I'm not exactly sure of your problem...but I'll give it a shot.
I assume the screw is on the solder side of the board. If you wave solder the screw the head will fill in with solder. Try a water solouble mask or peelable laytex mask over the screw heads or even kapton tape.
You should avoid applying a mechanical stress (screw torque) to the modules AFTER soldering. Joint fracturing is common in this type of mechanical asssembly.
As far as your last question...can the reliability of the module change when the board is used in a vertical (vs. horizontal ) position. Well, more-or-less impossible to answer without specific knowledge of the device and intended application. Example: does it use active cooling? What is the orientation of heat sink fins?
Dean
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