Feature
TAKING PRODUCT INTEGRITY TO A NEWLEVEL
Independent distributor CTG has invested $1million in test equipment to guarantee the authenticity of the parts it sells
Independent distributors are often blamed for counterfeit parts that find their way into the electronics supply chain.
As a result,many independents
have developed part inspection and screening processes in an effort to identify bogus parts. One independent distributor that has taken counterfeit part detection to a new level is Crestwood Technology Group (CTG), based in Yonkers, N.Y.
The company has invested “The equipment that we put in place is
product integrity equipment,” said Brendan Moyna, vice president of quality for CTG. “We authenticate the products so that there is 99.9% assurance that parts are what they are supposed to be.”
“It starts with an XRF (Xray fluorescence),”
$1million in a laboratory full of test equipment that examines every lot to guarantee the authenticity and integrity of the components it ships to customers.
Most of CTG’s business is focused
on defense and aerospace industries, although it is starting to grow its business with commercial customers as well. It sellsmemory chips, programmable semiconductors, connectors and other components. Most of the parts are hard to find or obsolete components.
The company says quality and
product integrity are key to its future. By investing in the test equipment, CTG hopes to differentiate itself fromother distributors, so it can continue to grow its business.
CTG X-rays components to evaluate the internal integrity of the parts
“We decided if we wanted to separate ourselves fromall the
other distributors, we had tomake an investment into the quality side of the company and the investment was a laboratory,” said Paul Elefonte, CTG’s vice president of diminishingmanufacturing sources andmaterial shortages. So CTG built a laboratory that tests every part before it is shipped to customers. It purchased a variety of component test equipment.
20 |May/June 2013
ACrestwood TechnologyGroup technician reviews the results of a part de-capsulation die inspection
saidMoyna. Themachine tests the metallurgicalmakeup of the part.With semiconductors, the leads are tested. If the part is supposed to be compliant to the Restriction on Hazardous Substances (ROHS), the XRFmachine will reveal if the leads contain lead. “However,mostmilitary customers want lead so wemake sure the leads of the chips aremade of tin lead and contain a certain percentage of lead,” said
Moyna.Military applications are exempt from RoHS.
“We also have an FTIR (fourier transfer
infrared) machine in our facility, which we feel separates CTG frommost other distributors,” saidMoyna. Themachine is used to determine if coatings have been placed on the parts. Coatings indicate whether a partmay have been relabeled.
Uniformity and constancy tested The CTG lab is also equipped with a real time Xraymachine that looks for uniformity and consistency on part lots. “We look for the die size, the lead frame
and the wire bonds tomake sure that the parts are consistent in size and shape,” saidMoyna. “Wemeasure those parts with the X raymachine tomake sure that they are what they should be inside.”
The lab also has equipment that tests the solderability integrity
of the leads of the part. The lab is also equipped with a decapsulationmachine that
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