Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1514189
JANUARY 2024 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 9 Andy Shaughnessy is managing editor of Design007 Magazine. He has been covering PCB design for 23 years. To read past columns, click here. well versed in fab and assembly processes just to do their jobs. As our contributors oen point out, design- ers really are the first step in the manufactur- ing process, not a separate, standalone entity. Designers and design engineers have a lot of responsibilities; they wield the power to affect change, good or bad, in the manufacturing process. Some analysts estimate that 70% of the cost of the final board is determined dur- ing the design cycle. at's a lot of responsi- bility for designers. Many design for manufacturing (DFM) issues can be avoided if designers communi- cate with their fabrication and assembly pro- viders before and during the design cycle. But designers oen operate in a vacuum; they may have no idea where their board is being proto- typed, much less where it's going for volume production. So, designers need to arm them- selves with as much knowledge about fab and assembly as they possibly can. is month, we asked our expert contribu- tors to share their thoughts on the absolute "must-know" aspects of fab, assembly, and test that all designers should understand. We have interviews with APCT's Tony Bell, Sum- mit Interconnect's Laura Martin, e Test Connection's Bert Horner, and Aster Tech- nologies' Dean Poplett. We also have a feature article by Lea Maurel of ICAPE Group, and feature columns by Vern Solberg, Tim Haag, Istvan Novak, and Martyn Gaudion. You'll also find regular columns by Matt Stevenson and Joe Fjelstad. e new year is here, and trade show season is upon us. In the next few months, we'll be covering DesignCon and IPC APEX EXPO. I hope to see you all on the road. DESIGN007 TrendForce's investigation into the impact of the recent strong earthquake in the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, reveals that sev- eral key semiconductor-related facilities are located within the affected area. Given the current downturn in the semiconduc- tor industry and the off-peak season, preliminary inspections indicate no significant damage to the machinery, suggesting the impact is manageable. In terms of silicon wafer production, Shin-Etsu and GlobalWafers' facilities in Niigata are cur- rently shut down for inspection. However, most of Shin-Etsu's crystal growth operations are pri- marily in the Fukushima area, thus experienc- ing limited impact from this earthquake. SUMCO reported no effects. On the semiconductor front, Toshiba's Kaga facility in the southwestern part of Ishikawa Pre- fecture is currently undergoing inspections. Addi- tionally, the three TPSCo factories in Uozu, Ton- ami, and Arai are all undergoing shutdowns for inspections. In contrast, USJC was not affected. MLCC manufacturer TAIYO YUDEN's new Niigata plant, designed to withstand seismic activity up to level 7, reported no equipment dam- age. Murata (MLCC fabs only) and TDK's MLCC plants experienced seismic intensities below level 4 and were not notably affected. However, Murata's other factories in Komatsu, Kanazawa, and Toyoma, which are in the areas with seismic intensity above 5, were closed for the New Year holiday, and staff are currently assessing any damage. (Source: TrendForce) Earthquake Temporarily Halts Silicon Wafer, MLCC, and Semiconductor Facilities in Japan