Interview with our Dummy Man!

Electronics Production World has an interview with Kevin Laphen, President of our sales partners, Practical Components Inc.

Practical Dummy Components is the exclusive distributor of mechanical samples for Amkor Technology as well as distributing components from most other leading SMD manufacturers. Practical has a worldwide distribution network (including us in the UK) and in-stock availability of most popular package types. Practical distributes both of SMT and through-hole components.

Another major part of Practical Components product lineup is both hand solder training kits and machine setup kits.

Solder paste conditioning

If you store your solder paste in the fridge, then you need a process for getting it onto the production line and ready to use - which means it must be at room temperature and correctly mixed. The THINKY SR-500 Solder Paste Mixer and Conditioning Machine makes this process quick and foolproof.

• It is quick, with a controlled temperature ramp-up within 10 minutes - this might takes two hours normally


• It mixes the paste to full homogeneity, without excessive heating and without air inclusion


• It avoids the problem of condensation and water absorption by the paste during warming from cold

Poor paste mixing, air bubbles and moisture can all cause solder joint failures like voids and shorts. Let us know if you would like to talk more about the THINKY SR-500.

	The mixing in of air bubbles can be seen, and the solder powder is not dispersed uniformly.
	No air bubbles are seen, and the solder powder is dispersed uniformly.

New Techspray information for 2009

We have started to integrate into our website some new catalogue sheets from sales partner Techspray. There are seven of them, which you can download here:

• Conformal Coatings & Temporary Solder Masks


• Duster & Freeze Sprays


• ESD & Anti-Static Products


• Cutters & Brushes


• Precision Cleaners & Defluxers


• Rework & Desoldering Braid


• Wipes & Swabs

Latest dummy catalogue available on-line

The new Practical Components catalogue is available on-line. It is full of the latest technology in dummy electronic components and mechanical samples as well as the "old standbys". Look at our Pack on Package offerings starting on page 5 or the FusionQuad® on page 4, or check out our Pac Tech Flip Chips on page 26 or the Cleanliness and Residue Evaluation Test Kit on page 86.

The Practical Components catalogue is designed to help engineers quickly find the key products needed to qualify their technology, train and grow their business. This new catalogue will be of special interest to anyone involved in pcb assembly, training, soldering and surface mount technology.

In an effort to make the catalogue more green and carbon neutral, our sales partners have created a new virtual catalogue with a page flip format. As a user you benefit by being able to view on-line or off, save the complete catalogue to disk, send the complete catalogue or as little as a single page to a colleague, add your own sticky notes and add bookmarks as well as print.

According to Practical President Kevin Laphen:

Our new free virtual catalogue is organised by package type/category with each product accompanied by drawings, description, part number with both lead-free and tin-lead availability and formulations and daisy chain patterns.

Here's a tip - free catalogue download!

Download the latest 28 page PLATO catalogue.

It details our range of quality tools for electronics assembly and repair, including solder pots suitable for lead-free solders and the industry's most popular lead cutters. And of course, replacement soldering iron tips.

Prize winning partner - traceability in electronics

We always like to celebrate when one of our Sales Partners is a winner - and so we did at the Productronica show in Munich last month, when Practical Components won a Global Technology Award in the category of Components for the Aegis Traceability and Control Validation Kit.

Aegis Industrial Software Corp, the leader in manufacturing information management systems, and Practical Components, the leading supplier of dummy components, have partnered to offer a traceability and control kit that validates manufacturing processes and provides detailed product and process traceability. The kit provides the physical materials and procedural guide to determine a factory’s traceability and control capability, and rates the results in a formalized matrix. These ratings demonstrate manufacturers’ capabilities, communicate these capabilities to customers or auditors, and provide a starting point for improving capabilities.

We would be pleased to send you a copy of Practical’s free catalog, which is organized by package type/category with each product accompanied by drawings, description, and part number with special attention to lead-free availability and formulations. You'll find details of the award-winning kit on page 52.