Sourcing ELECTRONICS
BoMManageMent governs tiMe-to-Market
Howmany semi finished electronic products are sitting at rework stations,waiting for a handful of elusive components to be soldered into place?One is toomany By Jon Barrett
Whenmymanufacturing interests evolved frommechanical engineering to encompass electronic and electrical disciplines I imagined I would be entering amore ‘sophisticated’ world. However, I quickly discovered that the fully automated ‘lights out’ mechanicalmanufacturing facilities I was used to were seldom replicated in the electronics production world. I soon discovered why.
Take a typicalmechanical component: a drive shaft. Itmay
requiremultiple process steps such as cutting, turning,milling, drilling, tapping and heat treatment. The production line required tomanufacture that drive shaft could easily have the same footprint as a typical surfacemount assembly line. Likewise the speed, accuracy and repeatability of the two production lines might also be similar. The big difference betweenmanufacturing a drive shaft and assembling a PCA lies in the bill ofmaterials.
The BoMfor the drive shaft requires one line entitled ‘steel bar’.
By comparison, the PCA BoMmight comprise tens, hundreds, even thousands of lines.
Another conundrumemphasised this further.When writing
about electronics production processes, themachine manufacturers would emphasise the performance and reliability of their assembly systems. Yet, themost heavily subscribed section of an electronics assemblymagazine is ‘rework and repair’.What was going on there?
Walk down a typical surfacemount production line and youmay discover rework and repair stations positioned between the reflow
30 | September 2010
oven and functional test systems. Suchmanual processes are often used to attach components that have difficulty passing through a surfacemount process (batteries, bulbs, large connectors etc). On the surface, that would answer the question why automated production lines are often supplemented bymanual workstations.
However, dig a little deeper and youmay also find they are
being used tomanually attach components that failed to arrive in time for the scheduled production run.
Storing semi-finished products andmanually soldering a
handful of surfacemount components post automated assembly is the worst case scenario for anymanufacturer. Storing the product requires space and time, both expensive commodities. Hand soldering surfacemount components requires evenmore space and time, while introducing the horror of potential human error. All this because a reel of components failed to arrive at the pick and placemachine at the allotted time.
For new generations of electronics purchasers, I recommend
spending asmuch time as possible on the shop floor.Watch the goods in processes. See how parts are stored and kitted. Stand back and enjoy a surfacemount assemblymachine in full flow. Be amazed by the dexterity of the rework operative fixing those awkward through hold devices in place.Most importantly of all, watch how all this grinds to a halt due to component shortfalls.
The power to prevent these slips in time-to-market are in your
hands. Take pride in tackling these challenges and getting your company’s products tomarket faster that your competitors.
www.electronics-sourcing.eu
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