Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1437606
46 PCB007 MAGAZINE I DECEMBER 2021 automotive ADAS applications where electri- cal properties are critical. Matties: Ed, do you see increased collabora- tion, in terms of material selection, between the OEM and the fabricator? E. Kelley: Yes. Using the example of 5G again, we are the experts on what our materials can do in terms of electrical and other perfor- mance requirements that are important to the OEM, but if our material is very difficult to use in the PCB manufacturing process or in spe- cific designs, then we all still have a big prob- lem. One specific example: Every few weeks we have a call with a large telecom OEM and one of their PCB fabricators that does a lot of material evaluations and qualifications. ey always ask about the status of our testing. What are the issues that we're trying to overcome? is regular collaboration ensures that we are performing testing relevant to both the OEM's and fabricator's needs and that we are working toward meeting their schedules. Matties: How important is the circuit designer in this process? E. Kelley: On that particular call, one of the designers participates, which is really good for us and the fabricator so that we understand the design challenges we need to address in order to be successful; even the way the copper pattern is laid out and how thick it is can create problems. We have a lot of folks here, including myself, who have prior PCB manufacturing and engi- neering experience. As we develop products, we're always trying to figure out: If we were going to use this product to build complex PCB designs, what would we need so it's compatible across those different applications that design- ers come up with? at might be something like wanting to know if the resin flow will be enough to fill complex innerlayer circuit pat- terns. Or how easy it is to drill, desmear, and plate copper in the holes. Jenny Inocencio was instrumental in setting up the new lab. She manages Isola's global labora- tory services groups, which include Singapore and a smaller team in Germany. As she explained the capabilities of the new lab, I was impressed with her passion for and knowledge of each piece of equipment. Matties: Jenny, you had an opportunity to help design the lab from the ground up. at must have been a lot of fun. Jenny Inocencio: It was. It was a lot of work, but it was wonderful because I was able to take sev- eral ideas from our previous location and build a better footprint where we could strategically place equipment. We wanted to become more effective and more efficient by having a better layout all the way around. Matties: How much customer input did you have while you were putting this lab together? Inocencio: ere was a great deal of customer input because our number one focus is being able to turn work orders very quickly to serve our customers. It's at the forefront of every- thing we do. With that in mind, we want to build around the concept of servicing our cus- tomers faster and more efficiently. How can