lets understand the resin system being used and if As-free means free I.E. 0.00% or if trace amounts ≤0.1% per EU REACH directive is acceptable?
A copy of the full technical paper covering Arsenic can be accessed via our website under the Copper Foil product line page.
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Special thank you and acknowledgement to Denkai America with over 45 years of continuous domestic foil production for sharing the benefit and data on As levels. |
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For further assistance, connect with me by email, phone, or in person!
Mark Satchwell
Product Manager, Foil & CAC®
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Fine-tuning Operations
Is Trying to “Stretch” the Most Out of Your Consumables Hurting You?
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Shur-loc, IBC Brush and Equipment Service are being recognized by customers as key contributing factors in Insulectro helping them to increase their departments efficiencies in areas of their facility.
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When overusing screen mesh, you gradually reduce the opening in between the threads of the fabric. As these threads receive hit after hit by the edge of the squeegee rubber, the fabric threads “cords” of the mesh will lose their round shape and become flatter and more oval shaped.
This flatness of the thread will begin closing the opening between these woven threads resulting in less ink being displaced across the panel surface. More importantly, you will lose coverage over critical areas where you really need the ink such as at the knee of the trace.
Below are pictures taken with a microscope showing new mesh, and the other on used mesh showing the thread breakdown in the fabric and the reduced openings.
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Contact your Insulectro Account Manager to see how the Shurloc frame system can better assist at your facility!
Shurloc can custom fit almost any size frame to your application.
- Ease of use, “anyone” can learn to stretch a frame.
- Continuous consistent tension throughout the frame
- Frames can be stretched in a matter of minutes
- Ready for use immediately (no more leaving frames/mesh settle out for hours and then having to re-tension before use.)
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Going Beyond
the Tool Case
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“Are you thinking that you’re getting the complete life out of your pumice brushes by using them until the operator can no longer adjust the brushes any further?”
In many cases, I’ve seen where customers will keep the brushes in the machine until there is no further adjustment left in the mechanical adjustment system. At this point, the operator usually goes to maintenance at lets them know its time to change brushes, is this what you are experiencing?
The illustration below shows how running your brushes too long could influence the topography results on the surface of the panel. As the bristles of the brush become shorter and shorter, they lose the ability to flex and drag the pumice particles across the surface of the copper giving optimal surface topography for proper soldermask or dryfilm adhesion.
Instead, the bristles could act as a broom when they become too short and sweep the pumice particles away!
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“Customers are beginning to see the difference in having us assist their maintenance staff in the ever-important preventative maintenance programs needed to uphold an equipment’s performance.” |
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With multiple Service, Preventative Maintenance, and Equipment Rebuilds done so far this year, I think customers are realizing the importance and value our service team can provide. They are seeing the difference in equipment uptime, throughput, and performance that is desperately needed. |
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Reach out to us to see how we can help improve your equipment up time and performance through:
- Equipment Reviews and Audits
- Service and support
- Preventative Maintenance Programs
The calls for Preventative Maintenance Programs are increasing as customers understand the benefits this brings to their equipment’s overall performance and up time.
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Also, do you have a used piece of equipment you’re looking to get installed? We may be able to assist here as well!
Ruben Zambrano
Field Application Engineer
Cell: 847-345-3759
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Please reach out should you like to discuss any of these topics further.
Thank you.
Kevin Barrett,
Product Manager - Equipment
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Today's Copper Foils
for Tomorrow’s Applications!
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Tailored to meet market trends such as compartment miniaturization, vehicle electrification and increased connectivity demands require improved characteristics of both wrought and ED foils.
Focus on wrought solutions such as:
- Low profile height (Rz) for signal integrity, as low as 0.4µm
- Consistent profile height across the web which does not change when ordering thicker foils
- Alloy foil with Increased tensile strengths which can exceed 700Mpa
- Grain structure in terms of large crystals and uniform orientation improves fatigue resistance and provides excellent vibration resistance.
- Thermal resistance to withstand hostile environments for automotive applications.
Wrought foils released to IPC 4562A in grade 5, grade 7 and grade 8.
Call us to find out more – we love to talk about this stuff!
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Give us a call to discuss how CAC can help you
make better circuits faster.
Mark Satchwell
Product Manager, Copper Foils
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Everyday Materials You Need, On Our Shelves Every Day
Insulectro recognizes the importance of maintaining adequate inventory to begin work. Designers know when you need it, you need it. Using the link getpumafast.com, you can see what PumaFast™ and standard materials we stock to get you up and running.
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Covid-19 has not stopped our ACT! initiatives!
We have successfully collaborated on many ACT! opportunities.
We are delivering on Technology, Design and Education while you can bank on the sales results!
We are virtually taking our ACT!
to another level!
Insulectro and our partners are moving the chains to help our customers exceed performance goals. Our team of professional and technical resources are now offering our customers access to design and education services.
This is a Game Changer!
Our ACT! Initiatives combined with our design and education services provide our customers a total solutions package with a one-stop-shop option.
Our customers now have total access to not only our Insulectro foot print, best in class products, materials on the shelf when you need them; but also the expertise to deliver solutions from design to delivery…FAST!
Call me and to set up a VIRTUAL ACT! with your customer.
There's a reason I'm smiling.
Ron Murdock
ACT! Manager & Technical Account Manager
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To be the easiest company to do business with. . .
Insulectro has a program for continual improvement, all designed to make ourselves as user-friendly as possible to our customers, their customers, and our suppliers. Speed Matters, so we focus a lot of attention on getting you the materials you need as quickly as possible.
Our PumaFast™ Program lists current inventory of everyday materials you need every day.
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Best-in-Class Materials
from our Premier Suppliers
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