Outsourcing technology enhancement: one-stop shop or niche provider? The best option involves a mix.

The range of industrial applications for RF technology continues to grow. Electronics manufacturing services providers often provide a critical link in the product development chain for OEMs wishing to add RF capabilities to their product. Here we look at the challenges encountered when a utility metering system was converted from a traditional design that used off-the-shelf components to a model incorporating proprietary RF technology, including:

* Strategic alliances used to enhance available technical expertise.

* Application-specific considerations impacting design and test.

* Engineering change order implementation.

* Market-specific demand planning issues.

* Considerations in choosing a partner for technology enhancement support.

One-stop shopping is highly touted within the EMS industry, but the formula for offering coordinated services has variations. Having all outsourced functions delivered by a single company can provide efficient access to shared resources for OEMs needing the full range of services. However, the approach can create two potential issues. First, the one-stop shop offering a large range of specialized support services may have underutilized overhead costs, which in turn may be shared among OEMs not needing those services. Second, niche applications may be underserved by a company that focuses on offering capabilities aligned with the needs of their largest customer segments to minimize the potential of underutilized resources.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

In this example, EMS provider Syncro Corp. (syncroems.com) teamed with a U.K.-based design firm. The value of this strategic alliance was access to specialized product development expertise closely aligned with the OEM's niche application. The design firm specialized in radio design and owned proprietary designs that could be adapted to the OEM's specifications to create a custom product. Most important, the EMS provider and design firm had teamed on another project and had a good working relationship. The result was the efficiency found in the traditional one-stop shop combined with the focus of an appropriately specialized team.

Each entity had specific responsibilities that aligned with its expertise. The customer specified housing as the unit needed to conform in size to the previously used product; however, the EMS provider made design for assembly (DfA) recommendations in that development effort. Basic board-level manufacturability issues were addressed by the design firm, which used IPC design guidelines in its initial design process. This aligned with the EMS provider's manufacturing equipment constraints and processes, which were also aligned with IPC design guidelines.

The design firm provided a parts list, but the EMS provider evaluated component lifecycles and approved vendor list (AVL) choices. In terms of component lifecycle analysis, semiconductors were the primary focus in potential obsolescence evaluation. Recommended AVL choices were based on price competitiveness, track record of supplier performance and availability. When component substitutions were recommended, the EMS provider sent samples and data sheets to the design house for evaluation.

Another area of focused collaboration was design for testability (DfT). The EMS provider had expertise in both in-circuit test development and RF functional test and fixture development. As a result, it developed test programming, functional test set and fixtures. It also made recommendations to the design firm related to test node accessibility and optimum RF signal integrity during test.

The EMS provider and PCB manufacturer collaborated on a board panelization strategy. The EMS provider had a preferred size dimension driven by equipment constraints, but permitted the fabricator to make recommendations on the best panelization layout to achieve the greatest use of material within the standardized footprint.

The OEM and design firm handled all design qualification testing.

[FIGURE 2 OMITTED]

Application-specific issues. The product operated in a hostile environment, which included temperature variation, moisture and humidity exposure. It needed to remain in service at least 10 years. The EMS provider applied cross-industry expertise in making recommendations related to protecting the electronics package. The company had significant experience in the small engine market. Electronics in that application are exposed to even greater temperature extremes than were anticipated for this product.

One application consideration was that, while the electronics needed to be encapsulated, the antenna had to be exposed. The major concern was that moisture absorption over time could drive dendrite growth on the electronic assemblies, which could result in shortened service life. The EMS provider developed an encapsulation strategy that addressed these issues. The housing provided additional protection to minimize moisture absorption.

Another application-specific consideration was the battery. The EMS provider worked directly with battery manufacturers to ensure the best battery technology for the application and service-life requirements was used.

ECO implementation considerations. ECO activity was relatively minimal. The design house initiated a change in board traces to further tune the circuit. However, once the design was fielded, most ECO activity related to revisions in the product's internal software programming rather than changes to the hardware.

One area of improvement focus occurred in the test process. In addition to testing, each unit is programmed with a serial number and ID. In the initial product development effort, the functional test and programming steps were handled separately. Once both operations were stable, the EMS provider developed an optimized programming/functional test process that performed both test and programming at the test station (Figure 1).

Market-specific demand planning issues. Demand patterns are a challenge in the utilities market. Utility purchasing patterns often drive orders, which may involve limited shipments of large lots. In this particular project, the OEM and EMS provider have worked out a level loaded production schedule with a finished goods kanban. The kanban has been sized to accommodate likely spikes in end-market demand. Production schedules are reviewed periodically to determine if the monthly production quantities should be adjusted to reflect longer-term changes in demand (Figure 2).

Using strategic alliances to support application-specific technology enhancement can provide access to more specialized expertise and optimum resource utilization. Efficient product development efforts include a full understanding of application-specific challenges, clear division of responsibilities between team members, and the right mix of expertise to address critical issues.

Bruce Biggard is vice president of engineering at Syncro Corp. (syncrocorp.com). He can be reached at [e-mail].

RELATED ARTICLE: Considerations in Selecting a Technology Partner

What characteristics can be important in selecting a partner or alliance team to support product development with RF technology? The team should be able to demonstrate:

* RF fabrication expertise to ensure that actual manufacturability/testability issues are of equal importance to technical functionality in the design process.

* Materials expertise to ensure that materials compatibility issues, and component availability and cost issues are adequately addressed.

* A good network of specialized expertise that can be matched to specific customer needs.

* Experience with projects of similar size and complexity and a proven track record with projects with similar applications.