Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1372612
44 PCB007 MAGAZINE I MAY 2021 edgeable about the issues out on the floor, and we can incorporate lessons learned on the front end of design, then the company is more successful. Obviously, our customers are also more successful, which helps with retention. It's beneficial to have the kind of communica- tion and connection we're going for. Johnson: Can you quantify how that has im- proved your NPI process? Can you give some sense of the positive impact it has had? Vaughan: It's difficult to quantify just based on the data points. is is my first management role, so we had that learning curve of under- standing the team. For example, just before I came on board, we brought in a selective sol- der machine to further automate our process for our current customer base. We used to wave and/or hand-solder all connectors, but as it is with any implementation of capital equip- ment and a new process, things needed to be tweaked. I had the benefit of coming on board within that cycle of the selective solder machine. ey went to run the first lot and we said, "Hmm, I think we need to make some changes because, yes, automation will increase efficiency, but not the way the board is currently laid out. We need to make some changes, create some spacing so that we can take advantage of the time savings and the cost savings for putting this machine in place." at is probably the most signif- icant example as far as an overall program. at product line con- sists of eight separate boards in an entire rack that goes together for a communications system, but that's the main board that drives everything else. ey were having some other test-re- lated issues, and while we pro- vide sophisticated test capabili- ties, this was not a requirement that was flowed down to us in this particular instance. ey were getting test data feedback, sitting with the designers, the assembly team, and with their manufacturing guys as one big brain trust. ere are certain things you can't change due to signal integrity, operability, or reliabili- ty reasons. But the areas where we were able to make modifications to have a cleaner run and more efficiency, we were able to implement. It was good being a part of that, but it's hard to quantify it. Johnson: Your team does a lot of designs. You said several hundred? Vaughan: ree or four hundred a year. Johnson: ree or four hundred a year with a team of 10? ere is not a lot of time to dwell on a particular design. Vaughan: It's definitely not your OEM environ- ment where you have more folks all involved in one design and much more feedback with more points of view. ankfully, half my team has been in and around electronics for 25+ The SMT line at ACDi's Nashville, NC Facility.