-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueThe Sustainability Issue
Sustainability is one of the most widely used terms in business today, especially for electronics and manufacturing but what does it mean to you? We explore the environmental, business, and economic impacts.
The Fabricator’s Guide to IPC APEX EXPO
This issue previews many of the important events taking place at this year's show and highlights some changes and opportunities. So, buckle up. We are counting down to IPC APEX EXPO 2024.
Getting to Know Your Designer
In this issue, we examine how fabs work with their design customers, educating them on the critical elements of fabrication needed to be successful, as well as the many tradeoffs involved. How well do you really know your customer? What makes for a closer, more synchronized working relationship?
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
Smart Factories: More Than Robots
March 21, 2019 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
The acceptance of smart factories is a global movement across multiple industries. In electronics manufacturing specifically, China seems to be a key leader in the move to Industry 4.0. Once seen as an industrial heavyweight that depended on a huge labor pool, the environment in China has transformed. Chinese culture has a history of adaptability, and China’s industry-leading implementation of Industry 4.0 concepts is demonstrating that essential skill to the globe once again. What stands out about the Chinese transition is that automation—robotics, in particular—is a surprisingly small part of the whole solution. Don’t get me wrong, automation is a crucial component, but automation alone is not the objective.
This issue's focus on smart factories brought out a number of perspectives from our columnists and other contributors. Together, this issue reads like a roundtable discussion on smart factories from various inside-the-industry voices. Even materials and chemistries are aligning with a move toward further automation, which allows equipment manufacturers to capture and store more data, and software layers to perform more detailed analysis, prediction, and optimization. CFX, Hermes, JARA, and other machine-to-machine protocols might be all the buzz right now, but when it comes to Industry 4.0 in printed circuit fabrication, the work will involve the entire supply chain.
A case in point comes from a statement from Bill Cardoso speaking about Creative Electron’s work with AI. Cardoso said, “Inspection is graduating. Inspection for 20–30 years has been a cost center. In this new generation of connected equipment—thanks to Industry 4.0, CFX, and other initiatives—it is graduating into a data center.” Cardoso continued, “AI is critical for giving pass/ fail decisions instead of just giving them an image they have to figure out…instead of giving the customers data, we like to give them information that they can act on.”
Pressing the point that Industry 4.0 will transform the entire chain, consider this. If a major contract manufacturer implements Industry 4.0, they will pressure their suppliers—fabricators included—to implement Industry 4.0. Once a PCB fabricator follows suit, then the fabricator’s suppliers must do so as well. And once the major participants have made the switch, smaller firms will need to respond or risk being left out of the conversation. This transformation has already begun.
With all of this systemic retooling, it’s an understandable concern that jobs will shift; the age-old concern that robots will leave us all out of work remains. But where operators were a primary job function in the past, engineers and technicians will be increasingly required in manufacturing to fill the gap. To achieve Industry 4.0, machines will manage the automation and staff will use their analytical skills more than their hands. After all, people are also inherently adaptable to their environments. It’s no wonder that educational programs are strongly on the mind of industry leaders and organizations.
To read the full article, which appeared in the March 2019 issue of PCB007 Magazine, click here.
Suggested Items
KIC’s Miles Moreau to Present Profiling Basics and Best Practices at SMTA Wisconsin Chapter PCBA Profile Workshop
01/25/2024 | KICKIC, a renowned pioneer in thermal process and temperature measurement solutions for electronics manufacturing, announces that Miles Moreau, General Manager, will be a featured speaker at the SMTA Wisconsin Chapter In-Person PCBA Profile Workshop.
The Drive Toward UHDI and Substrates
09/20/2023 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamPanasonic’s Darren Hitchcock spoke with the I-Connect007 Editorial Team on the complexities of moving toward ultra HDI manufacturing. As we learn in this conversation, the number of shifting constraints relative to traditional PCB fabrication is quite large and can sometimes conflict with each other.
Standard Of Excellence: The Products of the Future
09/19/2023 | Anaya Vardya -- Column: Standard of ExcellenceIn my last column, I discussed cutting-edge innovations in printed circuit board technology, focusing on innovative trends in ultra HDI, embedded passives and components, green PCBs, and advanced substrate materials. This month, I’m following up with the products these new PCB technologies are destined for. Why do we need all these new technologies?
Experience ViTrox's State-of-the-Art Offerings at SMTA Guadalajara 2023 Presented by Sales Channel Partner—SMTo Engineering
09/18/2023 | ViTroxViTrox, which aims to be the world’s most trusted technology company, is excited to announce that our trusted Sales Channel Partner (SCP) in Mexico, SMTo Engineering, S.A. de C.V., will be participating in SMTA Guadalajara Expo & Tech Forum. They will be exhibiting in Booth #911 from the 25th to the 26th of October 2023, at the Expo Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico.
Intel Unveils Industry-Leading Glass Substrates to Meet Demand for More Powerful Compute
09/18/2023 | IntelIntel announced one of the industry’s first glass substrates for next-generation advanced packaging, planned for the latter part of this decade.