Vierling invests in new soldering line

Ebermannstadt, Germany. Vierling recently put a new soldering line into operation at its production facility. The company invested more than EUR 150,000 into the reflow oven at the heart of the system. Some smart thinking helped to complete the installation in record time, not to mention the assistance provided by neighboring company Kennametal. The system has been in daily use for one week now. This new soldering line will enable Vierling to manufacture electronic modules more quickly while ensuring cost-effective production with high quality and significantly lower energy consumption.

Installation in 1½ days
Vierling worked with employees of Dutch manufacturer Vitronics to install and get the new soldering line up and running in only 1½ days. “We started out by moving an existing line to another location in the production facility so we would have room for the new system”, according to Ralf Kraus, head of production at Vierling. “One of our employees had the brilliant idea to simply lubricate the feet of the four ton, roughly six meter long system with Vaseline. This made it possible to slide, thereby saving a good deal of time. Getting the system into the building in the first place required borrowing a heavy-duty fork lift from Kennametal.”

The heart of the soldering process
Vierling uses two soldering lines to manufacture its own telecommunications products as well as electronic equipment for other companies including Siemens, Fraunhofer IZT and Rupp & Hubrach. The new soldering line is a replacement for one of the existing production lines. At its heart is what is known as a reflow oven. Printed circuit boards with soldering paste and electronic components pass through the reflow oven at precisely controlled speeds and temperatures. “The soldering paste melts when exposed to the heat of the oven to ensure reliable connections between the components and the PCB”, explained Kraus. “The end result is a high-performance electronic module that we can install in aerial cameras, precision navigation systems or failsafe telecommunications test equipment, to name a few examples.”

Benefits in terms of quality, production costs and the environment
The new soldering line ensures high production quality while reducing unit costs and reducing the burden on the environment. The most critical factor here involves the low soldering temperatures which can be controlled with great precision. The maximum value of 250°C is about 30°C lower than the old system. This places less stress on the components and thus raises the production quality. The energy consumption is also reduced, thereby lowering production costs and decreasing the burden on the environment. The integrated automatic cleaning function also has a positive effect on the maintenance costs. The reflow oven is capable of soldering modules with very thick PCBs in a cost-effective manner, eliminating the need for the expensive technologies used previously. When necessary, it is also possible to generate an artificial nitrogen atmosphere in the oven so that the solder joints oxidize more slowly. This leaves more time for further processing while increasing the production quality.

Focusing on high-quality products
“Quality is everything at Vierling. Our aim is to use the new soldering line to continue manufacturing electronic modules which fulfill the highest global standards while keeping our prices competitive”, noted Wolfgang Peter, managing director of Vierling. “We have to compete against low-cost Asian suppliers every day. The only way for us to succeed is by offering the highest possible quality at the lowest feasible cost as part of a complete range of services including contract development and comprehensive testing. This is why we are focusing on technically challenging products where high quality is an absolute must, such as in the aviation, aerospace, nuclear power and automotive industries.”

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About Vierling
The Vierling Group is based in Ebermannstadt, Germany near Nuremberg and offers customized communications equipment, test equipment and electronic manufacturing services (EMS). Vierling Communications GmbH has a product portfolio that includes GSM, CDMA and UMTS gateways to enable efficient interconnectivity between mobile radio, VoIP and fixed networks as well as stationary and portable test and measurement solutions for telephone, DSL and broadband networks and IP-based services. Vierling Production GmbH develops and manufactures electronic equipment ranging from individual printed circuit boards to complex electronic systems for companies in diverse industries. The Vierling Group has two independent subsidiaries: Vierling Communication SAS based in Plaisir, France near Paris and Vierling Communications Inc. based in Tarrytown, New York (USA). The Vierling Group is represented by sales partners in more than 40 countries. For additional information, please visit www.vierling-group.com.

VIERLING Holding GmbH & Co. KG
Dr. Markus Diehl
Director Marketing
Pretzfelder Str. 21
91320 Ebermannstadt
Germany
Phone: +49 91 94 / 97 - 0
Fax: +49 91 94 / 97 - 105
E-mail: marketing@vierling.de
URL: www.vierling-group.com