Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/609948
8 SMT Magazine • December 2015 by Stephen Las marias i-ConnECT007 eDITor'S noTe observations from productronica 2015 ColuMn Perhaps I could consider it a milestone. For the past decade I have been familiar with pro- ductronica, through editing articles and press releases about exhibitors' technologies. But it's only this year, the event's 40th year, that I was able to go to Munich, enjoy the cold weather— which, according to most people I met at the show, was the hottest one yet—and see what productronica really is like. And it was just as I expected. It was so big that four days weren't enough to really cover it all. Taking up seven halls of the Messe Munchen— Halls A1 to A4 and B1 to B3—productronica was massive in terms of PCB and SMT equip- ment and systems technology showcase. From materials to equipment to software, the show provided a snapshot of the technologies behind the global electronics manufacturing and pro- duction industry. While some people said there weren't really any new "Wow!" technologies, the show fea- tured interesting innovations designed to make PCB production and assembly more efficient, of higher quality, and as fast as possible (reduced cycle times). From the latest innovations in dispensing technology to inspection and vision systems, higher performance solder materials and solder masks, new conformal coatings and adhesives, even state-of-the-art squeegees and cabinets, it was a lot to take in for a first-timer like me. Apart from the equipment and materials showcase, what I observed during the four days of running from hall to hall to talk to customers and partners, were the proliferation of robotics systems and automation. More and more elec- tronics manufacturers seem to have been adopt- ing collaborative robots to further improve their manufacturing processes—that is, based on the number of robotic systems I've seen around the show floor. (One robot stationed at the entrance to the exhibition center danced to the tune of "Gangnam Style.") Another noticeable trend was automation. Everywhere you looked, banners and posters proclaimed multiple reasons behind the need