KIC Press Release September 10, 2007 - KIC‘s MB (Marybeth) Allen to Contribute to SMART Group SA‘s South African Workshop

(San Diego, CA -- September 10, 2007) : San Diego — September 10, 2007 — KIC, the leader of thermal process development and control products, and winner of multiple industry awards, announces that MB Allen, General Manager of KIC International Sales Inc. — European Operations, will participate a SMART Group SA-sponsored workshop in South Africa.

MB will take part in the Hand Soldering/Rework, BGA/QFP Rework & Reflow Oven Profiling Workshop. The workshop will take place twice — on 30 October 2007 at the Protea Hotel in Stellenbosch and on 1 November 2007 at the Protea Hotel in Midrand, South Africa.

This workshop gives practical hands-on experience of various soldering processes as well as the implication of doing it wrong. The short- and long-term effects of an incorrect process have been well documented and, with the continued quest for reliability, first time pass rate, and quality of product, this is a must-attend, hands-on practical workshop given by world experts, including MB Allen, who knows what it takes in the world arena.

Production engineers, NPI engineers, process engineers, quality engineers, supervisors and service staff at all levels will benefit from attending this workshop.

Fine-pitch/BGA and lead-free is new to many engineers and production staff. SMART Group SA is providing a one-stop seminar to cover these issues and answer questions on rework and repair. During the event, each delegate will have the opportunity to profile, hand solder and rework, perform QFP/BGA rework with a selection of alloys (lead and lead-free), and inspect the results to gain firsthand experience. Certificates will be awarded to all who successfully complete the workshop. There will also be a variety of state-of-the-art soldering, profiling and rework equipment to get evaluate and gain "hands-on" experience with.

The workshop will cover an overview of the lead-free assembly process; soldering theory and what is different between tin/lead and lead-free; cored solder wire selection; tip corrosion issues with lead-free; removal and replacement of surface mount and through hole; BGA/QFP removal & replacement; reflow oven temperature profiling; temperature profiling of boards for rework; mounting thermocouples and simulating the original reflow process; reliability of mixed alloy joints; lead-free inspection criteria; X-ray inspection of repaired joints; and typical lead-free defects.

To book a place or for more information, e-mail info@smartgroupsa.org or visit www.smartgroupsa.org.

About KIC
Based in San Diego, KIC is the industry leader in automated thermal management tools and systems for reflow, wave, cure and semiconductor thermal processes. The company pioneered the development of oven profilers and process development tools. KIC remains on the leading edge of the thermal industry with innovative tools for process development, optimization and real-time management.