Dedication: This page is dedicated to all of the manufacturing engineers and technicians in the electronic manufacturing industry. It is this circle of very talented people who have been largely responsible for harnessing our rapidly changing electronics technology - as I am fond of saying, "producing space-age products for stone-age prices." This accelerating increase in product "value" - that has become the consumer's best friend - would not be possible without creative component interconnecting and the development of robust assembly processes - truly, a marvelous example of the powerful combination of man and machine.

Page Mission: The intent of this page is to serve the family of Kurt Whitlock Associates' customers and other members of the electronic manufacturing community. This service will be through providing helpful information about all aspects of electronic product design, development and manufacturing through: a monthly column, question and answer forum, and occasional "real time" chat sessions on topical subjects.

One way to approach the individual roles we each play for the companies in which we work is to ask ourselves what "value" do we bring to the job. One way to answer this question is to establish our personal "cost" to the company and compare it to the "benefits" we provide.

Ideally, our individual rate of compensation is a measure of this value which, said another way, is a combination of:

1. the price the market places on the skills we bring to the job, and
2. the proficiency with which we execute those skills.

In accounting parlance, for organizations that are structured by "functional departments," (e.g., "Passive Component Procurement") - as opposed to self-directed "product teams," (e.g., "Material Procurement for the 'Pie-in-the-sky' in-fight microwave oven Model 2000"), we either belong to a "P and L center" (profit and loss center) or a pure "cost center."

The Production Department is generally a P / L Center since it is this group that converts work-in-process (WIP) to shippable, billable product. If the difference between the sum of all the costs involved in producing the product and the price the product is sold for is positive, we make a profit. If the difference is negative, the company suffers a loss. If we are suffering a loss, the more we ship, the more we lose! We are effectively wrapping a $1, or $5 or maybe even a $10 bill around each assembly we ship - hey, slow down Production!!

My point here is that we must add up all the costs including those that affect direct labor cost, not just the "theoretical" direct labor cost. If a board is not designed for Produceability - cost is added in production. If a component we select can not be auto-placed reliably because of component quality issues- cost is added in production. If the no-clean solder paste residues are not pin-testable and cause false test failures - cost is added in production. If we are not responsive or are uncooperative to the customer who calls in for the status of her job and she pulls the business - we indirectly add cost to production. You get the idea.

Why is this Accounting 101 lesson important to each of us? Because whether we are categorized as being in a P / L center or a pure cost center, we each represent a cost that is added to the total cost of the products we build - either directly or indirectly. Our individual positive output, or "benefit," when measured against this individual "cost" is called our individual productivity (Sometimes we say this is a measure of, "how well we do our job"). This is true whether we hand-solder components to a circuit board, design the circuit board, operate a pick-and-place machine, select component suppliers, order copy machine paper or greet people in the lobby.

Add up each individual's productivity in an organization (including those of upper management - the most difficult to get good value out of because they cost the most!) and you have the total company's productivity. Those companies with high productivity compete well, and thrive. Those with low productivity can1t compete, and wither on the vine.

So, what does all of this have to do with processing 0201 components? The narrower the process window we have to work in, the harder it is to develop a capable process, and the more critical it is we minimize variability around the process we develop. Now, those of us who work with 12 mil pitches and no-clean solder technology say, "Amen!"

On the other side of the ledger, 0201 components bring some distinct advantages to the circuit board design table. Does this added value out-weigh the added costs (all the added costs)?