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September 2015 • SMT Magazine 87 requirements, manufacturing requirements and environmental considerations. From a performance requirement point of view, the manufacturer must consider the end operating environment and determine likely minimum and maximum operating tempera- tures, consider the likelihood of splash or im- mersion in water or liquid spills, humidity/con- densation and chemical exposures (e.g., salt- spray), corrosive gases or unintentional oil spills. From an environmental point of view, the use of solvents needs to be considered, along with other chemicals that may be banned by com- pany policy or international regulations such as RoHS, REACH, etc. Finally, the manufacturer must give con- sideration to the possible coating application methods that may be used to manufacture the assembly and assess likely impacts on manufac- turing throughputs, floor space requirements, Work in Process (WIP) and manufacturing ve- locity. They must also ensure that their applica- tion process and material selection work togeth- er to give an acceptably defect-free process that meets their end reliability requirements. Considering these key areas together, a man- ufacturer may find that a material that performs well in all three consideration factors may be more suitable for their purposes than a mate- rial that has excellent environmental charac- teristics, but does not suit their manufacturing processes. Las Marias: what new advances are available for conformal coatings? Kinner: We have two new advances in confor- mal coating, along with several key improve- ments to existing technologies. One is a new, non-flammable, liquid applied ultra-thin coat- ing material being launched at Productroni- ca in November 2015. The key benefit of this technology, apart from the non-flammable nature, is the ease of processing—the entire as- sembly can simply be dipped in the liquid ma- terial without needing to be masked. The ma- terial provides a degree of protection against humidity, condensation and corrosive gases. The other is a range of VOC-free, polyurethane materials, designed to be selectively coated and cured within 10 minutes at 80°C. These materi- als have been extensively tested and proven to provide outstanding performance under a wide range of conditions, in particular thermal shock resistance, humidity, condensation, salt-spray and chemical resistance. Electrolube has worked hard to produce im- proved conformal coatings that offer enhanced application properties, especially sharp edge coverage, as well as improving thermal shock resistance and adhesion. For example, Electrol- ube has developed a demonstrably stronger ad- hesion, solvent-based acrylic, with exceptional scratch resistance and sharp-edge coverage, de- signed especially for selective coating processes. Las Marias: has the increase in automotive elec- tronics had an effect on your business? if yes, please explain. Kinner: Apart from the increased fiscal bene- fits, the main effect has been the requirement to implement more robust systems and proce- dures, to ensure we can make a quality product precisely, consistently, efficiently and safely, to provide our customers the level of confidence they require from their suppliers. Year on year, our automotive clients raise the bar with their expectations from both a manufacturing per- spective, but perhaps just as importantly from a product development point of view. We are consistently driven to produce products that solve the ever-increasing challenges in process and performance issues faced by our customers and innovating new solutions to meet the rapid advances in electronics manufacturing, which is the foundation of our culture and our success. Las Marias: what qualifications are required for your company to get on an automaker's accred- ited vendors list? what about approvals or certifi- cations? Kinner: It is necessary to have a strong quality management system, but more than that, to have an attitude towards continuous improve- ment and minimizing defects and errors. This needs to be part of the company culture and a willingness to supplement the quality frame- work with additional tools and procedures to CHOOsING tHe rIGHt CONFOrmAL COAtING continues FeAture interview