EPAC BV invests in Selective Soldering machine from Pillarhouse
EPAC BV Weert (NL) manufactures customer specific printed circuit assemblies, where not only the SMD components but also the thru hole components require perfect soldering. With its investment in the popular Pillarhouse Jade MK-II selective soldering machine, the company guarantees its customers high quality solder joints.
EPAC has a wide range of customers who integrate their products in different applications. This means that the company must be able to respond to many different demands of their customers, ranging from cable production to electronics production in small and large quantities. Notwithstanding that nowadays a lot of components are processed in SMD, there are still a number of conventional components, in particular displays, connectors and power components that have to be soldered manually or mechanically.
“With the request for more double-sided reflow in combination with power components, we have been looking for a high quality and flexible solution for quite some time now. "says Arno Boot, owner of EPAC BV. "The supply of selective soldering brands is large and we had to weigh our investment against manual soldering.”
Selective soldering provides a high quality soldered connection and is also aesthetically better because no resin or flux residues remain on the PCB. Depending on the application, each soldering point can be soldered individually or in series. Not so much the higher speed, but the repeatability, quality and stability of the process are decisive purchasing factors.
"We tested different manufacturers and systems, both standalone and inline, but immediately after the first demonstration at Smd-Tec we were impressed with the ease of use, flexibility and results of the Pillarhouse Jade machine", says Florin Ciubotariu, production manager at EPAC BV. "To be completely sure of the capabilities, we did an additional test on a product with a very small pitch in combination with long pins, and also on that challenging product the machine gave perfect results."
The manufacturer of the Jade MKII machine Pillarhouse has over 30 years of experience and a very large install base at both world-renowned and less well-known companies. Its Jade MKII platform is the world’s most popular and best-selling standalone selective soldering machine.
"It pleases to once again proof that this machine has one of the best quality / price ratios, which results in a record sales year in the Benelux," says Tom Van Tongelen, Smd-Tec managing director. "Many customers find it a difficult ROI calculation, but bottom line is that it’s an investment that earns itself back in a very short time, because we time and time again make the un-solderable solderable."
