Dear List,

I recently contacted the Australian Surface Mount and Circuit Board Association
with some technical questions relating to PCB manufacturing, but their
instructors are currently traveling and Dianne Hunt recommended that I contact
Technet.  I am a student at the University of Cincinnati and my teammate and I
must write a report describing in detail how a circuit board is manufactured.
I recognize that you are certainly not employed to assist college students with
technical questions, but if you have a moment and could address the following
points without too much trouble, I would very much appreciate your help.

Our circuit board comes from a smoke detector and is approximately 1.5” by
3.5”.  It contains both surface mount (resistors, capacitors, etc.) and through-
hole components (ionization chamber, electric horn, battery contacts, etc.).
These components are placed on ONE SIDE ONLY.  We have tentatively drawn up the
following process steps.
1.      Screen Print Solder Paste on side one
2.      Place surface mount components on side one
3.      Dry paste
4.      Reflow Solder
5.      Insert through hole components on side one
6.      Invert Board and apply adhesive on side two
7.      Wave solder
8.      Final Clean

Question 1. Does the process described above seem reasonable?  In particular,
is step 6 necessary if all components are applied to one side only?

Question 2. What type of batch sizes would be reasonable in “low volume” and
in “high volume” processes for a board of this type and size?

Question 3. What would be approximate setup and run times for each process?  We
need these times both for our process route sheets and as input into our cost
analysis.

Question 4. Is it possible to purchase the board itself (without the components
attached) from an outside vendor and to simply attach the components in-house?
Or does the manufacture of the board and the soldering processes by which the
components are attached constitute one continuous process?  If the board itself
can be purchased outside, how much might it cost given low and high volumes?

Question 5.  Does you know of any companies that manufacture special through-
hole components such as the electric horn and the ionization chamber?  Do you
know where prices on such components, and more common components such as
resistors and capacitors, could be obtained?

If you could spare us a few minutes of your time we would be most grateful.  If
you feel that you can assist with some questions, but not with others we would
still appreciate any insights you can offer.  If you know of anyone else who
might be able to help, please feel free to forward this message on.  The
project is due in less than two weeks so timely responses would be fantastic.
Thank you in advance for your help.

Sincerely,

Daniel Themann
Arthur Jackson

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