Products

ALPHA® Liquid Soldering Flux and the Increase in Selective Soldering

There has been a rapid increase in the use of selective soldering equipment for PCB assembly driven by the need to reduce equipment costs, reduce equipment footprints and lower solder inventory cost. The reduction in the use of through hole devices has also hastened the move to increased selective soldering. However, there are some technical challenges that must be met when considering selective soldering, such as tighter component spacing, more complex board designs and the increased need to control flux spread.

ALPHA® Exactalloy® Tape & Reel Preforms Help Eliminate Wave Soldering

OEMs and their contract manufacturers are constantly challenged to stay competitive in today’s fast moving electronics assembly business.  A key challenge is to lower assembly process costs while maintaining high levels of solder joint reliability.  ALPHA® Preforms enable the elimination of the wave soldering step in a mixed technology process resulting in significantly lower process costs and strong solder joints.

Alpha ASPEN Identities Low Temperature Processing Value!

Conversations with OEMs and Component Suppliers clearly indicate that the market opportunity for low temperature soldering will continue to accelerate.  Aspen, our new interactive PC-based software app, is designed to help electronics assemblers determine if low temperature processing is a good "fit for use" or value creator for their process.

Alpha’s New Low Temperature Processing Creates Value

The farther into the future we go, the better we are able to make technology to work for us. As we improve our electronics connections get smaller, chips need more input and output, signals need to be sent quicker. With these electrical demands arises a need for improved techniques. Demand is created when companies can make use of simpler processing techniques that get the job done while providing financial, spatial, and environmental benefits.

SACX Plus Alloys, Their Value Really Adds Up!

Considering that generally at least 20% of wave solder alloy becomes solder dross and is recycled, an assembler consumes 1 kg of solder for every 200 boards they build. At this rate, even a small assembler, building 500 boards a day, consumes 2.5 kg’s of solder. That’s 625 kg’s per year.

If the assembler is buying 625 kgs of SAC305 solder bar per year and they are paying and average of $70.00 / kg for a total of $43,750, Ag accounts for approximately $19,500 of the total cost of that solder. With Ag prices at near all time highs, it make sense to find a lower cost alternative to SAC305.