Dec 07, 2011 
S.W. Electronics and Manufacturing Corporation (SWEMCO), a leading global EMS provider, has purchased a Universal Instruments Genesis Platform production line. The new equipment set was complemented with Universal’s Dimensions® Line Manager shop floor control software. Both are now operational in SWEMCO’s Moorestown, New Jersey production facility. Since the installation in May, the company has realized a significant throughput gain of more than 10X.
S.W. Electronics and Manufacturing Corporation is a Contract Electronics Manufacturer providing high-quality, customer-driven solutions to a global customer base. Headquartered in Moorestown New Jersey, SWEMCO has specialized in both surface mount and through-hole circuit board assembly for over 40 years, featuring a portfolio of services that includes PCB design and layout, quick-turn prototyping, PCB assembly, inventory management, and cost-ofownership optimization.
SWEMCO turned to Universal recently as they decided to evolve their production equipment set to better suit their manufacturing environment. “Our requirements are becoming increasingly diverse as we continue to grow and expand our customer base,” comments Richard Szczepkowski, SWEMCO COO. “For this reason, we wanted a solution that is agile enough to quickly and efficiently change from one product to the next, taking into account that the production requirements for any one customer or product are very often quite different from another’s.” Szczepkowski continues, “In addition, we wanted to ensure that our capabilities extend well into the next generation of products we’ll be asked to build.”
SWEMCO purchased a Genesis Series 2 Platform production line comprised of a GC-30S, GX-11S, and GX-07S Platform, as well as Dimensions Line Manager shop floor control software to meet these challenges. Universal Vice President of Marketing Debbora Ahlgren notes the advantages of this solution for SWEMCO’s overall productivity, “Genesis gives SWEMCO the most capable platform solution available and affords them the future-proof confidence they are seeking, handling components as small as 01005s and board sizes up to 40 inches long”. Ahlgren continues, “Line Manager allows them to monitor and quantify the improvements they’re seeing in throughput, utilization and changeover times. As a mid-volume EMS provider, Line Manager’s offline setup/validation, changeover, traceability, and consumption tracking tools are invaluable to their success.”
Universal Instruments’ Genesis Platform is the most capable platform available, delivering the ultimate in modular performance for standard to extreme surface mount applications. Genesis enables semiconductor performance at surface mount speeds with 1μm positioning, while maintaining the flexibility to take on any odd-form challenge. The Genesis Series 2 portfolio offers a number of improvements to reduce the total cost of ownership and improve investment protection. Throughput has been improved by an average of 10% and vision capabilities enhanced to process multiple-field-of-view components two to three times faster. Board size capability has been increased by 40%, up to 1016mm long. Additionally, a Vertical Part Sensor (VPS) is now available on the Lightning Head to verify part presence and position on the spindle prior to placement.
Established in 1965, S.W. Electronics and Manufacturing Corp is a Contract Electronics Manufacturer providing a customer-driven approach to a variety of services both domestically and abroad. SWEMCO utilizes a 35,000 square foot production facility to accommodate a wide range of projects and programs. These include custom manufacturing of printed circuit board assemblies, complete system builds, functional and environmental testing, and engineering development. SWEMCO takes pride in delivering on time and on budget to a wide-ranging global customer base.
Universal Instruments is a global leader in the design and manufacture of advanced automation and assembly equipment solutions for the electronics manufacturing industry. Universal provides complete assembly lines to EMS Providers, ODMs and electronics assemblers around the world, leveraging its portfolio of compatible and flexible equipment platforms that address the diverse requirements of high-speed chip and multifunction placement applications as well as component insertion. Universal Instruments is headquartered in Binghamton, with offices in Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
