Case Study 3: Cost Reduction

The Challange

An electronics company was looking for ways to reduce costs. There were four assembly plants using three different solder paste materials for the purpose of assembling electrical components to circuit boards. We recommended replacing the three different materials with a single, lower cost material with better soldering properties.

Formulating a Solution 

The first step involved writing a selection, qualification, and implementation plan. Plan input and approval was obtained from the manufacturing and product management teams. Also, all tests results were communicated to the manufacturing and product management teams on an ongoing basis.

Next, materials options from three suppliers were identified. After an initial evaluation of three new materials, one was selected for further evaluation. The material was put through a variety of materials evaluations, manufacturing tests, and reliability tests to compare its properties and performance to the three original materials. A specification that outlined the solder paste materials properties in detail was written and used as the basis for monitoring and improving the quality of the incoming solder material. In addition, the manufacturing and product management teams were given updates throughout the project.

The Bottom Line

After the evaluations were complete the implementation began and was 80% complete after one year. The annual savings were $500,000, with a one year return on investment. Furthermore, the new solder paste had better processing properties than the old pastes, resulting in reduced material waste and improved manufacturing yields.