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PartnEring July, 2011 ESD Protection — Don’t Do It Alone By Ed Sullivan T
wenty years ago, when applica- tions for semiconductor-based equipment began to skyrocket,
serious problems with electrostatic discharge (ESD) became rampant. At that time, protection against ESD was approximately a $50 million per year industry. “Today the static pro- tection industry is probably well over $50 billion annually,” says Anthony Murfin, founder of Ground Zero Electrostatics. “That’s a huge in - crease. And it will get even bigger as we continue to demand smaller and faster micro electronically-controlled equipment, which is all the more sus- ceptible to ESD events.” Failure to protect against the
effects of static electric transients is a major cause of warranty claims, recalls and rework, plus manufactur- ing yields, shipping, labor and over- head costs. “Static electricity, is an insidious
animal,” Murfin says. “While the threshold for human detection of ESD transients is about 3,000V, a latent or catastrophic failure could occur to an electronic device at a much lower level, even less than 100V. And in some cases the damage may not be detectable until the customer is actu- ally using the product in the field.”
In the past, electronics manufac-
turing giants like Motorola (which experienced ESD-induced failures with its sensitive MC6820 microprocessor) undertook very sophisticated efforts to safeguard against future problems. The comprehensive programs that resulted included installation of selec- tive ESD-resistant flooring, work sur- faces, and handling equipment, human ground ing devices, and various shield- ing and neutralizing protection prod- ucts and procedures. Today, much of the electronics
work previously performed by top manufacturers is done by thousands of contract manufacturers and job shops. And while they may try to cover the basic elements of static con- trol, a comprehensive effort is some- times lacking. “A comprehensive pro- gram may seem abstract to many electronics manufacturers,” Murfin says. “It is unlikely that they have ESD engineers on staff, or profes- sional installers. So they rely on ESD protection suppliers to supply the products and information needed to provide protection.” Murfin cautions that off-the-
shelf selection of products such as flooring and work surface mats may not provide adequate protection.
“Even small companies can have a comprehensive approach to their needs, and establish an ESD pro- gram without going overboard,” he says. “Essentially, they should not simply go it alone. They should ask their vendor to provide a program that includes all the basic elements — expert assessment and product specification, professional installa- tion, on-site testing, and certification that the protection products meet the assessed requirements.”
Comprehensive But Simple Covering all the elements in
specifying, installing and testing ESD solutions may sound like an expensive situation. However, some ESD suppli- ers provide consulting services as well as professional installation, testing and certification at prices that are affordable for smaller customers such as contract manufacturers. Polyphase Micro wave, Bloomington, IN manu- factures sensitive electronic equip- ment, including high-performance specialty mixer components, assem- blies, and instru mentation for de - manding RF/microwave transmitters and receivers. When the company expanded its laboratory facilities, Lowell Hoover, Polyphase president, was concerned about incorporating the appropriate ESD flooring into the lab. “Our products are critical elements in wireless communications systems, radar/EW systems, test instrumenta- tion, and scientific R&D,” Hoover explains. “The ESD flooring was espe- cially important to us because during the winters in the Midwest, where we are, the weather gets quite cold and dry. So, the static discharge that occurs in that type of weather could cause damage to our products.” Hoover explains that his firm had no direct experience with ESD flooring, so they searched for a firm that could assess and provide the appropriate static protection in a design that suit- ed their needs. Also, having the sup- plier install the floor and then test and certify it provided Polyphase with the assurance that the needed ESD safe- guard was reliable.
Plant Expansion When Advanced Manufacturing
Technologies (AMT) expanded its Western Pennsylvania plant to con- solidate its four operations, KACIN General Contractors (Murrysville, PA) was responsible for the turnkey operation. A full-service contract manufacturer of PCBs and electro- mechanical assemblies, AMT’s new facility required ESD flooring for static protection. “We are a turnkey contractor
that does many specialized build- ings,” says KACIN’s Dennis O’Hara. “One of the biggest concerns was that everything was covered, hooked up and grounded properly. This was a pre-engineered metal building, and we needed to be sure that the humid- ity levels within the structure were proper, that the temperature levels inside would handle expansion and
contraction, and that any moisture issues were addressed.” O’Hara said that Ground Zero
Electrostatics came in and measured all of those variables and calculated the type of flooring that was best to avoid static electricity problems. “We even had to have the HVAC system set up to maintain certain humidity levels while they installed the floor- ing, which was performed while peo- ple were working in various produc- tion areas. So, it was sort of a tricky situation, but they were able to coor- dinate it, test it, and certify the results. You might say they per- formed a turnkey operation within a turnkey project.” Charles Benjamin, a former
Vice President of Facilities and Operations with DSL Labs (Santa Clara, CA), undertook his first ESD flooring job about a dozen years ago. He recognized early that DSL’s semi- conductor-based equipment testing facilities should have static protec- tion in its testing labs, clean rooms and other areas where static dis- charges could damage equipment or test results. “I had heard from an associate that Ground Zero Electro - statics offered a broad line of static control products,” says Benjamin. “One of my concerns was finding a very durable type of ESD flooring, since we move a lot of equipment around the labs using equipment such as forklifts.” Benjamin says that the ESD supplier was surpris- ingly responsive and thorough.
Above the Floor In addition to ESD flooring pro-
tection, there are “above-the-floor” models that should be considered in light of protection: the human body model, the machine model, the charged device model and the field induction model. The human body model, which is addressed somewhat in ANSI S20.20, could call for such products as footwear and wrist straps, as well as other grounding, shielding and neutralizing products. The machine model applies to
equipment that is used in producing electronic components. The charged device model considers how ESD could affect handling equipment and proce- dures. The field induction model has to do with protection against ESD fields surrounding electronic products. In total, a plethora of products might be considered as parts of a total ESD solution. “For instance, our firm car- ries thousands of products to provide the flexibility needed in today’s diverse ESD marketplace,” Murfin says. “But what matters most is how it’s all put together, works together, and whether or not the whole solution meets the standards and does the job.” Contact: Ground Zero, 2470-
2474 Manatee Avenue East, Bradenton, FL 34208 % 877-463- 9376 fax: 941-751-7586 E-mail:
info@gndzero.com Web:
www.gndzero.com also ESD Association
www.esda.org/funda- mental r
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