Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/921680
JANUARY 2018 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 19 Communication Nargi-Toth says that now, more OEMs and designers get in touch with them early on. "I would say we engage with the OEM in about 50% of our relationships. We do a lot of work directly with the OEM, especially on the medi - cal side, because we work together with them thr ough the FDA process. We help them to lock down materials and processes. For these types of projects, we are involved with the design - ers at the beginning," she says. "With flex and rigid-flex projects, the designer wants you to be involved early because they have a concept and often they need our help to figure out how best to get what they need on the board and get the board folded into the final package. It becomes a mechanical as well as electrical design proj - ect from the beginning, so we certainly can add value by our early involvement." Turpin prefers to get involved from the begin- ning. "Last year we acquired a design service bureau, so we could have the scale and the toolsets to be able to do the layout on pretty much any platform. And that has worked, so the extent that we can get involved in the begin- ning, do the layout up front, and take care of all those issues and make the bare board fabrica- tor's life easier, make our life easier, and gener- ally make it up. We're reliable, cost-effective, with quicker time to market," says Turpin. "In some cases, the OEM will have their own engi- neers. And, generally, when they're doing their own layout—which is probably half the time if we're not doing the layout—our customer has a dedicated designer who knows what they're doing, and they will almost always look for input before they release the final package." "In other words, to do one final look through a DFM and DFA to bring out any things that may have been missed or, particularly with the new package types, we always get calls from designers in our customer base when they are using a new package, in terms of talking about what footprint to put in a design. Because most of them are smart enough not to use the footprint that the manufacturer gives. They'll use that as a basis, but they'll always tweak it based on something. But it's not enough. I Figure 2: Investing in equipment is essential to keep pace with the driving forces of ever-evolving technology. (Photo Courtesy: Zentech Manufacturing)