Record growth for PKC
Assembléon ensures competitiveness of PKC Electronic products in the years ahead
PKC Electronics’ competitive edge lies in the cost effectiveness of its Russian factory – greatly helped by Assembléon’s equipment – combined with the expertise and versatility of its R&D facilities in Finland. PKC Electronics is a subsidiary of the PKC group, a significant manufacturer of Wiring Harnesses and Electronics. It specializes in ODM, EMS, and electronics production and product development.
An efficient electronics contract manufacturer and R&D partner
Besides providing manufacturing services for its customers, PKC Electronics provides expertise in R&D for electronic products, testing services and customer support. It specializes in the telecommunications, automotive and electronics industries.
PKC provides quick and flexible form-fit prototypes, cost-effective volume production and product maintenance services with efficient supply chain management. It has facilities in Raahe (Finland), Kostomuksha (Russia) and Suzhou (China). PKC Electronics has over 20 years’ experience in implementing electronics design and manufacturing projects.
Record growth from high performance and competitive prices
To be successful in high volume production, you must be able to guarantee the quality levels expected by your customers. Today’s customers are expecting 100% quality. “It makes no sense to have high output if you are producing large numbers of defective PCBs”, - says Timo Soininen, Production Manager at PKC Electronics Oy. “Besides, we do not have time for rework. Assembléon's A-Series machines allow us to reach our output targets without compromising on accuracy. Minimum defect levels eliminate rework and scrap.”
The Assembléon A-Series’ unique combination of high output with minimum defects guarantees competitive placement costs for PKC Electronics. The machines have a unique parallel placement design, with multiple heads placing components simultaneously and repeatably. The technique limits the accelerations that components are subjected to, and gives extra time to accurately align each individual component. The resulting accuracy of within 20 microns allows the Pick & Place equipment to routinely achieve below 10 defects per million for advanced and complex products in real-world production conditions. That is an industry benchmark, and comes with no trade-off between accuracy and placement rates.
Short production chain
PKC Electronics has shortened the production chain by focusing its R&D on SMT manufacturing requirements, with unsurpassed flexibility for its manufacturing facilities. “We have to be ready to reschedule our production very quickly to react to fast changing customer needs,” continues Timo Soininen. “To ensure smooth changeovers, we integrated Assembléon’s Offline Program Preparation and Off-line Setup Verification systems on our shop floor. The New Product Introduction (NPI) process became even faster when we started to use the Offline Vision tool for offline component teaching.”
Minimizing down time raised the operating efficiency and output. All this resulted in tremendous success for PKC Electronics in 2007. Deliveries and net sales from it grew by more than a quarter for the electronics business.
Business strategy in growing Russian market
PKC Electronics’ customers need partners with worldwide service. The company’s long experience opens up opportunities as more and more of its potential customers expand their production to Russia’s growing markets. The company’s strategy is to stay at the forefront of development in new and growing market areas. In the emerging Russian market, PKC Electronics’ cooperation with Assembléon and its Russian partner “Assemrus” has proved remarkably successful.
One of the key factors of PKC’s success is its production efficiency. Together with Assembléon, PKC Electronics assessed its production line performance in the Russian manufacturing unit at Kostamuksha. The performance was monitored and improvement areas were defined. The company then developed its improvement strategy, implemented with Assembléon’s support. Assembléon also helps to keep PKC Electronics’ machine park operating competitively at all times.
Its focus on continually raising efficiency has prepared PKC Electronics for the growth that is predicted in developing regions. "Assembléon’s commitment to its customers is completely in line with PKC Electronics’ strategy and expectations," concludes Timo Soininen, "a long-term relationship, close cooperation, long experience and high competence – these factors are forming a solid base for successful business".
