IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
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IPC COMMUNITY 38 SPRING 2024 Dan agrees on the need for an advanced skill set. "You are making changes on the fly, and just because you are good at soldering doesn't mean you are a good rework technician," he says. "You must understand how that board is put together. You cannot rush it. It takes patience to get it right." Agnieszka joined the committee revising IPC-7711/21 in 2012. "I had a lot of experience in reworking electronic assemblies and could provide practical tips to the procedures in IPC- 7711," she says. "I enjoyed committee meetings at IPC APEX EXPO very much. The learning curve is amazing. Everybody has an opinion; everyone contributes their experiences, and I found it so helpful in my job." She knew that the changes were decided by a group of experts, not just one person. "Com- mittee meetings, especially in person, are the best," Agnieszka says. "It helps to know that new technologies are coming into the document, so I look forward to conducting training on the new revision." Because the skill set of the technician/oper- ator is much more important now, the changes to IPC-7711/21 reflect that by listing the skill set necessary for each procedure. "Pictorials are very popular," Dan says. "We ensured that all the figures represented exactly what we were showing. That makes it so much easier for anyone reading the guidelines. So much has changed due to all the different mate- rials. Lead-free is new, conformal coatings are new, and the technology is so different. This all requires a much higher skill set." Both Dan and Agnieszka have a favorite proce- dure in IPC-7711/21. "My favorite is the removal of components by using solder wrapped around the part, which minimizes heat application in the rework area," Agnieszka says. "My goal is to advise students to choose an effective rework method that will not damage the assembly but save it and make it functional." Dan likes the machine procedures, such as those for a BGA. "If you have a time-temperature profile set up, the technician can follow all the precautions, push a button, and let it do its job," he says. The work of IPC standards development, revi- sion, and editing prepares committee mem- bers and the global electronics manufacturing industry for what to expect from rapid changes in procedures and processes.