Electronics - Metal Finishing

Latest News

U.S. Industrial Production Falls 0.5% in April
Decreases seen in automotive products, appliances, furniture, carpeting as well as miscellaneous durables.
IPC Wants Your 'Tin Whisker' Technical Papers
Previously unpublished abstracts sought for the 7th International Symposium on Tin Whiskers in November.
U.S. Economy Adds 165,000 Jobs in April
Jobless rate sits at 7.5%; March, February numbers revised upward.
Chinese Automaker BYD to Open First U.S. Plant
Southern California factory to produce high-tech buses.
Ron Bader Appointed Director of Sales, Enthone North America
Bader brings more than 30 years experience in management and the marketing and sales of electronics materials.

Podcasts

Metal Finishing Audio Newscast--January 9, 2013
Exclusive interview with Dan Dunigan and Kenn Leuzinger, founders of The Finishing Experts.
Metal Finishing Audio Newscast, December 18, 2012
Review of three independent manufacturing reports: the Federal Reserve's U.S. Industrial Production Summary for November; Association for Manufacturing Technology's October Orders Report; and the latest PMI Index from the Institute for Supply Management.
Metal Finishing Audio Newscast, August 14, 2012
Manufacturing technology orders; U.S. July unemployment report; SIFCO ASC featured on FOX Business Network's "Manufacturing Marvels" Show; AutoTechnology training programs; COATING 2012 technical sessions
Metal Finishing Audio Newscast, June 2012
NASF Annual Awards Presentation; Save the date for SUR/FIN 2013

Blogs

Guest Blog: Import Penetration Still Outweighs Reshoring Trend
Posted by Reg Tucker • 02 April 2013
BY MICHELE NASH-HOFF. In January, the U. S. Business and Industry Council released a report, "Import Penetration Rises again in 2011; Challenges Manufacturing Renaissance, Insourcing Claims,"...
tags: U.S. manufacturing, imports, reshoring
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Making Reviews Worthwhile for Employees and Managers Alike
Posted by Reg Tucker • 05 March 2013
BY MARKO DUFFY. It’s a new year, and if you’re like me you’re absolutely giddy over the excitement of starting another round of meaningful and impactful performance reviews...
tags: Performance appraisals, employee reviews, continuous improvement
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Automotive OEMs Are Riding the 'Wave'
Posted by Reg Tucker • 02 February 2013
Coming off a year which saw a rally in both automotive production and sales – mostly evident in the US and China – it’s not surprising to see that momentum course through the entire ...
tags: automotive parts suppliers, OEMs, powertrain, engine components
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Guest Blog: What a Plater Thinks of Masking for High-Tech Applications
Posted by Reg Tucker • 18 December 2012
By Marko Duffy. This is how we platers think it goes…An engineer calls his co-workers over to his cubicle to show the latest device he’s created—an intelligent, innovative work of t...
tags: electroless nickel, masking, profits
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Peter van Gorp

Ask The Expert

Rectifiers, Rectifier Controls
Peter van Gorp is the Technical Manager for Rectifiers and related products for American Plating Power, LLC. As a cofounder of the company, Peter is responsible for the production and test management of...

Features

Clean “As-Received?”
The "Cleaning Lady" and "Rocket Scientist" provide some actions that job shop owners can take to protect their production line against common cleaning pitfalls.
Members' Content
Unfinished Business—Thoughts of a Senior Plater, Part II
In Part II of what he calls his “swan song,” industry veteran John “Jack” Horner touches on a range of subjects, from Ni electroplating from a sulfamate plating solution, to anodizing Ni, to zinc as an undercoating for Cu-Ni-Cr on steel.
"Unfinished” Business—Thoughts of a Senior Plater, Part I
In this retrospective piece, industry veteran John “Jack” Horner reflects on the early research and development and testing that spurred innovations in modern plating.
New Developments in DC Acid Copper for Vertical Plating Tanks
Acid copper plating has come a long way since the early days of double- and single-sided printed wiring boards. This article discusses how the North American printed circuit business continues to adjust to the every-changing landscape of global market conditions.

Downloads

Nano-crystalline Sn-Co-X Alloy Alternative to Decorative Chromium Plating
The nano-crystalline Sn-Co-X(M13) plating alloy coating, intended as a alternative to decorative chromium, shows similar color and excellent corrosion.
The Right Surface Preparation for Electronic Components
As a knowledgeable metal finisher who understands the potential detrimental effects of both ionic and non-ionic residue, you can be the solution, not the source of the problem. Metal finishers who supply parts to electronic assemblers can be good partners by recognizing the importance of adequate contaminant removal.
Zincate- or Stannate–Free Plating
For more than 80 years now the most generally accepted process for the preparation of aluminum and it alloys for plating has involved the use of a “zincate” or “stannate” processing solution. Environmental issues relative to the use of these processes are becoming more and more of a problem. The process itself is long and involved and will differ from one alloy to another. This article presents a much more environmentally acceptable alternative that is considerably easier to work with, gives far more consistent results and is more cost effective.
Electroless Nickel/Immersion Silver—A New Surface Finish for PCB Applications
This paper expands on the work conducted in 2010’s “A New Surface Finish for the Electronics Industry [2].” Process flow and the associated chemical steps will be discussed to alleviate concerns of fabrication difficulties. This work will detail additional performance characterization and discuss the surface finish performance on a production scale. The test data presented will include solderability, tarnish and corrosion resistance, aluminum wire bonding and contact performance.
Self-Healing, Chromate-free Conversion Coating for Magnesium Alloys
Magnesium and its alloys are increasingly being used in a wide range of applications, from aircraft to motor vehicles to consumer electronics because of the low density, high specific strength and stiffness [1-5]. However, since magnesium exhibits high chemical and electrochemical activity, its alloys suffer from poor corrosion resistance, often leading to structural or mechanical failure. Magnesium corrodes rapidly when exposed to salt water, moisture or acidic liquids or gases. Many methods have been used to protect magnesium alloys by inhibiting corrosion or slowing down the reaction mechanisms, including use of conversion coatings, anodizing, electroplating and addition of corrosion inhibitors.

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