Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1493443
66 PCB007 MAGAZINE I FEBRUARY 2023 the past 10 years. We are not anywhere near completion, and we continue to consider the automation potential of all our processes. Why did you start with Technosystem? iel: As you heard from Jeff 's story earlier, we first started looking at Technosystem because they had been providing automation to several industries for many years. ey had and con- tinue to have the technical expertise and expe- rience to help guide companies with their auto- mation projects. When we first started in 2012, Technosystem did not have any robotics sys- tems in the U.S.—we were their first. As such, during those early years, we dealt directly with the company. However, as Jeff was becoming more involved in the automation side of Tech- nosystem, he brought Eduardo to our facility. e visit was beneficial for both of us, as Tech- nosystem had the opportunity to get a better feel for our facility and the challenges we faced. We have been working with Jeff (TFE), Rich, and Technosystem ever since. How did you actually start this process? What operation did you focus on first? iel: We focused on the area that was contributing most to our scrap, which was the inner and outer layer imaging opera- tion. Describe what the operation was like before and after the installation. iel: e process prior to the automation was two in-line Bacher systems with a flipper between. e units were single- sided exposure units that had a vision system for aligning artwork to the panels. e system was mostly automated with loaders/ unloaders. It was a pretty good system, but it had limitations. Because we were still using mylar images with the machines, we had contact issues between the glass, artwork, and panel. To keep the panel from damaging the artwork as it progressed through the equipment, we coated the film with a 0.25- mil protective film, which oen introduced off- contact issues with warped panels or those that had significant image transfer due to heavy cop- per or low-pressure areas on inner layers. In addition, the loaders, unloaders, and printing equipment were not able to consistently handle very thin or very thick panels. We experienced panel jams or damaged panels due to the limited flexibility. When we looked at automation, we wanted to address as many of the limitations of the exist- ing equipment as possible. Using the automa- tion alongside the LDI, we were able to elimi- nate or minimize the handling issues with thin and thick cores and eliminate the off-contact defect. We were able to dramatically increase our productivity with the automation because we were able to eliminate artwork setup time as well as load multiple jobs in the robot and allow the machine to run unattended for signif- icantly longer periods of time. Inner and outer layer imaging with an Orbotech Paragon 9800.