Welcome to this special edition of the reliability matters podcast. unlike other episodes, this episode has no guests. At the time of this recording, we have 85 published episodes with more than 16,000 downloads. The reliability matters podcast began as an experiment. I figured we would produce about 10 episodes on various subjects and then move on to something else. Well, I was wrong. I have received countless emails from listeners thanking me for the podcasts stating how much they enjoy listen...
Dec 21, 2021•6 min
Episode 83: A Conversation about Solder Paste Inspection with Christopher Frederickson Today, we’ll be discussing Fit for Use solder paste inspection. As I’ve repeated several times on this show, it is said most reliability problems begin at the printer. Our industry utilizes a lot of materials in order to produce a circuit assembly. If the materials, specifically the solder paste is out of spec, that can effect reliability. Unfortunately, in most cases, one can not simply open a jar of solder p...
Dec 14, 2021•55 min
Miles Moreau is KIC’s General Manager, has been with KIC for nearly three decades. He draws his deep and rich expertise from managing multiple business units across four continents spanning operations, field service, and sales and marketing channels. His expertise is in thermal management and that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today. We’ve discussed how to profile a board on this show. Today, we’re going to talk about profiling an oven and a wave soldering machine, and how, when done ...
Nov 23, 2021•44 min
My guest today is Paul Salerno. Paul holds an MBA with specialization in finance and marketing from Rutgers Graduate School of Business. He is the Global Portfolio Manager at MacDermid Alpha Electronic Solutions with expertise in product lifecycle management and development of strategic technology roadmaps for the global surface mount technology business. Paul works with customers in both Europe and Asia with customers in automotive, computing, communications and consumer electronic markets. Pau...
Nov 09, 2021•47 min
On this episode, I spoke with IPC's Chief Technologist Matt Kelly and IPC Technical Program Co-Chairs Stan Rak (SF Rak Company) and Bev Christian (HDP User Group) about the upcoming IPC APEX Expo 2022 live technical conference. We discuss the following topics: • IPC's "Factory of the Future Pavilion" • IPC's 3-Hour Professional Development Courses (31 courses!) • IPC's Technical Program (4 technology tracks each with 29 technical presentations. • IPC's Poster Sessions IPC APEX Expo 2022 takes pl...
Nov 05, 2021•50 min
My guests Cheryl Tulkoff (She/Her) and Greg Caswell discuss their new book "Design for Excellence in Electronics Manufacturing" (published by Wiley and available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Wiley). Cheryl and Greg are giving away a free copy of their new book (a $130 value)! Listen or watch this episode to learn how to win their informative book. Book details: DESIGN FOR EXCELLENCE IN ELECTRONICS MANUFACTURING An authoritative guide to optimizing design for manufacturability and reliabili...
Oct 26, 2021•1 hr
I spoke with Dave Trail from Arch Systems about Industry 4.0. Dave may be reached here: mailto:dtrail@archsys.io 808-868-8298
Oct 13, 2021•46 min
SMTA's Surface Mount Technology International is back as a live event! The team behind the show and conference discuss the various activities taking place at SMTAI including the exhibition floor, professional development courses, technical presentations, special events and more. SMTAI 2021 takes place November 1-4 in Minneapolis, MN. More information and registration is available here: https://smta.org/mpage/smtai/
Sep 29, 2021•50 min
My guest has been quoted saying his personal mission is to make industry a profitable place; where individuals and manufacturers possess the resources, knowledge, and courage to sustainably lower their operating costs. I speak with James about his maintenance philosophies and his work teaching maintenance best practices. James may be reached here: James Kovacevic, MMP CMRP CAMA jkovacevic@eruditio.com https://eruditiollc.com...
Sep 28, 2021•40 min
A conversation with media personalities Mike Buetow (Circuits Assembly Magazine), Trevor Galbraith (Global SMT & Packaging), Phil Stoten (Scoop TV), and Eric Miscoll (EMC Now). During our conversation we covered various topics including post pandemic production, innovations within our industry, supply chain and labor shortages, and more. My guests may be reached here: Mike Buetow mbuetow@upmediagroup.com Trevor Galbraith tgalbraith@trafalgarmedia.com Phil Stoten phil@wearescoop.com Eric Misc...
Sep 21, 2021•1 hr 13 min
Episode 75: Matric Group's Patrick Stimpert on Lean Manufacturing with a "Lean-In" Philosophy EMS provider Matric Group's Patrick Stimpert incorporated the Toyota Production System’s Lean principles into his contract manufacturing business. Patrick states “Results are Important. How do I get my results? With the use of the Toyota Production System’s Lean principles and my simple rule “don’t waste time rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic, go fix the problem”. I believe in the "LEAN-IN" process...
Sep 14, 2021•57 min
Worthington Assembly's Chris Denney speaks about the electronic contract manufacturing business. • How to select an appropriate contract manufacturer • Evaluating a contract manufacturer's capabilities • Mistakes made when selecting a contract manufacturer • Advantages and disadvantages of selecting a US-based contract manufacturer Chris may be contacted here: cdenney@worthingtonassembly.com Worthington Assembly's website: https://www.worthingtonassembly.com...
Aug 24, 2021•1 hr 4 min
Episode 73: A Conversation with Solder Paste Expert Tim Jensen of Indium. Tim Jensen talks about: • Solder paste selection best practices • Low temperature solder • Common mistakes made when using solder paste • Solder paste jetting / micro-dispensing • And much more Tim Jensen may be reached here: tjensen@indium.com Indium Corporation https://www.indium.com...
Aug 10, 2021•58 min
ECD's Mark Waterman discusses thermal profiling best practices. • Common mistakes made when using profilers • In-use best practices • Common applications Mark may be reached here: mailto:mwaterman@ecd.com ECD's Website: https://www.ecd.com
Jul 27, 2021•43 min
Episode 71: A Conversation with Manufacturer's Representatives About Sales and Support Post Covid 19 Four manufacturer's representatives share their experience in supporting their customer's needs. They share how sales and support has changed over the years and review the "new normal". My guests are: David Leventhal Restronics dleventhal@restronics.com Joan Carrol-Kennedy Restronics jcarroll@restronics.com Murray Percival Jr. Murray Percival mapercival@murraypercival.com Todd Wittmer Wittco Sale...
Jul 12, 2021•1 hr 2 min
My guest today is AMIT DROR Co-Founder of Nano Dimension Ltd. and Customer Success Officer. Amit served as Nano Dimension’s Chief Executive Officer from 2014 to 2019. Nano Dimension has produced a product which, arguably can be best described as a true disruptive force within the electronic assembly space. We’re all experienced with inkjet printers. Ink jet nozzles travel from left to right back and forth over a sheet of paper. When the printing process has been completed, out shoots a sheet of ...
Jun 23, 2021•1 hr 13 min
I was privileged to be a guest on the Pick-Place Podcast with Chris Denney (Worthington Assembly) and Melissa Hough (CircuitHub). This is the second of a two-part interview. 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 reliab...
Jun 09, 2021•1 hr 28 min
I was privileged to be a guest on the Pick-Place Podcast with Chris Denney (Worthington Assembly) and Melissa Hough (CircuitHub). This is the first of a two-part interview. 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 reliabi...
May 26, 2021•48 min
Episode 67: A Conversation with Rework/Repair Expert Norman Mier of Best Inc. Norman Mier is a U.S. Marine Corp. retired veteran with over 20 years of experience in the electronics rework and repair industry. He received his training through the Navy's Micro Miniature (2M) Electronic Repair Program. He has progressed through every level of rework and repair recognized in the industry. Norman has also earned the highest certifications awarded by IPC in electronics training, being certified as a M...
May 11, 2021•43 min
Dr. Ron Lasky (Professor at Dartmouth College) and three of his students talk about the papers they wrote which were presented at SMTA's Pan Pacific Microelectronics Symposium in Hawaii in 2020 as well as a new paper to be presented at the same conference in 2022.
Apr 27, 2021•46 min
Welcome to episode 65 of the Reliability Matters podcast. This is part 2 of our conservation with Aim Solder's Tim O'Neill and BTU's Fred Dimock. On this episode, we'll dive into oven profiling best practices. Timothy O'Neill is the Technical Marketing Manager for AIM Solder. Operating out of AIM’s U.S. Headquarters, Tim is responsible for developing and optimizing product and technical information, collaborating with complimentary suppliers and equipment manufacturers and ensuring AIM's product...
Apr 13, 2021•1 hr 10 min
Welcome to episode 64 of the Reliability Matters podcast. On this episode, we’ll have a conversation with two industry experts on the subject of solder voiding mitigation and oven profiling, two subjects which influence solder voiding. This will be a two part episode. Today, we’ll dive into void mitigation and how vacuum reflow technology can help reduce or eliminate voiding. Part two, on episode 65 (in two weeks), we’ll discuss profiling best practices. My guests today, and one the next episode...
Mar 23, 2021•51 min
Episode 63: A Conversation with and a Presentation by Reliability Expert Dock Brown Welcome to episode 63 of the Reliability Matters Podcast. Today, I’ll be speaking with Dock Brown. Dock Brown brings his more than 30 years of electronics reliability experience to clients of Ansys. Prior to joining Ansys, he spent 20 years at Medtronic where he most recently concentrated on cross business unit implementation of reliability initiatives for Class III medical devices. He was also responsible for su...
Mar 09, 2021•1 hr 10 min
Welcome to the Reliability Matters Podcast. This is episode number 62. By now, most of us have heard of Industry 4.0, or the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT), or Smart Factory, or Factory of the Future. The key all of these acronyms is Connectivity, Data Management, Material and Process Control, Traceability, and Analytics. It’s not as simple as collecting data. The data much be understood, useful, and contextual. My guest today is François Monette, is the co-founder and Chief Business Devel...
Feb 22, 2021•1 hr 7 min
Special Edition: A Conversation with IPC's Chief Technologist Matt Kelly about IPC APEX Expo 2021. This year's APEX Expo is a virtual event. Matt and I discuss IPC's new technical conference focus and review a small sample of the upcoming technical presentations and professional development courses. Register for IPC APEX Expo here: https://www.ipcapexexpo.org IPC Factory of the Future: https://apexfuturefactory.ipc.org/ Matt may be reached at: mattkelly@ipc.org...
Feb 16, 2021•37 min
Episode 61: A Conversation with Flex Circuit and Additive Expert Tara Dunn Tara Dunn and I discuss the world of flex and rigid-flex circuits including flex best practices when it comes to design and use of flex technology. We also discuss the new world of additive electronics. Tara Dunn is a seasoned professional with more than 20 years in the electronics industry exclusively focused on the PCB sector. Her experience spans roles from manufacturing to sales and marketing. Tara was the founder of ...
Feb 09, 2021•59 min
Episode 60: A Conversation with Rockwell Collins' Dave Hillman about Solder Voiding Solder voiding has been with us longer than we know. Modern X-ray inspection technology has allowed assemblers to see and quantify voiding. Metallurgical expert Dave Hillman from Rockwell Collins explains the causes and possible remedies for solder voiding. Dave Hillman is a Metallurgical Engineer in the Advanced Operations Engineering Department of Collins Aerospace in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He serves as a consulta...
Jan 26, 2021•1 hr 4 min
Episode 59: My guest, Eric Fossum is best known for the invention of the CMOS image sensor better known as the “camera-on-a-chip” used in billions of cameras, from smart phones to web cameras to ingestible pill cameras to DSLRs. In 2017, Eric was a co-recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, the world's top engineering prize (and considered by many as equivalent to the Nobel Prize) for the invention of digital imaging sensors. Eric was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of ...
Jan 12, 2021•59 min
Episode 58: 2020 Round-Up On this last episode of 2020 there are no guests, no experts, no best-practice advice. Just a short recap of 2020. We just reached more than 10,000 downloads of the podcast! A HUGE thank you to my audience and my guests for making this podcast possible! On this episode I'll announce the first few guests of the 2021 season of Reliability Matters. This is looking like a terrific season! We are now producing an audio-only format and a video format. The video format may be ...
Dec 14, 2020•8 min
Episode 57: A Conversation with CAF Expert Graham Naisbitt Conductive Anodic Filament (CAF) is a form of Electrical-Chemical-Migration (ECM). Unlike surface-level ECM, CAF exists beneath the surface of the circuit assembly. Graham and I discuss the causes of CAF and methods to test for and mitigate CAF. Graham has an extensive history working in the electrical and electronic manufacturing industry. Graham was the IEC 1906 Lord Kelvin Award Winner. IEC TC91 WG2, 3 and 10 Maintenance Leader of 4 S...
Dec 08, 2020•1 hr
