Nov 06, 2010 
“Altronic was in need of a highly flexible, productive machine for its manufacturing needs,” said John Perrotta, Vice President of Europlacer – North America. “They ultimately decided to purchase our iineo SMT Assembler due to its overall flexibility, part number capacity and world-class customer service reputation in North America.”
“Altronic is a high-mix, low -volume OEM manufacturer of industrial electronics. Our challenge was to reduce our changeover time while increasing productivity. The high feeder count, flexibility and intuitive programming of the iineo made this possible. Using the feeder trolleys and remote programming, the iineo platform allowed us to set up a new job while the current one was being produced. Overall, we are very pleased with the iineo and the support that we have received from Europlacer,” said Buddy Fares, Operations Engineering Manager at Altronic Inc.
Winner of the Global Technology and NPI Awards in 2008, the iineo platform features many enhancements to the Europlacer machine range such as a higher feeder count, increased board size and increased maximum component height. The platform uses the company’s proven core features, including turret head, intelligent feeders, powerful software — while introducing technologies such as linear motors and digital cameras.
iineo is widely configurable, allowing for numerous different possibilities:
- Single or dual linear motor gantry including a rotary turret head with eight or 12 pickups
- One or two board positioning mechanisms
- Oversized board options
- Huge feeder capacity to front and rear, or front only
The single-head iineo can handle maximum PCB sizes of 18" x 27"L with options to handle up to 24"W x 63"L. The double-head system can handle maximum PCB sizes (Standard Transport) of 18"W x 20"L with options to handle up to 24"W x 63"L. Both the single and dual-head iineo systems can handle minimum PCB sizes of 2.4"2, board thickness of 0.020" to 0.1"”, maximum weight of 22lbs and under board clearance of one inch. Additionally, both feature board edge clearance of 0.12" above/0.20" below, and left to right, fixed front rail transport criteria with a height of 950 mm (adjustable from 890 to 975 mm). Board location on both is full edge clamping with fiducial correction and both systems feature a SMEMA interface.
Altronic is a worldwide leader in industrial ignition systems for spark ignited, natural gas fueled engines that often run continuously under difficult operating conditions in potentially hazardous areas. The company produces a wide range of digital Instruments and controllers for gas engines, compressors and other heavy duty rotating equipment.
For more information about Altronic’s products and services, visit http://www.altronicinc.com.
For more information about Europlacer’s iineo SMT Assembler, visit http://www.europlacer.com.
Europlacer has been developing machines for electronics assembly since the 1970s and invented the intelligent feeder concept in the 1980s. After acquisition by Blakell Europlacer in 1991, the company moved away from split-axis to the inherently more capable X-Y architecture that underpins the company’s machines today. Europlacer’s policy has been to ensure wherever possible that technology purchased many years ago, especially feeders, remain compatible with the latest equipment. Europlacer designs and manufactures a comprehensive range of highly flexible SMT placement systems for the global electronics industry. For more information, visit Europlacer’s Web site at http://www.europlacer.com.
