Regional standards becoming global
28 August 2007
A globalisation of standards in the electronics manufacturing industry means that regional standards have been affected by legislation on a worldwide basis. IPC standards are now not only relevant to North America, but to the industry throughout the world.
2007 marks the 50th anniversary of IPC, a global trade association that brings together industry players, designers, board manufacturers, suppliers and OEMs. IPC began in 1957 in conjunction with the birth of printed circuit board interconnect technology.
IPC (The Industry of Printed Circuits) began in 1957 in conjunction with the birth of a new industry, printed circuit board interconnect technology. A number of key objectives were outlined from the start, one of these being to develop standards and specifications to provide believable yardsticks for manufacturers and users to move forward in utilising products of the new industry. In 1958, IPC published a book titled How to Design and Specify Printed Circuits, and developed a “round robin” test program to compare plated-through holes with eyelets and grommets. IPC also initiated a monthly statistical program and agreed to open membership to users — original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
Over the subsequent decades, IPC published numerous standards such as IPC-300 Dimensions and Tolerances for Single- and Double-Sided PWBs and IPC-A-610, Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies. Thousands of individuals have been involved in the creation and development of IPC standards.
In 1983, IPC released IPC-A-610, Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies. IPC has published more than 200,000 printed copies of this document since 1983, with hundreds of thousands of electronic file users. The IPC-A-610 is the most published and most referenced standard in IPC’s history. Today, the document is also available in many different languages, showing how standards have now become truly global.
This standard also launched IPC’s Certification and Training programs. In 1994, IPC implemented the first program based on IPC-A-610B, Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies. Today, IPC-A-610 training is now conducted in many languages around the world and has a user base of more than 10,000 instructor certifications. These instructors, in turn, have trained nearly 125,000 engineers, operators, inspectors, buyers and members of management teams. In addition, this certification program spawned a number of other IPC certification efforts. Three of IPC’s certification programs reinforce discrimination skills and support the visual acceptance criteria in IPC-A-600, Acceptability of Printed Boards, IPC-A-610, Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies, and IPC/WHMA-A-620, Requirements and Acceptance of Cable and Wire Harness Assemblies.
While industry feedback is a mainstay of the IPC standards development process, the other important ingredient is the participation of IPC’s volunteers. Although standards in some regions of the world are developed by a single expert, volunteers have the lead in every step of the development of IPC standards. In most cases, even the original draft is written by volunteer members of IPC committees. Everyone in the industry, regardless of their IPC membership status, can participate in the development process by submitting comments and reviewing drafts. The process of reaching consensus among opposing points of view among competitors or suppliers and users increases the robustness of the documents. Active committee participants become experts or create new relationships with experts. As Cleaning & Coating Committee Chairman Doug Pauls of Rockwell Collins notes, “The best investment I ever made was becoming involved with the IPC committees. It is how industry experts are made. I may not always know the answer, but I usually know someone who does.”
Technology exchange has been an essential part of IPC programming. Semi-annual meetings provide the opportunity for exchange of knowledge through papers presented at individual committee meeting sessions, through major technical seminars on significant topics of the day, and through evening workshops. An example of how information and standards are becoming worldwide is how Global RoHS harmonization was back in the spotlight recently at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), which IPC attended.
Because of constant industry input, IPC standards are moving into new areas for the organization and for the industry. In the last few years, IPC has developed original standards for optoelectronics, air movement devices, XML data transfer, and materials declaration. IPC has created committees in China that are already contributing to document creation and development. As printed board and electronics manufacturing technology evolves, and as the industry expands ever more globally, IPC’s standards will continue to serve the industry.
Contact Details and Archive...
Most Viewed Articles...