PCB Manufacturing, Assembly & Test Blog

Hi there I spent last week in the wonderful town of Zug about 45 minutes from Zurich in Switzerland. My European colleagues organized a two day seminar for over 60 of our Valor MSS Process Preparation customers at the Siemens facility in Zug. The agenda consisted of some Valor presentations, Valor demostrations of the upcoming software, presentations by actual users of the Process Preparation software … Read More

programming, AVL, process, AOI, data preparation, documentation, Flying Probe, bill of materials, ICT, BOM, Design For Test, vPlan, testability, VPL, stencil

Hi there This week sees the all new Valor MSS 11.2 version that supports all areas of PCB Process Engineering and Shop Floor. One of the new features of this release is the ability to include Automated Optical Inspection (AOI) machines in-line with the SMT placement machines. This provides the ability to create specific AOI programs depending on where the machine is in the line relative to the point … Read More

data preparation, approved vendor list, vPlan, AOI, BOM, process, AVL, programming, bill of materials

Hi there One of the least efficient areas in PCB assembly concerns the creation and management of package data that will be consumed across the shop-floor. For example DFM processes rely on accurate package data to determine component to component spacing issues or using accurate pin terminus contact data to ensure that solder joints will form correctly. Accurate package data is critical for DFT analysis … Read More

programming, AOI, bill of materials, mixed vendor, process, documentation, data preparation, Design For Test, Flying Probe, ICT, BOM, VPL, vPlan, stencil, testability

Hi there One of the largest groups of users within Valor MSS Process Preparation for SMT programming is those supporting ASM, formerly Siemens, pick and place machines. ASM has released their OIB interface as a single API for both programming and monitoring for external applications to use. This has the benefit for third party applications to have an open interface that can be programmed to consistently … Read More

process, programming, data preparation, ASM, SIPLACE, OIB, vPlan, mixed vendor

Hi there Spreadsheets are probably one of the most useful applications for computers. They were also the “killer app” that allowed computers to take off to the masses. So we have relied more and more on them for every day tasks. One area they are playing a role is in the prioritization of production work orders. It is not uncommon to have to determine which of hundreds of work orders each … Read More

process, Sequence, bill of materials, Planning, vPlan, BOM, data preparation

The Valor MSS Suite is now part of Mentor Ideas. I have started this collaborative activity by posting a number of the existing suggestions our customers have provided to give visibility to others to review, provide feedback on as well as to promote and demote. You are also invited to add your own ideas and allow others to comment on those too. As the Product Manager for the Valor MSS Engineering applications … Read More

suggestion, stencil, documentation, Enhancement, process, idea