Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1527952
68 PCB007 MAGAZINE I OCTOBER 2024 Article by Happy Holden I-CONNECT007 An essential skill for any process engineer in printed circuit fabrication is the ability to conduct root-cause analysis (RCA) and prob- lem-solving. ese are related to TQC and Six Sigma applications and are essential for customer support and continued profitabil- ity. All engineers will encounter these meth- ods sooner or later, but it will likely be sooner if you are in product or process engineering in manufacturing. I started my career in IC fabrication at Hewlett-Packard aer serving in the Army and completing my graduate studies. In 1970, I was asked to help the PCB fabrication team members with some of their technical prob- lems. I had two tools that most engineers in the PCB plant didn't have at that time: engineer- ing statistics, including design of experiments (DOE), and experience with problem-solving (TQC) (Figure 1). In electronics manufacturing today, prob- lems in production could involve numer- ous customers, so customer communication is essential. e timing of this communica- tion depends on how quickly the supplier is expected to correct the issue. Feedback should Root-cause Analysis and Problem-solving Figure 1: Root-cause and problem-solving tools.