Importance of international standards
25 March 2011
Internationally recognised standards are important for manufacturers and suppliers alike
The automotive industry is following other manufacturing sectors in expecting OEMs to assemble products to a recognised standard of quality, safety and reliability.
One such standard is the IPC Group of standards, which was originally formed by major global companies including Boeing, NASA, Hewlett Packard, Raytheon, BAE Systems and Nokia. The association ensures that sub-contractors’ quality is maintained at an appropriate recognised worldwide level of standard classification. The standard is already accepted by multinational OEMs across many sectors, including aerospace and defence contractors, amongst others.
Since 1995, when IPC’s first training and certification programme was launched, many major equipment manufacturers such as Celestica, Solectron, Flextronics, Sanmina-SCI, Ericsson, Bosch and SAAB have participated in formulating and enhancing the standards as well as fulfilling them. Today, organisations of all sizes, including those involved in supplying electronic-based products to the automotive industry, can benefit from implementing IPC standards through having trained, certified operators, in key positions of the electronic production process, from design through to inspection.
IPC offers five globally-recognised, industry-traceable training and certification programmes covering Bare Boards, Soldering, Product Assembly, Cable and Wire Harness Assembly, and Reworking, Repair and Modification of Electronics Assemblies and printed boards.
One of the most popular courses is the IPC A-610 Electronics Assemblies – Application Specialist course. The IPC A-610 Standard is the most widely used electronics assembly standard in the world and as such, the course focuses on workmanship criteria for various aspects of electronics assemblies. The course covers topics such as component orientation and soldering criteria for through-hole and surface-mount technology and discrete wiring assemblies, mechanical assembly, cleaning, marking, coating and laminate requirements, as well as issues around the use of leaded and lead-free soldering.
The importance of having key personnel properly trained and fully versed in each relevant standard is to ensure they understand the quality issues at every stage in the company’s electronics production process. A course such as the IPC 610 provides each student with detailed knowledge of the standard, so that it can be applied appropriately. Certification in this industry-traceable programme can be an integral element in meeting the requirements of other quality standards such as ISO9001, as well as demonstrating a company’s commitment to continuous improvement of product quality and reliability.
Eric Hinsley, training centre manager at Electronics Yorkshire, said: ‘Having staff working to IPC standards helps ensure that appropriate quality levels are maintained for use throughout all electronics procedures and the automotive industry is no different.’
In an increasingly competitive global market having staff trained to the IPC standard is no longer simply a differentiating factor, as they are fast becoming a pre-requisite for many companies that depend on electronic components and products.
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