When Reel Service Ltd. commenced taping & reeling in 1987, a pioneering team of six opened for business in a 5,000 square foot facility in Glenrothes, close to the printed circuit board assemblers of Scotland’s ‘Silicon Glen’. Initially tape & reel was the core product, however this was soon complemented by vertically integrated carrier tape manufacturing, a first for the industry in Europe. The expansion of the Glenrothes facility, now 30,000 square feet, was followed by additional facilities in Singapore and the Philippines as the company was invited to support its key customers around the world. Acquisition by ASTI in 2000 enabled the company to enter the inspection and semiconductor equipment arenas and as a result, today, the company boasts one of the largest component solutions product portfolio’s available. Both PCB assemblers and Semiconductor manufacturers are supported with an array of back end sub-contract processes.
New wafer level processes of bumping, dicing, inspection & taping or waffle pack make high technology bare die and flip chip solutions available to European manufacturers without the need to face the logistics and timeline challenges found in Asia. Similarly, traditional plastic packaged devices are taped & reeled, programmed, laser marked, formed, cropped, baked and dry packaged. Indeed the holistic approach means that even ‘component prep’ processes are supported.
ASTI’s contribution has given STI semiconductor Tape & Reel and inspection equipment a European showcase with machines for processing devices from tube, tray or bulk component supply on hand within the Reel Service Glenrothes facility. The capabilities of the inspection technology have also been developed into medical and industrial sectors. Screw fasteners, for example, are inspected for defects at speeds of up to 1000 per minute. “20 years of component solutions have demonstrated the commitment of Reel Service and ASTI to European Manufacturing in all sectors,” advised Managing Director, John Simpson.
SMT, hall 8-201, hall 7-202
EPP Europe 401
Share:
