Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1518339
58 SMT007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2024 couple of months, or you run through a really high volume, and then you don't need to use the equipment and material for a while? How do you maintain that material in the machine? How do you adjust your preventative mainte- nance to manage the varying volume demands? ere are some challenges there. In aerospace, we might move at a different rate than the rest of the world. We have some of those 30-year-old techniques we absolutely still need because they're qualified, and we're still building those parts. ere's a bit more wiggle room for Class 1 and 2 suppliers to inno- vate because they have a wider range of toler- ances for acceptability. ere are more oppor- tunities there as well. So, there will be an increased interest in more thorough final inspection processes. We see more things in inspection because we're choosing to. We're choosing not to rely just on inspection at the beginning and the end. Instead, we're empha- sizing the importance of in- process inspection. In the supply chain I work with, we stress to our suppli- ers that everything in the middle—aer kitting and before you get to the final product—matters. Ever y single process control mat- ters. By establishing more in-process inspection con- trols, you don't have as much risk to final yield. en, you don't have to add additional inspections like X-ray, which can drive inspection costs higher. Assembly houses led the way in adopting digital factory in our industry. Where do you see digital factory techniques or protocols fitting in wire harnesses? We're talking a lot about traceability and provenance, so what's in the future for the wire harness sector? For wire harness—at least for our part of the supply chain—processes are so manual that finding different things to automate is chal- lenging. It's inherently a very individualized, manual process for many things. We have some semi-automated and automated processes, such as wire stripping and cutting, injection molding, semi-automatic crimping, and auto- matic torquing. In general, most of the processes are still manual. We have to identify more opportu- nities for things that don't have to be explic- itly manual or where those steps feed into the processes. Right now, we have automatic wire strippers as an example, but you still have to inspect them before they go to the next man- ual process. ere are opportunities for auto- mation. What do you want an assembly house to know who might be adding box build to their business? What's the most critical to know? I will share this in my key- note, but one of the most important things is the importance of building up those process controls before your first delivery. Have those controls built into your sys- tem, because if you get to a point where you've accepted this order with a three-month delivery schedule, and then you find out about all the requirements, it's an uphill battle to figure things out quickly. To have a successful product launch, make sure you take the time to build it up in advance. Perfect, thank you. This is a great place to end. You're very welcome. SMT007 By establishing more in-process inspection controls, you don't have as much risk to final yield.