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www.us-tech.com
February, 2018
“Cradle-to-Grave” Soldering Solutions for SMT Assembly
By Michael L. Martel, Contributing Editor
sortment of equipment and materi- als. This includes a source for solder bar, wire, fluxes, pastes, and more. There is a wide range of choices, but many of them are offshore. To choose a vendor and qualify the products, it is helpful if the vendor is not an ocean away. It is ideal to be able to drive or
A
take a short flight to the vendor’s fac- tory, verify product quality and ask questions face-to-face. If there is a problem, the vender can also come out to the manufacturer and work with the engineers there to adjust the assembly process. Now, the list of solder suppliers
has grown a little longer. Amerway, Inc., is not a new company, but rather new in the role of domestic supplier of high-purity solder to the PCB assembly industry. Established in 1989 in Altoona,
Pennsylvania, the company is a fam- ily-owned business run by its second generation. It employs approximate- ly 40 people and operates three shifts. The company is also growing. Amerway recently purchased 25,000 ft2 (2,322.6m2), adding to its current 50,000 ft2 (4,645.2m2) facility. “We’re not yet a household
Solder processing at Amerway’s facility in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
use solder, particularly stained glass and industrial applications, we have manufactured for the electronics in- dustry and are further expanding our focus there.”
different formulations of fluxes. We also offer the highest-quality solder paste and preforms through our part- nership with Balver Zinn Cobar. But, we can customize alloys and fluxes to
ny U.S. manufacturer who starts out in the PCB assembly industry needs a complex as-
name in SMT and PCB assembly, but we plan to be,” predicts Terry Buck, Amerway’s president and a veteran of the electronics manufacturing in- dustry. “Although we are originally better known to other industries that
Specialty Alloys and Fluxes “The range of solder products
and forms that we offer is wide, and constantly growing,” says Buck. “It includes bar solder, wire solder and
meet the specialized needs of our in- dividual customers. We’ve been lead- ing the way in that area for a long time and it’s a capability that we’ve become recognized for. We work closely with our customers to engi- neer specific solutions for their process requirements.” Amerway also creates specialty
anodes and solder, an essential com- ponent of high-grade copper roofs. Developing solutions for various spe- cialized industries has helped Amer- way take a leading role in process de- velopment and problem solving for many different applications. This ex- perience is positioning the company well to serve the electronics manu- facturing industry in North America. That capability is enhanced,
Buck adds, by Amerway’s location in the heart of the U.S. Mid-Atlantic re- gion. “We’re a U.S. company, and we make all of our Amerway products right here in Altoona,” he says. “You can drive here, or we’ll be happy to visit your manufacturing facility where we can learn firsthand what your needs are.” “We are specialists in formulat-
ing fluxes to help customers obtain optimum wetting and results with various alloys,” says Tim Brown, sales manager. “Our solder wire is
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