-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- smt007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueComing to Terms With AI
In this issue, we examine the profound effect artificial intelligence and machine learning are having on manufacturing and business processes. We follow technology, innovation, and money as automation becomes the new key indicator of growth in our industry.
Box Build
One trend is to add box build and final assembly to your product offering. In this issue, we explore the opportunities and risks of adding system assembly to your service portfolio.
IPC APEX EXPO 2024 Pre-show
This month’s issue devotes its pages to a comprehensive preview of the IPC APEX EXPO 2024 event. Whether your role is technical or business, if you're new-to-the-industry or seasoned veteran, you'll find value throughout this program.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - smt007 Magazine
Finding Sustainability in Additive Processes
July 5, 2023 | Art Wall, NextFlexEstimated reading time: 1 minute
When you hear about sustainability, odds are that electronics don’t come to mind. The manufacturing process alone is riddled with processes that generate large amounts of waste and utilize volatile chemicals and compounds. Consumers dispose of their personal electronic devices, which, added to the waste from the manufacturing process, accumulates into quite a large sum. According to a report from the UN environment program, the world produces approximately 50 million tons of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) a year.
This e-waste is filled with toxic components—such as mercury—that are involved in electronic processes and are often not disposed of properly. The same report highlighted that only 20% of e-waste is being formally recycled each year; the remainder most likely ends up in a landfill or is improperly recycled. Over time, this can have a large impact on environmental surroundings.
What’s Being Done
Recently, sustainability has been a hot topic, not only in terms of electronics, but across the broader technology industry. At CES 2023, for example, sustainability was one of its key pillars2 and the topic of consideration in three panel discussions. The entire electronics community is trying to come together to ring in a new era of sustainable electronics.
To begin working toward a more sustainable workplace, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) developed the ISO 14000 family of documents3 around environmental management. Last updated in 2021, the 14001 standard establishes an environmental management system built to contribute toward sustainability.
Yet, even as these standards are developed and conversations are happening across the electronics community, actionable change is slow to come. Electronics manufacturing, for example, contributed 5.9 million metric tons (MMT) of carbon dioxide equivalent to greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 alone4. This casts a spotlight on the unsustainable methodologies currently involved in the electronics industry and begs the question, “Is it possible to be sustainable within electronics manufacturing?”
Find out the answer to this question in the rest of the article which appeared in the June issue of SMT007 Magazine.
Suggested Items
SPEA Expands in Southeast Asia with New Subsidiary in Thailand
05/17/2024 | SPEASPEA, a global leader in automatic test equipment for the manufacturing of semiconductor, microelectronic and electronic devices, today announced the opening of its new subsidiary in Thailand. This expansion marks a significant step forward in SPEA's commitment to serving the growing Southeast Asian microchip and electronics market with leading-edge manufacturing machinery and equipment.
Indium Corporation to Showcase Sustainable Solutions for Power Electronics at PCIM
05/17/2024 | Indium CorporationAs one of the leading materials providers to the power electronics assembly industry, Indium Corporation® will proudly showcase a selection of innovative products at PCIM Europe, June 11-13, in Nuremberg, Germany.
Siemens, Foxconn Team Up to Optimize Forward-thinking Manufacturing
05/16/2024 | FoxconnSiemens AG, a leading technology company, and Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn), the world’s largest electronics manufacturer, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to drive digital transformation and sustainability in smart manufacturing platforms.
IPC Releases May 2024 Global Sentiment of the Electronics Supply Chain Report
05/16/2024 | IPCSentiment among electronics manufacturers fell this month, after hitting a new high in April. Despite the decline, sentiment remains historically high according to IPC’s May Sentiment of the Global Electronics Manufacturing Supply Chain Report.
Sypris Reports Q1 2024 Results; Revenue Up 10%
05/15/2024 | Sypris Solutions Inc.The Company’s first quarter 2024 consolidated revenue increased 10.1% to $35.6 million compared with the prior-year quarter, representing the 11th quarter of double-digit year-over-year growth during the past 12 quarterly periods.