Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1428512
44 PCB007 MAGAZINE I NOVEMBER 2021 Capers: Yes. I would agree with that. You can collect data all day long. You can look at it and see you're having issues, but unless you dig deep and ask why the issues in this particular area or with this particular defect are there, then all the data collection is kind of useless— but we do it anyway. Johnson: From where you sit, have you seen any interesting work to turn that into usable intelligence? Capers: We are currently using it for our internal records, and for our requirement of AS9100. If you dig deep, you could probably say something like, "Operator number 13 is screwing up le and right." But is it a person- nel issue? Is it a process issue? Is it a machine issue? What is it? At our size, we probably have the capability, but not the resources, to dig deep into that type of stuff. Johnson: How do you get soware tools to the smaller firms, which make up the bulk of the active companies in the U.S.? Capers: e tools are not only the soware; it's capital equipment that helps ensure your processes are good. You could have every certification in the world: plaques, trophies, and all of this, for all the good work you do. But at the end of the day, it comes down to price, and everything else is expected. Aer putting money into AXI, ICT, AOI, flying probe and all those good things, it would be nice to be able to recoup that money. ese days, though, it's assumed that you will be doing all these processes. Twenty years ago, maybe you could buy an AOI machine and be able to charge for that service. For ICT and flying probe test, we must charge because there's a devel- opment cost involved with it. For flying probe testing, you must program the machine and debug the program to make sure it runs correctly. For ICT, of course, you must program the machine, but you also must procure a test fixture to put on that machine, a bed-of-nails test fixture. ere are costs involved in that. In our little world, we must pass those through. For big production, I'm sure it's just built into the price of "we're going to build you a million boards and this is what it's going to cost, and we're going to guarantee everything." It's a different world.