Do you know the differences between selective soldering and wave so...

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Do you know the differences between selective soldering and wave soldering?

Wave soldering and manual hand soldering techniques are common, but selective soldering reduces cost while increasing process flexibility for consistent, high-quality soldering results. Selective soldering offers flexibility to the increased demands of soldering on printed circuit boards (PCBs) with mixed components, including through-hole (THT) and surface mount technologies (SMT). If you manage a mixed-component PCB soldering process, or your aging equipment or PCB designs are pushing the limits of your wave soldering process, consider selective soldering. Download our ebook to learn about soldering techniques and how moving to selective soldering reduces cost while increasing process flexibility for consistent, high-quality soldering results.

Wave (or flow) soldering has distinct technological limitations. Selective soldering is a form of flow soldering but offers the only possible soldering method where through-hole components must be soldered on both sides of a two-sided printed circuit board assembly. With selective soldering, specific soldering points are individually programmed and monitored to control flux volumes and soldering time. The advantages are process repeatability and consistent results.

If you are managing a wave soldering process, consider switching to selective soldering to handle more advanced PCB designs and accommodate future technological advancements. Although wave soldering can be used successfully for large unit-volume production, it has several disadvantages including:

• Higher consumption of solder

• Higher consumption of flux

• Higher consumption of electricity

• Higher consumption of nitrogen

• Additional masking of sensitive points on PCBs

• Increased need for post-wave solder rework

• Additional cleaning of wave solder aperture pallets or masks

• Additional need for cleaning of the soldered assemblies

Because of these disadvantages, the overall operating costs for a typical wave soldering machine can be much higher when compared to a selective soldering machine.

Our guide includes a cost analysis that details where the savings can be realized. Download the ebook now to find out how much you might save.

Already switched to selective soldering? Consider Nordson Electronics Solutions for your next upgrade.

Download here.