Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1525368
34 PCB007 MAGAZINE I AUGUST 2024 It's not analyzed every four hours to fix the bath, but to verify you're not getting variabil- ity. Why isn't everyone doing that today? Space is a big consideration. Many shops are already space-constrained and simply don't have the space needed to put in a chemical management system. In California, where real estate is really expensive, you have a wet area for an existing shop that's grandfathered in at a specific square footage. As long as you stay within that square footage, there's one set of rules; but everything changes the minute you want to expand. It becomes very expensive, and there will likely be delays as you work with government agencies. Business owners don't like opening that can of worms. Space and environmental regulation barriers make sense. Yes, but it's getting more attention in the indus- try, especially given the movement toward sub- strate technology manufacturing and sub-lams, which are built to bridge the packaging gap between semiconductors and circuit boards. We should use data like semiconductor com- panies do. ey need well-defined procedures and processes to keep yields up and reduce scrap rates. ey must operate with tight con- trol because they're pushing for sub-micron lines and spaces, and many pro- cess-related things can get in the way of achieving that. We must strive to be as tightly controlled and lean as possible and have the data to back that up. Times are changing. As we created and built our equipment, we always did so with an eye toward integrating things that would make it easier for the engineer and the operator to build a bath, automatically or manually. How much of the different chem- istries must be added? Where are the fill marks on the tanks? What are the parameters of each tank? e business owners and process engineering managers all get it. It comes down to whether they have the space available to automate or whether it will happen over time as they figure out how they can profitably introduce these updated machines. It brings to bear the reality of needing a well-thought-out and comprehensive strategy to add dosing technology or any other wet process control mechanism to your lines, whatever that may look like. Don't be a one-move chess player. Strategy matters. ink about all the pieces of the puz- zle you need to manipulate to get your wet floor into its final configuration. When you look at buying infrastructure, like exhaust ventilation, waste treatment, makeup, and air—all these expensive infrastructural things that you don't want to change out later must be designed up front into those core systems to support those chess moves that get you where you want to be. If you do all that work upfront, you can get esti- mates, put a safety factor on it, and ultimately, make better decisions. Absolutely. Thank you, Mike. PCB007 Sponsored link: IPS-VCM.com