Mar 16, 2015 
Specialized nozzle design delivers near perfect yields for complex connector placement.
Universal Instruments and Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories have enjoyed a successful partnership for many years, with Universal being the first capital equipment supplier to be awarded preferred-supplier status with SEL. Universal was also recognized as one of the company’s Supplier Success Stories of 2010.
Most recently, the two companies worked together to optimize the placement of a complex ZIF connector, which presents challenges when handled with standard nozzles. Universal’s Application Tooling Group helped to design and implement a custom nozzle that delivered substantial quality and performance improvements. After more than a month of running production with the new nozzles, thousands of connectors have been placed by SEL with zero defects.
“This connector requires unique handling capabilities in order to effectively automate its placement. More specifically, it’s a very difficult component to pick,” said Daicheng Fu, SEL Process Engineering Supervisor. “Universal’s Application Tooling Group worked closely with our team to expeditiously integrate a solution that has enabled remarkable results,” added Fu. “This is the second time in the past 12 months that Universal has provided a custom nozzle that eliminated many placement errors and significantly improved SMT efficiency—the first success being an LED nozzle Universal developed back in March 2014. The Universal Tooling team seems to have the magic touch when it comes to custom nozzles.”
SEL leads the power system protection industry in products and solutions that minimize blackouts and electrical system damage for customers in more than 147 countries. The company’s focus on vertical integration allows for increased product reliability and diversified product portfolios to meet the challenges of its global customer base. SEL leverages a full range of Universal’s production equipment, including Genesis® surface-mount platforms, Generation 88 radial and axial insertion platforms and Polaris assembly cells to automate many tasks they once performed manually.
“Universal’s technology portfolio supports many of our diverse product requirements,” said Fu. “The specialized applications knowledge and support further distinguishes Universal as our supplier of choice.”
To learn more about Universal’s solutions for any electronics manufacturing challenge, contact Universal Instruments at +1-800-432-2607 or +1-607-779-7522 or visit www.uic.com.
