Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1509873
OCTOBER 2023 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 9 "typical" board shop to move into the high-rel realm? What are the biggest causes of high-rel failures? How do you measure reliability fail- ure? Aer four years of research, why can't the North American fab industry figure out the root cause of microvia failures? Staggering micro- vias is just a workaround, and many times your board may require stacked vias. Why do Asian shops seem to have stacked microvia processes dialed in? In this month's issue, our expert contributors have the answers. We discuss the latest in tech- nologies, trends, complexities, and resources regarding high-reliability fabrication. We also detail the tradeoffs involved in maximizing reliability while reducing your costs, and intro- duce you to experts and resources that can help you raise your reliability levels. We start with a conversation with Alex Ste- pinski, who offers an overview of high-rel fab and the bottlenecks that tend to trip up man- ufacturers. Columnist Preeya Kuray discusses the material science behind thermal reliability. Alex also contributed an article in which he dis- cusses the need for fabs to pay more attention to copper grain structures. I've also included an excerpt from Reza Ghaffarian's chapter on reliability published in the Printed Circuits Handbook. ere's a piece from Tim Estes and Nick Meeker on failure and reliability trends, and a conversation with Marc L'Hoste, who explains why high-rel processes demand solid pre-plan- ning, DFM, and inspection. We also have an article by Val Kapton, and columns from con- tributors Happy Holden, Hannah Nelson, and Travis Kelly. See you next month! PCB007 Andy Shaughnessy is manag- ing editor of Design007 Mag- azine and co-managing editor for PCB007 Magazine. He has been covering PCB design for 20 years. He can be reached by clicking here. What Does a Project Engineer Do? Project engineers are responsible for plan- ning and overseeing projects to ensure they are completed in a timely fashion and within budget. Project managers plan and designate project re- sources, prepare budgets, monitor progress, and keep stakeholders informed the entire way. This is all done within the confines of a company's goals and vision. Engineering is a complex and ever-evolving in- dustry, so engineering project engineers need to be adaptable and up to date on all of the latest best practices. That includes engineering prac- tices related to the project at hand, as well as overall management skills. Project engineers determine and define proj- ect scope and objective. They predict resourc- es needed to reach objectives and manage re- sources in an effective and efficient manner. In addition, project engineers handle many tasks with many different people on a daily basis. They ensure what work is completed at all times is es- sential to leading a team. Learn more: