Electronics is part of our everyday lives. From the gadgets in our homes and the cars we drive to the medical electronics that save lives and the semiconductors that make the world go around. In a market where consumers demand reliable and safe products, manufacturers need to focus on the many screws holding everything together. In Atlas Copco, we serve assembly solutions to these electronics customer segments:
Getting it right from the first to the last screw
Screws are an essential component in manufacturing because of their ability to be a reliable and efficient way to hold objects together securely. In electronics, precision is everything, and accurate screw tightening plays a crucial role in maintaining cost-efficiency and quality. Even though electronic devices are getting smaller, the quantity of screws used remains high. For example, an average smartphone that nicely fits in the palm of a human hand, despite its size can still contain up to 70 screws. The increased demand for electronics in everyday life and such numbers of screws drive complexity in electronics manufacturing and introduce certain challenges.
Diverse world of
electronics assembly challenges!
electronics assembly challenges!
Product Complexity
Heavy and complex production demands often compel factories to source components from multiple suppliers, leading to friction variations that can impact the final product’s torque and clamp force
Screwdriver Technology
As material complexity increases, selecting the appropriate screwdriver technology becomes even more crucial. This decision involves choosing between traditional clutch tools, current-controlled tools, or advanced transducerized tools for the task at hand
Tightening Strategy
Traditional tightening methods like target torque and torque & angle control perform well when materials are consistent. However, in real-world complex production environments, a more reliable approach focusing on clamp torque is needed to guarantee consistency
Manual vs Automated Station
Complex production often sparks the debate between manual and automated processes. Regardless of the choice, the key challenge stays the same - maintaining precise process control throughout the tightening process
Consumer electronics
Everyday gadgets like smartphones, laptops, TVs, and gaming consoles, shape our modern lives. Their production thrives on rapid innovation, enhancing processing power, displays, and connectivity for sleek designs and cutting-edge features. To keep pace, assembly solutions must be both efficient and adaptive. Our smart tightening strategies with a focus on actual clamp torque, boost productivity, improve product quality, and cut production costs. Furthermore, the Atlas Copco ecosystem facilitates complete traceability throughout the production process, whether using handheld or automated tools.
Semiconductors
Semiconductor manufacturing requires precise design, fabrication, and assembly of electronic components. Silicon used for semiconductor production is extremely sensitive to contaminants, therefore, fabrication plants feature state-of-the-art machinery and cleanroom environments to ensure precision and quality. These machines require delicate maintenance, which is difficult to achieve using manual torque wrenches. Atlas Copco provides advanced, ergonomic tightening solutions, enhancing maintenance speed and quality while reducing operator strain.
Medical electronics
Medical devices, from MRI machines to pacemakers, are crucial for precise healthcare, aiding in diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. Integrated sensors and wearables offer accessible insights, empowering quick decisions by healthcare professionals. However, device malfunctions can directly impact a person's health.
Atlas Copco's smart tightening strategies focus on monitoring clamp torque to address material inconsistencies. Moreover, our ecosystem ensures full production traceability, whether using handheld or automated tools. These solutions together ensure the highest quality standards for safety-critical medical devices, protecting human life in the highly regulated medical device market.
Vehicle electronics
Modern vehicles are packed with sophisticated electronics that handle safety, entertainment, performance, and efficiency systems, including ECUs, ABS, airbags, navigation, and more.
With a future focused on autonomous driving, vehicle-infrastructure communication, and electrification, the demand for complex and reliable electronic systems is growing, leaving no room for compromises on quality. Precision and advanced tightening strategies are essential. Atlas Copco's smart tightening strategies ensure accurate clamp torque application, meeting the highest production quality standards. Additionally, our ecosystem enables full production process traceability, whether using handheld or automated tools.
Smart Tightening Strategies – more than just torque and angle
Shifting the focus to clamp torque rather than target torque ensures consistency across parts, even in the presence of friction variations, meeting all high-quality standards in the manufacturing process.
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Product Training
Microtorque high-precision screwdriver systems
Atlas Copco’s new MicroTorque MT tools, paired with a cutting-edge controller, provide precision tightening solutions for low-torque applications. Engineered for the modern electronics industry, they ensure accuracy with every fastener—improving both efficiency and quality. Join Product Sales Specialist Matt Moskal as he introduces the ETD MT tool and its connected Quality Assurance station in this video series.
Articles
Smart Tightening Strategies and The Transition to Clamping Force
In electronics industries, traditional tightening methods fall short. Smart tightening strategies that focus on clamp torque provide precision and enhance quality.
Articles
Process control and mistake proofing with process visualization and operator guidance for zero-defect assembly
Behind the scenes of Assembly Control Node production, our latest industrial PC: Its siblings ensure that assembly is made more efficient, product quality is increased and traceability of all data becomes feasible. Implementing SQS process control software with operator guidance, MicroTorque Focus controller and hand-held screwdrivers of MicroTorque series to reach zero-defects.
Automation addresses complexity
Automation eliminates operator influence on the tightening process and allows for the greatest level of control which improves quality, and efficiency and reduces costs caused by reworks and recalls. It enables the desired level of quality right from the very start and throughout the production process.
Our portfolio of smart automated systems for tightening reduces the risk of downtime caused by inadequate tightening quality or human error.
The Atlas Copco roadmap to Smarter Manufacturing
Smart Integrated Assembly is our concept for industrial manufacturers looking to transform and implement Smart Factories. It encompasses our ecosystem of tools, hardware, software and services solutions providing unrivalled competitive value in each step of the customers’ product manufacturing cycles. The result is more efficient, flexible, adaptable, and safe manufacturing processes that support reduced downtime, better use of materials and energy, and a substantial waste reduction.
With the challenges faced by many electronics manufacturers, we have the solutions to help you turn up the heat on your competitors.
