As the heart of all modern-day electronics, Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) support and connect electronic components to make an electronic device function. And there are two main methods for mounting components onto a PCB. In this article, you will learn about the difference between those two methods – Surface Mount Technology (SMT) and Through-Hole (TH),…
2020 left a disruption in manufacturing as companies paused operations and adapted to operate with fewer people. This US Chamber of Commerce Foundation study finds that more than half of US states (28) have more open jobs than available workers to fill them. Even before the pandemic, the skills gap already plagued the labor market…
Electrostatic Discharge (ESD), is the sudden flow of electricity between two electrically charged objects. This is the same static shock we get when walking across a carpet and then touching a doorknob afterward. This unwanted flow of electricity can disable or severely damage sensitive electronics. As more devices today and in the future get more…
Surface Mount Soldering is a commonly used technique in the Surface Mount Technology (SMT) assembly process. Instead of components with leads inserted into holes as with “Through Hole” soldering, in this technique, components are attached to the pads on the board surface. Among all the SMT processes, soldering requires the most extreme focus when being…
Poor soldering tip maintenance is a common culprit in most soldering issues. Most of which is caused by a heavy buildup of oxidation on the soldering iron tip’s surface. A bad tip is unable to perform an effective heat transfer to the connection point, which then affects the final product in the assembly line. As…
2020 was a year of unprecedented lockdowns that were implemented to control the outbreak. These then sparked simultaneous massive economic repercussions all over the world. For the electronics industry especially, it has been one turbulent year. Fortunately, 2021 gave the world a chance to hit the reset button. This article will talk about the electronic…
Electronics used to operate solely at standard temperatures. Today, it doesn’t only demand faster and more powerful circuitry, modern electronics also require boards to function in much harsher environments, including extremely high temperatures, pushing operating tolerances to their limits. In the past, products that were not considered high-temperature electronics, like computers, are now being designed…
Before Surface Mount Technology, through-hole circuits were the industry standard. They require holes to be drilled on the board. Then, components were mounted on the side of the board by threading their leads through matching holes (hence the name). Though it was relatively simple, through-hole connections don’t allow for much automation of boards’ manufacturing process,…
IPC regularly publishes performance documents that regulate practices in the PCB manufacturing industry. The two most known documents are the IPC-6012 and IPC-A-600, explicitly made for bare PCBs. If you’re confused by these two documents, this post will clear things up and discuss their differences. IPC 6012 The IPC 6012 came from a series of…
With the increased use of technology this year due to all the lockdown protocols, the demand for electronics has surged. Technical training, however, hasn’t kept up with the pace. This gap resulted in skill shortages, especially in the electronics manufacturing industry. To fill this gap, the best way to do this is to offer training…