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Partnering October, 2024
K&F Electronics Increases Production with Europlacer Equipment
By Timothy David W
hen Earl Kincaid found- ed K&F Electronics in 1972 in the Detroit sub-
urb of Fraser, Michigan, they were a standard PCB manufac- turer, enjoying success with their loyal customer base. By 2019, Earl’s son Rick and grand- son Sean Kincaid, now at the helm as president, quickly real- ized companies buying domestic PCBs were becoming few and far between. They decided the only way to avoid losing the business completely was to adapt and
offer assembly services at K&F. “Our vision was to expand
from just making PCBs to offer- ing everything,” explains Kin- caid. “PCB design, fabrication and assembly services, becoming a one-stop shop, or ‘the Amazon of electronics manufacturing’ as we like to call it.” By being able to provide a variety of services to their customers, the Kincaid family aimed to cast a wider net and drive revenue up. An important step in bring- ing this dream to fruition was ac-
quiring PCB assembly equip- ment. Sean reached out to the local equipment manufacturers’ reps, and Brad Kendall of Quali- ty Associates responded. Kendall has a strong background in in- dustrial and automotive elec- tronics and knew Europlacer would be a great fit at K&F, so he made the introduction.
Upgrading Equipment Europlacer, with its high-
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ASSEMBLY Show: Booth 219
mix, reliable, and innovative products, could provide smart so- lutions to complex manufacturing challenges, aligning perfectly with K&F Electronics’ vision for the future. However, Kincaid was worried about the cost of upgrad- ing to a new machine. He had heard that upgrading SMT equip- ment could set him back six fig- ures. He was pleasantly surprised to discover that wasn’t true. “When you purchase a ma-
chine with Europlacer it’s all custom. You can choose how many turrets, nozzles, and feed- er types to fit your style of high- mix manufacturing.” Kincaid comments. “Brad Kendall recom- mended an IICO placement ma- chine and its speed increased our capacity by more than 300% and reduced labor costs by five times.”
“Install and training for the
IICO line took less than a week and Europlacer was with us throughout the whole process, answering all our questions within an hour, consistently. They didn’t feel like just a sup- plier, their customer service and the amount they cared about this install made it feel like they were part of our company.”
Expanding Capabilities In 2023, as the K&F Elec-
tronics customer base grew thanks to the new capabilities of- fered because of the Europlacer equipment, they realized they needed another machine. Kin- caid turned once again to Brad from Quality Associates and Chris Merow from Europlacer. Merow knew that the twin-turret IINEO 2 pick-and-place machine was the right choice to help them expand. “The IINEO 2 is ideal for
See at The ASSEMBLY Show, Booth 219
them because it is simple, is 5 times faster than their entry- level machine, features a huge feeder capacity that limits changeovers, uses their existing feeders, and more,” says Merow.
“Our vision was to expand from just making PCBs to offering everything. PCB design, fabrication and assembly services, becom- ing a one-stop shop...”
pany’s ability to place 20,000 components/hour, real
IINEO 2 upgrades the com- time.
With its dual gantries, high feed- er count, and integrated intelli- gence features, the system offers flexibility, efficiency, and preci- sion.
Kincaid adds, “Europlacer’s
IINEO 2 proves why two heads are better than one.” And with Europlacer’s commitment to pro- viding adaptable solutions for SMT line configurations, K&F Electronics can continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible in circuit board design, fabrica- tion, and assembly. “The IINEO 2 machine’s
speed and efficiency have al- lowed the company to pass sav- ings on to its customers and be more competitive on new bids. Europlacer’s
award-winning
service is outstanding, with min- imal downtime and quick re- sponses to any issues, often re- motely at no cost to us.” The biggest selling point for
Kincaid on the IINEO 2 was a phone conversation with Chris Merow prior to buying the IINEO 2. “Chris painted a pic- ture for me. I wouldn’t have to stay late or work weekends to get a job done, I could have time to spend with my family, rather than at the shop. I can tell you everything he said that day is true and that decision has given us all a better quality of life, for sure.”
Contact: Europlacer Ameri-
cas, 4640 E Elwood Street, Suite 14, Phoenix, AZ 85040 % 480-672-1100 E-mail:
contact@europlacer.com Web:
www.europlacer.com r
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