SIPLACE participates in industry recovery

The SMT/Hybrid/Packaging trade show in Nuremberg provided impressive proof of the worldwide recovery in the electronics manufacturing industry. Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems (SEAS), for example, noted a significant increase in the number of visitors in 2010 compared with last year, as well as 35 percent more concrete project inquiries. The visitors were particularly interested in the company’s new SIPLACE SX placement platform with its Capacity-on-Demand features and in the setup, product changeover and multi-lane concepts which can be implemented with SIPLACE’s new software options. And the great interest in the newly introduced SIPLACE CA (chip assembly) machine for flip-chip and bare-die processing was ample proof that European manufacturers are increasingly investing again in their high-quality, flexible production skills.

“The show was completely different this year. Only minutes after the doors opened each day, the SIPLACE booth was packed with people. Customers approached us almost without warning with concrete investment and expansion projects, and there is a clear trend towards 'intelligent' production. Besides our highly flexible Capacity-on-Demand platforms of the SIPLACE SX-Series, people were especially interested in software such as our new setup options, SIPLACE Facts and the SIPLACE Fixed-Table Mode. More flexibility on the production floor, faster product changeovers with no line stops and more efficiency and transparency – that’s what the show visitors were clearly most interested in,” said Gabriela Reckewerth, who is in charge of global marketing on the SIPLACE team.

Many concrete deals such as the one for a SIPLACE X line with electronics manufacturer Tectron GmbH in Worbis are evidence that the industry is willing to invest again. And to set themselves apart from the competition, more and more customers focus on state-of-the-art technology. Proof positive of this trend was the great interest in the SIPLACE CA, the world’s first machine that combines classic SMD placement with flip-chip and bare-die processing directly from the wafer. Many visitors were also highly impressed by the SIPLACE SX4, the high-speed addition to the SIPLACE SX-Series.

New financing models reduce initial investment by almost 50 percent

The SIPLACE team was also able to sign several project deals for the SIPLACE SX based on the new SIPLACE Peak Demand and SIPLACE Floating Demand rental models. “Scalability in production and financing – that’s the unique SIPLACE concept which allows electronics manufacturers to adjust dynamically to rapidly changing markets. Not just the production, but the financing ‘breathes’ in line with demand, and the new financing options reduce the initial investment by roughly half, which is something that every CFO or controller appreciates. We made the right choice when we decided not to put our ambitious development targets on hold during the crisis,” says Gabriela Reckewerth, head of global marketing at Siemens Electronics Assembly Systems.