Precision Plating's Role in Lead-Free, Pure Tin Plating Finishes
For the past several years Precision Plating has been working on lead-free, pure tin plating finishes for those customers that have lead-free requirements with our plating solution suppliers, testing and evaluating various solutions in a production environment.
Precision Plating offers lead free, pure tin electroplated finishes for customers that have specified a lead free tin finish. These relatively new, pure tin electroplating chemistries have been specifically formulated to provide a whisker resistant, lead free deposit that provides a drop in replacement for any applications that are currently utilizing tin-lead.
Precision Plating also worked closely with Texas Instruments in the late 1980s on the nickel-palladium-gold plating during the qualification stages of the development of this finish. In fact, some of the first lead frame samples to be plated with this finish were plated right here at Precision Plating. Today this finish has well over a ten-year history in lead frame production and Precision Plating is the premier job shop provider of palladium finishes in the United States.
Here at Precision Plating we have been able to provide our customers with lead-free, pure tin plating finishes that survive multiple, high temperature reflow operations without any degradation of solderability and without any discoloration. We have even been able to provide parts that pass 8-hour steam aging after two reflow cycles of 30 seconds at 260 degrees C!
Some of these customers found Precision only after suffering through several other plating suppliers that couldn't provide lead-free, pure tin plated product that survived these stringent applications.
We Are Here To Help Educate
Even though the RoHS has been in place for a while now, there are still many companies in the electronics industry that are just beginning to investigate the impact of these requirements or starting to feel the unintentional stress with their production process. Please read our White Paper titled "Lead Free: RoHS Compliance" to learn more about the effects of RoHS compliancy requirements.
Precision has been working with many of our customers on compliance issues and in some cases, very closely with large OEM's. Consequently, we have made ourselves available to field customer questions and inquires regarding lead-free plating alternatives and help educate customers in this area. We have even provided engineering presentations, at customer locations, for those customers that wish to learn more about lead-free alternatives.
Our 100 years of electroplating engineering experience uniquely positions us to be able to respond to these changes. If you would like more information on this subject please feel free to contact us. We're up to the challenge!
