IPC Releases Study of Quality Benchmarks for EMS Industry

Inresponse to member requests for benchmarking data, IPC - Association Connecting Electronics IndustriesA(R) released IPCStudy of Quality Benchmarks for the Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS)Industry for 2009.

The survey-based study covers financial and productiondata, assembly attributes, yields, defect rates (DPMO), customer returns,supplier performance, customer satisfaction and certification data. Surveyswere e-mailed in March 2010 to IPC member companies identified as providers ofEMS or contract assembly services. The survey sample includes twenty-four EMScompanies, primarily small and medium-sized, with 2009 net sales ranging fromunder $1 million to more than $100 million.

Participantsprovided point-of-reference data for sales growth, expenses on research anddevelopment (R&D) and capital equipment as a percentage of net sales,average collection and payable periods, and the number of printed circuitboards (PCBs) completed in 2009. Respondents also reported internal yields forkey processes, including surface mounting, wave soldering and selectivesoldering. All of the respondents included relevant customer satisfactionmetrics regarding returns and on-time customer deliveries.

IPC Study of Quality Benchmarks for the ElectronicsManufacturing Services (EMS) Industry for 2009 isavailable for sale to IPC members for $475 and to nonmembers for $950.Thereport is free to companies that participated in the survey.