Today we’ll dive deep into the world of conformal coating. More and more assemblies are being subjected to conformal coating to protect the assembly from harsh environments. What’s leading the drive to conformal coat electronic assemblies? What types of conformal coating options are available? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each type? For circuit assemblies, the protective embrace of conformal coatings ensures reliability, longevity, and performance. As technologies advance, so does the demand for innovative solutions to safeguard our electronic products. Whether you're a seasoned industry professional, a curious tech enthusiast, or just someone who's new to the world of conformal coatings, this episode is your go-to source for in-depth information on the growing trend of applying conformal coating to circuit assemblies.So, join us as we peel back the layers, and immerse ourselves in the world of electronics protection, and learn how conformal coatings play a pivotal role in keeping our devices humming, even in the harshest environments.To better understand conformal coating, I invited Lisa Rizzo to the show. Lisa is Senior Director of Strategy & Emerging Applications at HZO. HZO is a global leader & innovator in protective solutions that, according to them, “keep the world running”.They provide products to markets including consumer electronics as well as high-reliability markets including automotive, industrial, medical, and IoT to deliver a more resilient, reliable, and durable level of protection. HZO specializes in nanocoating solutions that safeguard electronics, electrical products & critical applications in an ever-changing market. Lisa Rizzo's Contact Information:lrizzo@hzo.comhttps://www.hzo.com/

We are all aware of the supply chain issues our industry has faced. Beginning with electronic components, it has spread to so many other types of parts are industry relies on. Fortunately, it looks like we are beginning to come out the other end of the supply chain shortage.But the supply chain problems have further spread to the labor market. If you are in a position to hire people for your company, you know firsthand how difficult that process can be today.Adding to the level of labor acquisition difficulties is the great “Silver Tsunami”, otherwise known as the great retirement.As I mentioned on our last episode, episode number 130, the fact is, baby boomers are entering retirement in greater numbers. According to government data, from now until 2030, 10,000 Baby Boomers each day will hit retirement age. Millions will begin to officially retire.Some of these retirees are designated subject matter experts within their companies. Not only are people retiring, they are taking with them a vault of valuable knowledge.This has created an even larger demand for consultants within our industry. I’ve had several industry consultants on my show over the last few years, including today’s guest.And who is today’s Guest? Legendary industry consultant, Bob Willis. If you’ve been in this industry longer than 18 seconds, there’s a good chance you’ve at least heard his name. If you’ve been in this industry for virtually any length of time, there’s a good chance you’ve seen his videos, read his books, or watched him present at numerous industry conferences and symposiums. If I reviewed Bob’s complete professional biography, it would take an entire episode. Here's my conversation with my friend and colleague, Bob Willis.During our conversation, we discussed Bob's newest book, "Robotic Soldering Inspection and Defect Guide".Anyone who makes a donation to Bob's chosen charity will receive a download of his book as well as access to Bob's complete book collection:• Robotic Soldering Inspection and Defect Guide• Pin in Hole Intrusive Reflow Desing, Assembly & Defect Guide• Package On Package Assembly Inspection & Quality Control• Solder Paste Print Inspection & Defect Guide• Lead-Free Defect Guide 3• Conformal Coating Inspection & Defect Guide• QFN LGA Assembly Inspection & Defect Guide• PCB Surface Finishes Inspection & Defect Guide• Cleaning & Contamination Defect GuideClick below for more information:https://www.justgiving.com/page/bob-willis-roboticsolderingbook

Some of you may recall episode 121 where I spoke with Dr. John Mitchell, president and CEO of IPC about his new book “fire your hiring habits”. During that episode, we talked about best practices for hiring the best people. I’d like to travel a little bit up the river to talk about where potential candidates for hiring come from. While most of the people we interview for positions within our companies come from other companies, more and more, we are seeing new people enter our industry. We’ve talked a lot about the “silver tsunami” affecting our industry.The fact is, baby boomers are entering retirement in greater numbers. From now until 2030, 10,000 Baby Boomers each day will hit retirement age. Millions will begin to officially retire. This is creating a terrific opportunity for young college graduates to enter our industry. Several years ago, I was a speaker at the SMTA, Pan Pacific strategic Electronics symposium in Hawaii. I shared my breakfast table with a longtime colleague, Dr. Ron Lasky, a professor at Dartmouth College. Over the course of breakfast, he asked me how I got into this industry and, more specifically, how I started my company. Dr. Lasky is an engineering professor at Dartmouth’s Thayre school of engineering. He also teaches entrepreneurship to his soon to be engineers. Doctor lasky invited me to come to Dartmouth and speak to his students. I was more than happy to take him up on his offer, and I have spoken to his students on the subject of entrepreneurship every year for the past several years.I have been impressed by the emphasis on entrepreneurship within the Thayre school of engineering. We live in a time of marvelous evolution within the Electronics space. So many new and innovative electronic products are being introduced, fueled by IOT (Internet of things), the electrification of automobiles, advances in communication, and so much more.Education is the bedrock of our industry. It is the foundation for which much of our industry and the products we make are built upon. I’ve had Dr. Lasky on my show several times, and I thought it would be a great idea to invite his boss, the dean of Dartmouth’s Thayre school of engineering onto the program.Dr. Alexis Abramson is the 13th dean of Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth. Prior to joining Dartmouth, she was the Milton and Tamar Maltz Professor of Energy Innovation at Case Western Reserve University and served as a director of the university’s Great Lakes Energy Institute focused on creating sustainable energy technology solutions. During the Obama administration, Dr. Abramson served as chief scientist and manager of the Emerging Technologies Division at the US Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Program. In 2018, she served as technical adviser for Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a $1 billion effort launched by Bill Gates to combat human-driven climate change. Abramson’s research has focused on novel techniques for thermal characterization of nanostructures, the design and synthesis of unique nanomaterials for use in alternative energy applications, virtual energy audits for building energy efficiency, and strategies to accelerate technology commercialization at universities and research institutions.Dr. Abramson earned a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.https://engineering.dartmouth.edu

We talk almost exclusively about reliability on this show. Specifically, reliability of circuit assemblies. We discuss production best practices, design for manufacturing and reliability. Failure analysis, and more. We’ve reviewed the latest trends in industry 4.0, the connectivity of machine to machine and machine to management. We discussed big data and how to make all of our newly acquired data relevant and actionable. For all this to occur, our computers must function properly. They must perform the assigned tasks and communicate large sums of data. What happens to our production line if the computers stop functioning? What would happen if our network ceases to operate? We’ve all witnessed the airline industry grind to a halt recently due to computer failures and connectivity issues. The fact is, very few industries can function properly or even at all if the computer systems fail.I’m not referring to quality issues within the computer or network’s internal circuit assemblies. I’m referring to malware, ransomware, and other nefarious actions brought on hackers with the intent to disrupt companies, industries, and governments, frequently with the goal of returning (or promising to return) your own data in exchange for an exorbitant payment.Our industry, like many others is completely dependent on computers and connectivity. Without ether, most production lines will simply sit idle. How can we avoid this terrifying scenario? How do hackers gain access to our computers and networks? How can we add reliability to our computer and network policies and procedures? To answer these and other related questions, I invited a network security expert on the show. Adrian Francoz, co-founder and CEO of Zeta Sky, a managed IT support and cyber security services company lives in the world of cyber security. He and his company protect their customer’s networks through the implementation of security best practices and constant training, both for his customers, and for his own staff. After all, as I speak, hackers and other bad actors are hard at work searching for the next scam, vulnerability, and the opportunity to score a huge payday, all at our expense. In the Southern California area? Consider attending the inland Empire cyber security summit on Thursday, October 26 at the Chaffey College InTech Center, 9400 Cherry Ave, Bldg A Fontana, CA 92335.Register here:https://www.zetasky.com/inland-empire-cyber-security-summit-2023 Adrian's Contact Information:info@zetasky.comhttps://www.zetasky.com

Those of us in the electronic assembly space are no doubt aware of standards. In the simplest terms, standards tell us how to build products correctly. They differentiate correct from incorrect. They tell us what type of materials to use, how a solder joint is determined to be acceptable. Standards tell us how to test various parts of our assembly.How are the standards derived? Who determines what the standards are? How often are they updated?To answer these and other questions, I invited Leo Lambert onto the show.Leo is the author of several publications, including “Soldering for Electronic Assemblies”, published by Marcel Dekker in 1987. He has published and presented numerous papers relative to the subject of Soldering and Cleaning at various Technical Seminars and Exhibitions worldwide. Leo Developed, published, and conducted seminars entitled Deadline to Lead Free Seminars and Thriving in a RoHS/WEEE Environment.Leo received the IPC President’s Award in 1989 for work conducted on solderable coatings for printed wiring boards.He is an IPC Hall of Fame recipient, Charter Member on UNEP (United Nation Environmental Program) Technical Solvent Options Committee, where he overseed the worldwide activities in reducing CFC’s from use as cleaning material in Electronic Manufacturing resulting in the publication of the Montreal Protocol, an international treaty banning certain CFC-based materials.Leo is a Member of ICOLP (Industry Cooperative for Ozone Layer Protection). Leo is a recognized expert in standards and, he’s my guest today on this episode of the Reliability Matters Podcast.Leo's Contact Information:Leo Lambertleo@eptac.comhttps://www.eptac.com

Welcome to another episode of the Reliability Matters podcast. For those of you keeping track, this is episode number 127.In recent episodes, we’ve covered high-level issues, such as hiring best practices, novel, training, methods, design for manufacturing, highly accelerated, life, testing, and more. On this episode, we’re going to go back to the basics. What common problems are assemblers experiencing today? What are the basics of assembly best practices? Which problems seem to live in perpetuity?To answer these and other questions, I’ve invited two of my favorite experts on to the show. If you’ve been in the electronic assembly industry for some amount of time, there’s little doubt you’ve heard of Phil Zarrow and Jim Hall. Phil has been involved with PCB fabrication and assembly for more than 36 years. Phil is the President and Principal Consultant of ITM Consulting. Jim Hall has been involved in the electronic assembly industry for the past 27 years. He’s a principal consultant and resident Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt with ITM Consulting. He’s also an instructor in the Lean Six Sigma programs offered at Dartmouth College. Together with Dr. Ron Lasky, Phil and Jim designed the SMTA’s SMT Processes Certification Course.A couple of years ago, Phil and Jim published a book in titled “troubleshooting electronic assemblies, tales from the board talk crypt”. I’ll talk to them more about that book later in this broadcast.Phil and Jim host the popular audio series “Board Talk” a question and answer show hosted on the Circuit-Insight website. On their show, you’ll hear serious questions, and often comical but real answers.Phil Zarrow's Contact Info:phil_zarrow@itmconsulting.comJim Hall's Contact Info:jim_hall@itmconsulting.comITM Consulting:https://itmconsulting.com

Moisture. The industrial world has been fighting moisture since the beginning of the industrial world. From a general point of view, moisture leads to issues such as • Mold and mildew • Rust • Wood rot • Damage to building materials • Microbial growth • And so much more.In the electronics world, moisture creates a host of reliability problems including: • Popcorning • Delamination of conformal coating • Corrosion • Electrochemical migration • Adhesion degradation (such as on labels and glues) • And moreI wanted to dive into moisture mitigation, so I invited two guests onto my show to discuss this very topic.Dan Jenkins is sales manager and partner of the Steel Camel, an industrial solutions company specializing in corrosion and water intrusion control for fuel systems and industrial equipment. Prior to Steel Camel, Dan worked as consultant and instructor in the crane accident prevention industry. He has consulted to large organizations such as Shell Oil, and the United States Department of Interior.Dan earned an MBA from the University of South Florida and earned his BA in Industrial Arts / Technology from Cal St. University Chico and his Post Secondary Teaching Credential from San Francisco State University.Bob Lowry has both BS and MS degrees in Chemistry. His experience includes 31 years as Sr. Scientist and Lab Manager for three integrated circuit manufacturing companies, where measurement of moisture and moisture control activities were a major part of services he provided.Dan has 20 years of experience consulting to the microelectronics industry on a wide variety of topics including materials analysis and measurements and methods of moisture control for electronic components. Bob is also the co-author of the book Hermeticity of Electronic Packages.Dan Jenkins' Contact Info:djenkins@steelcamel.comhttps://www.steelcamel.com/Bob Lowry's Contact Info:rlowry98@aol.com

As all of you are well aware, this show is all about reliability, specifically reliability of circuit assemblies. One challenge that seems to be persistent within our space is design for manufacturability or DFM. If you’re a contract manufacturer, I have no doubt that you’ve had the experience of being asked to build a product that seems unbuildable. One example that rings true in my world was the introduction of bottom terminated components or BTC’s. BTC’s are marvelous components.Because all the lead terminations are below the part, they allow for highly dense component placement and highly miniaturized assemblies. They also presented a number of unique challenges in reflow, in many cases voiding, cleaning, and inspection. Like many other industries, we are not immune to the introduction of new technologies that may lack implementation knowledge. We then spend the next several years at technical conferences and symposiums learning us how to implement these new technologies. There are many acronyms in our industry that begin with DF… Design for testability, mechanical assembly, serviceability, reliability, and so many more. So many in fact, that there is a placeholder acronym for all of the various design fours refer to as DFx. Perhaps the holy grail of DFx is DFM, Design for Manufacturability as it encompasses so many aspects of assembly.To help us understand what exactly is DFM, I invited Andrew Williams to be my guest on this episode. Andrew Williams is the Engineering Manager for Electronics Manufacturing at PRIDE Industries. He has more than 30 years of experience in manufacturing and design and holds an SMT Process Engineer certification from SMTA and an IPC Certified Electronics Program Manager. Andrew is a guest lecturer at UC Davis and Cal State University Sacramento for Supply Chain Management, Operations, and TQM courses, and speaks frequently on DFM, DFS, and other DFX topics and today, he’s my guest on the Reliability Matters Podcast.Andrew's Contact Information: Pride Industrieshttps://www.prideindustries.comandrew.williams@prideindustries.com

Industry icon Dave Hillman completed a 3,600 mile solo kayak journey down the Missouri River. I spoke with Dave about the inspiration for the journey, insights gained over his four-month expedition, and how his experience as an engineer helped him prepare for this epic experience.

We all strive to build products that are reliable. If you’re listening to our watching this podcast, chances are you are concerned about or at least interested in reliability. Where does reliability start? Who is responsible for reliability? What types of reliability testing can be performed? My guest on this episode will help answer these and other reliability-based questions.My guest today is Dr. Christopher Jackson. Dr Chris Jackson is a leader, engineer and logistic specialist who has helped many organizations work towards realizing business goals through improving the reliability of their products and processes. He is cofounder of online training company IS4, founder of Acuitis Reliability, established the Center for the Safety and Reliability of Autonomous Systems (SARAS) at UCLA after retiring as a lieutenant colonel having served 17 years in the Australian Army, where he was the Senior Reliability Engineer. Dr Jackson completed his PhD in Reliability Engineering at the University of Maryland in 2011.Dr Jackson authored multiple reliability and management textbooks and teaches both professional education courses and post-graduate courses. Industries he has helped range from small satellites through to military vehicles. Dr Jackson is a Certified Reliability Engineer (CRE) through the American Society of Quality (ASQ), a member of the Institute of Engineers, Australia (MIEAust) and a Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng).Chris was a guest on this podcast back in June of 2020 (episide 45) and I’m thrilled to have him back as my guest today.Dr. Jackson's Contact Information:chris.jackson@acuitas.comhttps://www.acuitas.com

When it comes to circuit assemblies, there are defects, which result in one of two situations. The preferred result of a defect is to capture it on your factory floor and repair it before it ships to the customer. The second scenario is referred to as an escape. That’s when the board ships to the customer and fails in the field. This is a scenario, all assemblers dread and strive to prevent. One way to prevent escapes is through the use of automated inspection or AOI systems.My guests today are Arif Virani, Chief Operating Officer and co-founder of Darwin AI, and Bart Piwowar, CTO of Darwin AI, a manufacturer of innovative inspection systems.Arif Virani is a technology leader with over 20 years of experience in the industry. As Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of DarwinAI, he spearheads the company’s mission to transform manufacturing with a new standard for quality inspection using AI. DarwinAI’s solutions have been implemented at the top Electronics Manufacturers to increase quality and efficiency, while reducing waste. DarwinAI was selected by CBInsights for its AI 100 annual list of the 100 most promising private AI companies in the world in both 2020 and 2021.Before founding DarwinAI, Arif had a successful career in management consulting at McKinsey & Company, where he advised F500 enterprises on technology investments and transformation. He led several technology-enabled programs, including building and commercializing data and analytics capabilities. Arif started his career working as a software developer at various technology companies. In addition to his work at DarwinAI, Arif is an Advisory Board Member of NGEN Canada’s AI for Manufacturing Initiative. He has a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and a Bachelor’s in Applied Science (Computer Engineering) from the University of Waterloo.Bart Piwowar is an experienced Product Leader, leading high performing product teams driven by data to deliver solutions that solve customer's problems. He has spent many years leading data science teams, applying Innovation methodologies, and working with emerging technologies to bring solutions in many disciplines. He graduated from University of Waterloo with a degree in Physics and Computing and later followed with an MBA from Wilfrid Laurier University.Bart's career interests range from AI product development, decision science and entrepreneurship. I met Arif earlier this year at the IPC APEX Expo in San Diego California when he introduced me to his company’s automated inspection system. Needless to say, I was truly impressed with their technology and I’m thrilled to have them as my guests on this episode of the podcast.Contact Information:Arif Viraniarif@darwinai.cahttps://darwinai.com/Darwin AI's YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@DarwinAI

Most of us are well aware of the supply chain shortages, both within our industry and well beyond. Some of us are also keenly aware of labor shortages. This show is all about reliability of circuit assemblies. While reliability is often referred to as a process, it is also rooted in culture.Reliability begins with people. So, instead of talking about common reliability, subjects, such as voiding, soldering materials, assembly, best practices, and the plethora of other usual suspect topics, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about people. After all, as I said, reliability begins with people.My guest today is Dr. John Mitchell. Many of you know John as the president and CEO of IPC, one of our industries largest trade associations. John has recently written a book, entitled fire your hiring habits. I have to admit, the title is quite intriguing.Here’s a little background on John. Since 2012, Dr. John Mitchell has served as president and CEO of IPC, a not-for-profit trade association driving competitive advantage for more than 3,000 companies across the globe. Leading the global operations and staff, John manages the creation and execution of the Board of Director’s goals.Under his leadership, IPC has essentially doubled the total company membership globally as well increased the acceptance of standards by over 50 percent. John led the charge for IPC’s Online Certification Portal and the company’s overhaul of it Member Success department. His efforts served to improve relations with members and helped move the needle on positive regulatory change.Prior to IPC, John was an engineer with General Electric Aerospace and was a founding member of Alpine Electronic’s research company—which pioneered modern navigation systems in the U.S. OEM market. John himself holds a patent in GPS navigation systems. John then served as general manager/director of the largest product development initiative in Bose Corporation’s history. He went on to become CEO of Golden Key International Society, the noted collegiate honor society serving over two-million members.John earned his doctorate in higher education management from University of Georgia’s Institute of Higher Education, a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University, and a Bachelor of Science in electrical and computer engineering from Brigham Young University. In addition to his work with IPC, John is an in-demand speaker and the author of two books so far (sounds like more books may be in the works… I need to ask him about that!).Fire Your Hiring Habits is available at most book sellers including Amazon:https://tinyurl.com/fire-your-hiring-habits

Can reliability training the both entertaining and effective? The Manufacturing Game's Michelle Ledet Henley has a different approach to traditional training methods.Michelle Ledet Henley has worked with The Manufacturing Game since 1998 as a developer of new simulations and training material. She has traveled worldwide in her capacity as a facilitator and trainer for The Manufacturing Game and other simulations developed by Ledet Enterprises, Inc. Michelle has been instrumental in developing simulations with a focus on reliability, project management and distribution.She began her career with KPMG Peat Marwick in San Francisco, CA, and then worked for a real estate management and development firm in the Washington, D.C. area. Before joining The Manufacturing Game®, Michelle formed her own company, Innovative Interfaces, which provides computer programming services around the United States.Michelle has a bachelors of business administration degree from the University of Texas - Austin in Accounting and Information Services.Michelle's Contact Information:mrledet@manufacturinggame.comhttp://manufacturinggame.comlinkedin.com/in/michelleledethenleyThe following books were recommended on this episode:Don’t Just Fix It, Improve Ithttps://a.co/d/gYvMKdIThe Story Telling Code by Dana Norris https://a.co/d/cCgTWNb

I first met my guest at the SMTA Pan Pacific Symposium in Hawaii this past January. He was presenting a paper entitled Quantum Technology, A Theoretical Overview of the Possibilities. The more I listened to and watched his presentation, the more I wanted to learn about quantum physics and mechanics. So I selfishly invited him onto my show today so I could learn more, and perhaps you can too.My guest today is Dr. James Whitfield. Dr. Whitfield is an associate professor of physics at Dartmouth. He earned his Bachelor's of science and chemistry and mathematics from Morehouse University and his PhD in chemical physics from Harvard University. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Columbia University in New York, Vienna Center for Quantum Science and Technology in Vienna and Gant University and Belgium, and he is currently an Amazon visiting academic and even better than all that, he's my guest today on the Reliability Matters Podcast.

The subjects of Industry 4.0 and Big Data have been widely discussed on this podcast. What is Industry 4.0? What data is our industry collecting? And, perhaps more importantly, how can we sift through all of that data to make it useful and actionable?To help answer these and other data-related questions, I invited Ryan Gamble, CEO and Founder of Intraratio on this episode. Intraratio Corporation is a company that provides on-premise and cloud hybrid software with platforms to track, manage, control, and automate the manufacture of advanced electronics. Intraratio serves the semiconductor, SMT, space/military, medical device and EV markets. Ryan earned a dual Electrical and Computer Engineering degree and spent many years in the semiconductor industry. He’s responsible for improving product manufacturing and testing of commercial and space/military product lines including multi-core DSP, RF and Silicon Photonics devices. During this period he developed software systems to automate and manage quality and reliability of complex electronics, extending this to hyperscale web based platforms that interconnect factories globally.His passion is working with all levels, to identify and recommend solutions to business problems, based on a deep technical understanding of operational processes and product complexities.Ryan's Contact Info:rgamble@intraratio.comhttps://www.intraratio.com

My guest, Eric Camden (Lead Investigator with Foresite) and I discuss electrochemical migration (ECM) and other failure modes caused by residues on circuit assemblies.Eric Camden's Contact Information:ericc@foresiteinc.comhttps://www.foresiteinc.com

On this episode, I speak with Mark Goodwin, COO of Ventec Europe, a supplier of copper clad laminates and prepreg bonding materials for the circuit board fabrication industry about supply chain challenges.Mark Goodwin's Contact Information:mark.goodwin@ventec-europe.comhttp://www.ventec-group.com

You don't have to be in the tech industry you understand importance and value of data. Industries have always collected various sets of data, first manually and, in modern times, automatically. The volume of data has historically been limited to the ability to capture and store it. Recent advances in technology have vastly increased the ability to capture and store data. The industry 4.0 movement has fueled both of desire and requirement to capture data.We have created a "be careful what you ask for" scenario as we now are capturing data at an unprecedented rate but frequently lack the ability to discern and analyze all of our newly captured data.My guest today, Luisa Herrmann, Head of Product for Arch Systems, is helping to transform "big data" into useful data. Luisa has 10 years of experience in Product Management and Product Marketing, launching products, building teams, and scaling organizations in the data software space. She was most recently the Head of Product at Cape Privacy, an encrypted machine learning company, and before that she was the Head of Product at expert.ai, an NLP company. She has a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and lives in the Boston area.Luisa Herrmann may be contacted here:lherrmann@archsys.iohttps://archsys.io/

On this show, we’ve discussed many aspects of the Electronics assembly process. We talked about reflow, thermal management, printing, soldering materials, additives, and so much more. What do all these topics have in common? When done correctly, they all contribute to the reliability of circuit assemblies.Today, we’re going to dive into the subject of cleaning circuit assemblies after reflow. For many assemblers, the cleaning process was replaced by the use of no clean flux technology. Time and technology have eroded the concept of allowing all residues to remain on the assembly. Today, residue caused failures are such a concern, that IPC recently and radically changed the way circuit assemblies are considered to be clean.My guests today are Sal Sparacino and Eric Camden. Sal is Director of Sales at Zestron Americas, located in Manassas Virginia. Zestron is a manufacturer of cleaning chemicals for the electronics industry. Eric is Lead Investigator for Foresite, an analytical laboratory based in Kokomo Indiana. Eric, is the guy you call when things go wrong. Together with my experience as a cleaning equipment manufacturer, we’ll discuss how cleaning contributes to increased reliability, and we’ll review the reasons cleaning has returned as a mainstream assembly process. Guest Contact Info: Sal Sparacinosal.sparacino@zestronusa.comhttps://www.zestron.comEric Camdenericc@foresiteinc.comhttps://www.foresiteinc.com

Episode 113: A Conversation about Counterfeit Component Detection with Dr. Eyal WeissWe are all aware of the “oldest profession in the world”. Perhaps the second oldest profession is counterfeiting. Whenever a product is introduced, a counterfeit version soon follows. While the electronics industry has experienced counterfeit components from its inception, recent events such as the pandemic and supply chain shortages have fueled the counterfeit industry.Statistics by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) reveal that the counterfeiting of electronic parts in the US alone, cost the chip industry more than $7.5 billion in revenue annually. According to new data from the ERAI, a global information board for counterfeiting, reports of counterfeit electronic products are growing. Although it is difficult to put an exact figure on just how many counterfeit products are in circulation, estimates suggest that consumer and industrial businesses lose approximately $250 billion each year due to counterfeit parts. To talk more about counterfeit components and detection technologies, I invited Dr. Eyal Weiss, Founder and CTO of Cybord to be my guest. Dr. Weiss received his Ph.D. in Electronic and Computer Engineering from BGU (Ben-Gurion University) in IsraelAs well as a Masters in Plasma Physics and bachelors cum laude in Mechanical Engineering from the Technion–Israel Institute of Technology.He worked as a researcher on pulsed plasma at Soreq Research Center (SNRC). He then worked as a technology department manager in the high-tech fiber-optics industry. He was the technology manager at Lynx Photonics and then at Explay, developing state-of-the-art Silicon and optical chips production, packaging, and assembly production lines. He developed a new fiber-pigtailing and packaging technology and built full-scale production lines utilizing this new technology.He returned to Soreq SNRC and for 15 years served as manager and leading scientist of the R&D Systems Department. He built mass-production lines and assembly lines for new sensors technology and developed their test equipment. He has twice received the prestigious Israel Defense Prize. In 2018, he founded and became CTO of Cybord, developing electronic component qualification and authentication technologies. He is a member of the Israel Innovation Authority, Euramet, SAE, and IPC committees. He specializes in multidisciplinary technology development and has received significant awards and accolades in the fields of machine learning, plasma physics, optical assemblies, laser technology, and electromagnetics. Dr. Weiss is an expert in technology development and manufacturing technology and has published over 20 peer-review articles, 4 patents, and a book, and, I’m happy to say, he’s my guest on this episode of the Reliability Matters podcast.Contact Eyal Weiss:eyal.w@cybord.aihttps://cybord.ai