Requirements for setting up a conformal coating facility


 

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The set up of a conformal coating production line regardless of the application method has many similar characteristics.

Any coating facility will need the basic requirements put in place that would be standard for any piece of electronic manufacturing process.

These include ESD systems, facilities for the machines, the environmental requirements and the normal Health & Safety (HSE) considerations.

Also, the conformal coating production line, whether it is an operator manually brush coating printed circuit boards (PCBs) or an inline robotic spray coating process is typically made up of several stages.

These stages are shown below:

 

Not all the stages are mandatory or may be required.  However, each should be considered on an individual basis.


Want to find out more about setting up a conformal coating facility?

Download our technical bulletin on setting up a conformal coating application process.

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Three key points you should know about polyurethane conformal coatings when using them for protecting electronic circuit boards


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A polyurethane (urethane for short and designated UR by IPC) conformal coating is part of the organic family of coating materials that also includes the acrylic and epoxy coatings.

Here are three key facts to consider when examining polyurethane conformal coatings:

  1. Most conformal coatings provide good humidity and moisture protection although some are slightly better in performance than others. UR type coatings are just as good on average as acrylic materials.
  2. A polyurethane coating has traditionally been used to protect electronic circuit boards against chemical attack due to their excellent chemical resistance. This protection allows electronic circuit boards to survive in highly aggressive environments and atmospheres such as the aerospace, military and industrial sectors. However, it does make repair a little more difficult as chemical resistance to a coating means more difficult to remove.
  3. Times are changing and whereas acrylic conformal coatings used to dominate 70-80% of the market, there is a shift in emphasis towards alternative materials due to higher specifications for protecting electronics. Many new conformal coatings (UV cure, two part thin film coatings) now comprise of urethane resin bases and are becoming more popular in high volume sectors such as automotive electronics. This is because the urethane resin lends itself to this type of technology more easily than the acrylic based resins.

Want to find out more about polyurethane conformal coating?

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What are conformal coating masking boots and why do they save you money?


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Reusable conformal coating masking boots are a highly cost effective alternative masking material to masking tape.

Many components on printed circuit boards must remain uncoated when applying conformal coating. The purpose of masking is to prevent migration of the conformal coatings into components and keep out areas.


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The use of masking tapes, dots and liquid latex can be an effective process in protecting components from ingress of conformal coating. However, the application of the masking can be labour intensive, especially in higher volume applications.

Custom made masking boots can offer a labour saving alternative in both the masking and de-masking stages of the coating process.These completely reusable masking boots are applied over the components such as connectors,

These completely reusable masking boots are applied over the components such as connectors, plugs and sockets that require protection from the conformal coating applied. They can be simple boots that fit over the top of a connector or a more sophisticated design such as the examples below.

They provide reliable protection for many different types of components for all the conformal coating application techniques that include batch and selective robotic spraying (as an alternative to difficult technical programming), vertical and horizontal dipping and vapour deposition of coatings such as Parylene.


Three reasons to switch from tape to reusable masking boots for conformal coating masking

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These simple reasons can save you up to 80% of your costs compared to masking tape:

1. The masking application time is reduced. Masking boots can be 4-5 times quicker than masking tape.
2. The de-masking (removal) time is reduced. Again it is much quicker to remove boots compared to masking tape.
3. It is much less likely that the masking boot will leak and the component requires rework. Masking boots don’t leak and tapes can.

This means you can save a lot of money very quickly when switching to conformal coating masking boots compared to masking tapes.


Want to find out more about masking printed circuit boards before applying conformal coating?

Contact us to discuss your needs and let us explain how we can help you.
Or, read more on cleaning circuit boards on our website now.
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