Build

Our focus is on delivering the highest levels of quality, with high-speed responsiveness and clear communication throughout our manufacturing process and in our interactions with clients, suppliers and team members. We combine this approach with our 2-Second Lean Manufacturing principles and systems to bring your products to market—better, faster and smarter.

Recognized for our operational excellence and product build quality, we deliver your vision—from new product introduction through to volume assembly. We continue to invest in our People and Processes with the aim of growing our people, improving productivity, achieving the highest levels of quality and responsiveness, as well as ownership throughout the product lifecycle.

From NPI to Volume Production – we’ll help take your product from small volume/ sample builds to the volume the market demands. We build a high-mix of technologies and products from low volumes to full-scale manufacturing. New Product Introduction is what we do – be that a brand new/ just out of development product or a product new to us/ our manufacturing, we have the experience in manufacturing and the agile mindset and approach, we deliver for you.

Quick-Turn Prototypes:

Having led hundreds of new product introductions over the years, we understand that our customers value three criteria in a prototype manufacturing process above all else:

(1) Good and detailed communication/ reporting on what went well, what were the problems and proposals on improvements for next time.

(2) A tightly controlled, and quick delivery from the, process

(3) A willingness on our part to live with ambiguity and change which is part and parcel of all new product introduction in our experience.

Prototype builds need to be viewed positively by all and the ideal time to contribute to substantial changes in the design, such as those that improve manufacturability and reduce cost. This is beneficial to all and is central to our approach in all Prototype builds.

More than Prototypes

NPI is more than just Prototype builds of course. Our NPI processes are designed to eliminate waste to the greatest extent possible together with the associated costs resulting in more efficient project start-ups. Our experience working on New Product Introduction has taught us the importance of a dedicated product launch team. When a new product is in the early planning stages, workers representing all the major areas of the factory are brought together to an office area we call our Obeya room where, as a team, they help in conjunction with you, our client, plan the launch of manufacturing of your product. All involved work hard and ensure the development of control plans, training requirements, test protocols etc and of course the initial standardized work to be used when the product is first launched. The standardized process is then turned over to the production teams to improve.

PCB assembly - 0201 to µBGA

CW Applied Technology offers leadership and experience to our clients in advanced PCB Assembly technology, with tried and tested processes and a full range of services, servicing clients who are household names to those taking the first steps for their start-up and many more in between. From prototyping, low to medium volume, low and high mix manufacturing. We provide Printed Circuit Board Assembly services in our facility in Shannon, Ireland. Our PCBA and surface mount (SMT) capabilities include:

•Placement of 0201 components, fine pitch and high count BGAs, connectors, inductors & transformers, active and passive components etc. Thru’ hole component placement.

•Wave & manual soldering, double and single sided reflow.

•Quick turn prototype assembly, RoHS compliance certification, conformal coating, potting.

•Inspection and testing using AOI.

•Comprehensive electrical testing and test system development, functional test and burn in test as required.

Conformal Coating

When electronics must withstand harsh environments and added protection is necessary, we will coat your assemblies with a layer of transparent conformal coating. The type of conformal coating we apply will be dictated by the intended ultimate environment the assemblies will ‘witness’. We also have potting available as an option.

Potting

Potting is a process we often use and consists of filling a complete electronic assembly with a solid or gelatinous compound to provide resistance to shock and vibration and water proofing/ exclusion of corrosive agents if such is necessary. We have used a variety of thermosetting plastics, silicone rubber gels and epoxy resins. A downside is the increase in weight of the product but depending on the application this may not be significant. The requirement or otherwise for potting will, as in the case of conformal coating, be determined by the environment in which the electronic assembly will operate.

Automated Optical Inspection

We put all of our electronic assemblies through Automated Optical Inspection (AOI). Automated optical inspection is an automated visual inspection of printed circuit board manufacture where a camera autonomously scans the device under test for (1) confirmation of correct assembly, (2) identifying potential catastrophic failure and also (3) quality defects. It is a non-contact test method. We use it as part of our one piece flow manufacturing system and ensures early detection of issues, allowing for timely corrective/preventive action and prevents transfer of a quality issue from one process to the next.

Wave Soldering

We use a mix of wave soldering and hand soldering when we are dealing with thru’hole components. In instances where components cannot handle the heat of a wave soldering system, we will use hand soldering. With wave soldering, a complete board can be soldered in a matter of seconds (i.e. much faster than hand soldering), producing joints that are reliable both mechanically and electrically. Where SMT assembly is the predominant technology, we rarely use wave soldering and rely almost exclusively on the contactless benefit of reflow soldering.

Thru’ Hole Component Placement

The traditional leaded components which are assembled and soldered through holes on the PCB have been the core of the electronics assembly industry for many years. Many components remain unavailable in Surface Mount Technology due to their requirement for power consumption and/or strong mechanical connection with the PCB. Components such as electrolytic capacitors, transformers, connectors, relays etc. This is why despite the continuing development towards surface mount technology (SMT) and the increased complexity of printed circuit boards, today thru’ hole assembly still has a significant part to play in electronic product design and manufacturing.

CW Applied Technology provides manual (hand assembly) through-hole assembly. We have a very experienced team, highly trained to IPC Standards. We specialize in manual through-hole assembly and hand as well as wave soldering of components.

PCB Cleaning

When cleaning PCB assemblies, the goal is to remove resin and flux residues from populated boards as well as any production related residues created by handling. For most applications, the use of “no-clean” solders and fluxes works well and no cleaning process steps are required. Some assemblies however, particularly those that will find applications in industries such as automotive, military and aerospace, often require the use of PCB cleaning. We have both the equipment and various options in regard to cleaning agents available in-house if required.

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Functional Testing

CW Applied Technology offers a complete functional test / final test of all types of electronics products (PCBs or systems/devices) dependent on our customers’ requirements. Our customers may undertake to provide this functional test or request that we design and implement it. Depending on the complexity involved, we can offer a functional test, in which all electrical functions (or those determined by our customer as the most critical/significant functions) are tested before delivery. We can also test specific PCBs before the final assembly into the enclosure/device. After assembling of the final enclosure/device, we can perform a Burn-in Test if required.

Additionally, before packing and shipping, we will perform a final out-of-box test and inspection, making sure that everything is ready for the end-user of the product/system. Our test department offers all types of functional testing designs. We will pre-load our customers software/firmware and pre-install applications and operating systems if required.

CW Applied Technology, as part of our traceability system, will store test data on our servers so that our clients can always track individual test results to specific PCBs.

Cable Assembly

As part of our full turnkey solution, we can offer both cable design and manufacturing services. As a key aim of our Turnkey service, we can provide our customers with a complete custom cable solution. We will review the product interconnection needs, review with you our proposed connectivity solutions, develop the necessary design and manufacturing documentation and manufacture within the same controlled environment in which we complete all of our manufacturing service.

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