Retronix Expands its Temperature Testing Capability

Retronix has taken delivery of a TPO412A Thermostream Temperature Forcing System in response to the increasing demand from customers to temperatures test ICs and other components. Capable of temperature extremes beyond -55°C to +125°C this nitrogen fed temperature forcing system allows Retronix to test ICs at commercial, industrial and military temperature ranges. Customers are asking Retronix to confirm certain product data sheet parameters at temperature and there is an increasing demand from OEM customers to characterise commercial grade ICs at wider temperature extremes. Retronix also plans to develop its extensive  Curve Trace Test capability to include test at temperature.

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Retronix's Process Reduces OEM Production Costs for NPI by Over 50%

A division of a large telecoms company was responsible for the design of new products, specifically telecoms switches. These pcbs cost $15k each to make. This company would make perhaps 5 different versions, each one an improved version of the first, until they were satisfied with the design and released it to production.

Although each new version of the pcb is slightly different, most of the ICs, which make up 90% of the cost, are the same.

By sending the previous version of the pcb to Retronix for component recovery, the oem reduced the cost of their NPI production process by over 50%, without compromising quality, using Retronix’s IC rescue process.

Retronix Anti-Counterfeit IC Testing: Eliminating the risk for ICs to fail in the field

Retronix was contacted by a broker based in Germany who had bought some scarce ICs from China that were needed for a client. The client did not want to buy from China but did not have any other options.

When the ICs arrived in Germany, they knew there was an issue:

•          They were not packed properly or vacuum sealed and
•          There were obvious signs of damage and flux residue 

Unsure of what to do, they contacted Retronix and sent us the ICs for review.

There were 942 pieces in total. We confirmed there was no attempt to counterfeit the ICs by blacktopping, but there was some damage evident. We immediately removed 121 pieces from the stock for severe body damage and popcorning.

The remaining ICs were checked for the correct alloy, and had the solder on their terminations refreshed, then cleaned.

The ICs were then electrically tested, and 739 passed, and were deemed ok for assembly.

They were returned to the client and subsequently placed on PCBs. Three PCBs failed due to the IC Retronix refurbished, but when replaced the PCBs still failed, so it’s debatable whether the fault was that IC.

The remaining PCBs had no issue with the part.

However if the customer had just placed the ICs without sending them to Retronix, then  203 PCBs would have immediately failed, or worse, failed soon in the field.

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