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APS Novastar conducted PCBA training at Kamra Avionics and Radar in Pakistan
Posted by Jade Po Kellard on 06 July 2009
A local company is helping the government of Pakistan battle the Taliban - at least its equipment is.
APS Novastar LLC recently finished training personnel from the Kamra Avionics and Radar Factory on how to use one of its systems for assembling printed circuit boards.
KARF, which is part of the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex, will use the equipment to make circuit boards that go into avionics systems for Pakistani fighter jets. KARF is a typical APS Novastar customer: It doesnt want to turn out a large number of circuit boards at a high speed; instead, it just wants to be sure that the ones it does turn out work.
APS Novastar customers typically assemble from 50 to 500 copies of a particular circuit board, which is considered a short production run.
Some are research labs or companies making prototypes. Others, like KARF, are assembling circuit boards for mission-critical applications. They will not compromise on the components, said Tim Kardish, who has been the companys CEO for about a year.
APS Novastars U.S. customers include most, but not all, of the Fortune 1000 defense contractors, as well as the Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories, Kardish said. They provide about 60 percent of its revenue, which Kardish wouldnt reveal, with foreign customers providing the rest.
The companys specialty is a three-piece system for assembling circuit boards that use surface mount technology, in which components are mounted completely on top of a board. In through-hole technology, components go completely through the board.
APS Novastars surface-mount system consists of a stencil printer, which puts solder on circuit boards; a pick and place machine, which puts components on circuit boards; and a reflow oven, which melts solder so it can cool and solidify, bonding the components to the boards.
We are the last domestic manufacturer of the entire [system], Kardish said. Kardish doesnt consider APS Novastar to be an innovator. Instead, he calls it a fast follower that can take existing technology and make it cheaper.
The prime example is the companys robotic pick and place machine, which assembles circuit boards automatically, rather than requiring them to be fed and placed by hand. APS Novastar introduced it in 2002 for $45,000 to $50,000, less than half the price of the $100,000 machines then on the market. It has helped APS Novastar more than double its revenue since 2002.
At least 75 percent of the time when they buy that, they buy the two other machines, too, said John Malboeuf, APS Novastars vice president for worldwide sales.
APS Novastars next big hope is a selective soldering machine, which can make very precise placements of solder on a circuit board without damaging other components already on the board.
The company doesnt produce its own selective soldering machine. The one it plans to launch around the end of the third quarter should sell for less than $30,000, which Kardish said is 30 percent to 50 percent less than selective soldering machines now on the market.
The application itself isnt killer, but the price point for the application could be killer, he said.
APS Novastar was founded in 1982 by Adam Shiloh and his sons, Av and P.J., who were identical twins with engineering degrees from Temple University.
Pick and Place, Reflow Ovens, Wave Solder, Stencil Printers for SMT and PCB | APS Novastar
Posted by Jade Po Kellard on 06 July 2009
A local company is helping the government of Pakistan battle the Taliban - at least its equipment is.
APS Novastar LLC recently finished training personnel from the Kamra Avionics and Radar Factory on how to use one of its systems for assembling printed circuit boards.
KARF, which is part of the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex, will use the equipment to make circuit boards that go into avionics systems for Pakistani fighter jets. KARF is a typical APS Novastar customer: It doesnt want to turn out a large number of circuit boards at a high speed; instead, it just wants to be sure that the ones it does turn out work.
APS Novastar customers typically assemble from 50 to 500 copies of a particular circuit board, which is considered a short production run.
Some are research labs or companies making prototypes. Others, like KARF, are assembling circuit boards for mission-critical applications. They will not compromise on the components, said Tim Kardish, who has been the companys CEO for about a year.
APS Novastars U.S. customers include most, but not all, of the Fortune 1000 defense contractors, as well as the Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories, Kardish said. They provide about 60 percent of its revenue, which Kardish wouldnt reveal, with foreign customers providing the rest.
The companys specialty is a three-piece system for assembling circuit boards that use surface mount technology, in which components are mounted completely on top of a board. In through-hole technology, components go completely through the board.
APS Novastars surface-mount system consists of a stencil printer, which puts solder on circuit boards; a pick and place machine, which puts components on circuit boards; and a reflow oven, which melts solder so it can cool and solidify, bonding the components to the boards.
We are the last domestic manufacturer of the entire [system], Kardish said. Kardish doesnt consider APS Novastar to be an innovator. Instead, he calls it a fast follower that can take existing technology and make it cheaper.
The prime example is the companys robotic pick and place machine, which assembles circuit boards automatically, rather than requiring them to be fed and placed by hand. APS Novastar introduced it in 2002 for $45,000 to $50,000, less than half the price of the $100,000 machines then on the market. It has helped APS Novastar more than double its revenue since 2002.
At least 75 percent of the time when they buy that, they buy the two other machines, too, said John Malboeuf, APS Novastars vice president for worldwide sales.
APS Novastars next big hope is a selective soldering machine, which can make very precise placements of solder on a circuit board without damaging other components already on the board.
The company doesnt produce its own selective soldering machine. The one it plans to launch around the end of the third quarter should sell for less than $30,000, which Kardish said is 30 percent to 50 percent less than selective soldering machines now on the market.
The application itself isnt killer, but the price point for the application could be killer, he said.
APS Novastar was founded in 1982 by Adam Shiloh and his sons, Av and P.J., who were identical twins with engineering degrees from Temple University.
Pick and Place, Reflow Ovens, Wave Solder, Stencil Printers for SMT and PCB | APS Novastar
