By MB Allen, KIC Industry 4.0 Over the last few years I’ve talked to many people about Industry 4.0: the trend, the challenges, the hype, and more recently, the reality. We finally appear to be in a phase where, while there’s no silver bullet, there numerous solutions...

How the Factory Ecosystem Positively Drives Exponential Value By Freddie Chan, KIC We have all learned that synergy means 2 + 2 = 5. This is an old cliché but in today’s factories the output must far exceed the accumulative performance of each machine to stay...

Where the ‘Industry 4.0’ Rubber Meets the Road By Bjorn Dahle, KIC President When we first discussed Industry 4.0 four or five years ago it really was all talk. Even three years ago a lot of manufacturers didn’t really know how it impacted them and most vendors were...

The Soldering Corner with Shantanu Joshi of KOKI The Soldering Corner provides expert recommendations to common soldering problems and new industry trends. Actionable solutions are based on everyday experiences with hundreds of electronics assemblers. Problem:...

Machine Optimization: Is it Artificial Intelligence? By Bjorn Dahle, President, KIC Whether we hype it and call it artificial intelligence (AI) or the more modest "machine optimization," reflow oven optimization software is a great example of a smart machine. A reflow...

As with any new product, there was a learning curve for KIC when the reflow and thermal process control company developed its latest profiler. The usual punch list of technical obstacles had to be overcome before the technology could hit the market.   KIC sought...

What Does Industry 4.0 Actually Deliver Today? Example Reflow. By Vitor Barros, KIC Europe Industry 4.0 is one of the most exciting developments in the manufacturing industry in decades. It promises vast improvements for both manufacturers and their customers. For...

KIC Shows Solutions to Voiding Problems via Optimized Reflow Profiling Interview by Patty Goldman of I-Connect007 I had a chance to sit down with MB (Marybeth) Allen at SMTAI recently, who gave me a background on her company, KIC, and discussed some of the details of...

An Interview with Mr. Jason Sciberras, Manufacturing Manager at Saline Lectronics By SMT Today Editor Our Editor recently caught up with Jason Sciberras, Manufacturing Manager at Saline Lectronicss. Where he was examing a crucial element of Industry 4.0 - smart oven...

Shining Light into a Dark Zone, Bringing Reflow to the Next Level By Davina McConnell, Director of Marketing for Saline Lectronics When we installed KIC’s smart oven technologies earlier this year, everyone at saline Lectronics was incredibly enthusiastic. With these...

The Importance of Paying Attention to Component Specifications by Vitor Barros, KIC, General Manager Europe The theory is simple: Process electronics assemblies in spec every time and you will end up with a quality product. In practice, this is more difficult for...

What Makes a Reflow Oven 'Smart' and Why Should You Care? By Bjorn Dahle, President, KIC There is much talk these days about the need for factories to transform themselves into smart factories that use intelligent machines to build intelligent products, all...