Fundacao CERTI invests in SIPLACE SX Technology

SIPLACE, the innovations and technology leader in providing groundbreaking solutions to the electronics manufacturing industry, announces that Fundacao CERTI based in Florianopolis Brazil, has invested in a SIPLACE SX line of equipment.
CERTI is an independent private technology research and development organization that conducts unique activities and maintains partnerships with universities and research centers in Brazil and abroad. Its mission is to promote scientific and technological development through cooperative actions; provide a manufacturing plant to a consortium of regional research institutions, technology centers and technology-based firms; and create synergies to increase the competitiveness and innovation of processes and electronic products. Through "mobilizing projects" that have public and private support, CERTI contributes to the technological, corporate and social development of Brazil.

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SIPLACE benefits from boom in electronic production

The manufacturers of SMT equipment are putting the economic crisis behind them. According to Munich-based SMT equipment maker and production solutions provider SIPLACE, deliveries by all placement machine manufacturers increased by almost sixty percent (60%) for the second quarter of 2010 compared to the previous quarter, making it the strongest quarter since the record-setting year 2000. The rapid upward trend is even more impressive when one compares the second quarter of 2010 with the same quarter in 2009, because the increase in machine deliveries amounts to almost 400 percent.

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SIPLACE Whispering-down-the-Line: More efficient forwarding of ink spot and barcode data raises the line output and reduces the investment in barcode readers

Electronics manufactures who want to eliminate having to empty the line before running a new product or who want to use ink spots to prevent components from being placed on bad clusters can now benefit from significant improvements in SIPLACE's new Whispering-down-the-Line (WDTL) functionalities.
With the new SIPLACE software release, barcodes can now be used to automatically change placement programs along the entire line by placing a single barcode reader at the entry to the first placement machine. This reduces the investment costs and results in much more robust processes, because line stops caused by reading errors in subsequent readers are now a thing of the past. When products change, the barcodes can trigger placement program changes with no manual interference and with no need to let the line go empty. In tests on high-volume lines with frequent product changeovers, the new feature resulted in efficiency improvements of up to ten percent.

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Electricity meter specialist EMH becomes 100th SIPLACE SX customer

The SIPLACE SX platform is rapidly becoming another success story for the SIPLACE team. The new SMT placement machines with their capacity-on-demand features are generating lots of interest among large producers, where SIPLACE has traditionally been strong, and small and medium-sized manufacturers alike. In EMH metering GmbH & Co. KG, a manufacturer of digital electricity meters located in Wittenburg, Germany, SIPLACE was recently able to welcome not only a new customer, but the 100th SIPLACE SX customer. With its investment in two SIPLACE SX1 machines, EMH is expanding its current production capacity while leaving room to expand in the future by adding additional gantries.

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"Borrow Performance" for the SIPLACE SX: SIPLACE dual conveyor for top-and-bottom placement becomes even more versatile

With the "Borrow Performance" software function, SIPLACE is expanding the capabilities of its dual conveyor and optimizing it for the simultaneous production of PCBs with widely divergent placement contents. Once the feature has been activated on the line, the track with the greater placement requirements can "borrow" unused performance capacity from the neighboring track. That way, "Borrow Performance" balances the tracks’ diverging cycle times, which makes it possible to produce top-and-bottom products or products with primary and secondary boards even more efficiently and flexibly.

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SIPLACE "Keep the Line Running" software: Stable production processes thanks to fewer production interruptions and faster restarts of the line

With its many new features, version 704 of the SIPLACE Station Software makes electronics production even more efficient. The latest release focuses among other things on "keep-the-line-running" functions that minimize the number and durations of production stoppages. For example, if the placement machine recognizes that a nozzle has become contaminated, it does not stop its operation but initiates an automatic nozzle cleaning process (nozzle self-healing). And if an operator assist is indispensable, the SIPLACE software displays detailed information about the cause and suitable measures. Key performance indicators such as mean time between assists (MBTA) or mean time to recover from assist (MTTRA) can thus be improved considerably.

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Siemens reaches agreement with industrial investor: ASM Pacific Technology acquires Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems

Siemens is selling its SIPLACE placement equipment business to ASM Pacific Technology Ltd., Hong Kong (ASMPT). Both companies have signed an agreement to that effect, which is expected to take effect by early 2011 at the latest, provided the cartel authorities and the shareholders of ASM agree. This brings Siemens’s search for a strategic, industrial investor for its Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems GmbH & Co. KG subsidiary (SEAS) to a successful conclusion. The Hong Kong–based company with almost 12,000 employees worldwide and more than €425 million in sales is one of the world’s leaders in the production of chip assembly and bonding equipment. By acquiring SEAS, ASMPT adds the globally leading SIPLACE placement technology brand to its portfolio and strengthens its own global presence, particularly in Europe.

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New WPC for SIPLACE SX: Waffle Pack Changer with non-stop module

The new SIPLACE WPC (Waffle Pack Changer) now being offered by technology leader Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems for its flexible SIPLACE SX placement machines provides electronics manufacturers with a non-stop supply of component trays, which represent a significant plus in process reliability. The new WPC features a non-stop module (NSM) that allows operators to add full trays and remove empty ones without having to interrupt the production flow. The system automatically moves the new trays to their specified destination in the vertical carrier with 28 positions. Depending on the carrier position, trays can be exchanged in two to three seconds. The automated supply via NSM also puts an end to the positioning errors which are possible with manual systems. The compact new WPC with NSM is available immediately for SIPLACE SX placement machines and can be combined with the space-saving SIPLACE 30-track feeder change- over table (SIPLACE COT30).

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Greifswald-based electronics manufacturer invests in SIPLACE placement solutions

manufacturing, logistics & services GmbH & Co. KG (ml&s for short) is expanding its SMT production capacity with three placement machines of the new SIPLACE SX series. The company, which is based in Greifswald, Germany, is taking this step to be able to handle the rapidly rising order volume from its customers in the automotive, manufacturing, telecommunication and renewable energy industries. ml&s also wants to improve its manufacturing flexiblity for highly complex products while ensuring its high standard of quality in times of every more frequent product changes. Because of their precision in handling a very broad spectrum of components and the ability to increase their placement performance by adding interchangeable SX gantries, ml&s selected machines from the newest SIPLACE line.

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SIPLACE SX: More flexibility and performance for special PCBs’

Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems GmbH & Co. KG (SEAS) now offers additional conveyor capabilities for its flexible SIPLACE SX-Series machines with new options for long boards, heavy boards and thick boards. The increased placement area of the SIPLACE SX with the Long Board Option allows the user to populate boards up to 610 mm long in a single, consistent placement process, which increases the line throughput rate for extra-long boards considerably. With the Heavy Board Option, boards weighing up to 5 kilograms (single conveyor) or 2 x 2 kilograms (dual conveyor) can be processed. And with the Thick Board Option, SIPLACE SX machines can be upgraded for board thicknesses of 4.5 to 6 mm. In combination with its wide range of head, gantry and feeder module options, the new options for exotic boards expand the SIPLACE SX platform’s flexibility even further.

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