Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1411055
52 PCB007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2021 Interview by Nolan Johnson I-CONNECT007 Costanzo D'Angelo talks about some of the new systems Pluritec is developing, including its new X-ray drill machine, with the hope of moving into the high volume and mass produc- tion market in China and worldwide. Nolan Johnson: Tell me about the new X-ray drill from Pluritec, since it seems like there's a lot of interest in that. Can you tell me more about the drill and how the market is respond- ing to it? Constanzo D'Angelo: ere is, as earlier said, a big drive in China toward high-end PCB man- ufacturing. PCB manufacturing requires a lot of technological support in different aspects of the process. PCBs are made with a low stabili- ty material; high-frequency PCB or microwave panels with thermoplastic material that has a high deformation; size and thickness of the panel itself can vary from 15 microns (high- end HDI or substrates to 10 mm (probe cards or backpanels). All this requires a less conven- tional approach. e handling of these panels poses a lot of challenges, and Pluritec has been focused on this. Since last year we are able to handle panels from 25 microns up to 10 millimeters in thick- ness with manual and full automatic applica- tions. e quality of the hole drilled on these PCBs must be higher compared to before. At the beginning of 2021 we introduced newly developed systems which allow us to process very thin material with a high-quality drilling outcome, thanks to special technical solutions Drilling Down With Pluritec Detail of a heavy-duty panel pick-and-place translator in use in a side-in, side-out automation system.