Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1124788
JUNE 2019 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 55 Barbini: This is all inline except for Laserssel's rework machine, but yes; this machine is for mass production. Matties: And what about operator training? Barbini: We have a facil- ity in Korea. We also have onsite training, and by the end of this year, we're looking to develop our own demo center—The Center of Excellence—in the U.S. Matties: I would think that the maintenance on this is pretty low, and the run time is pretty high. Barbini: Definitely. The laser is rated to go for a certain number of hours, and that's in terms of years of use. We can also extract the fumes and flux, so we keep everything inside clean. We also have Mylar that protects the sample or the flux from getting to the optics, so there's minimal downtime. Matties: In terms of material, you mentioned flux. Are there any special requirements for materials? Can they use whatever they're cur- rently using? Barbini: The end user can use current flux paste chemistries with the laser process; you don't need to change. What the user will have to do is understand that it's different timing, but the process can be optimized for that given mate- rial with a trial-and-error technique. Matties: Congratulations. It sounds like a great addition to the equipment out there. Is there anything that we haven't talked about that you feel like we should include in this conver- sation? Barbini: In our investigations in joint quality, all of the joints that we produced with the area laser were better than or equal to that of those produced by mass convection reflow oven. All the concerns and questions are whether the quality is going to be better, different, or worse. Laserssel has completed the research and development and analyzed the data that supports the conclusion that this technique is going to provide better quality. Matties: And with your demo centers, it sounds like people who want to go to the next step and process some boards will have that oppor- tunity as well. Barbini: Yes, that's what we're doing right now. We're evaluating and giving the industry the opportunity to take a look at us. Matties: Good for you. Thank you. Barbini: Thank you so much. I appreciate it. SMT007