#esd work tables

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NEW-AGE ESD WORKPLACE SOLUTIONS FOR MODERN R&D CENTRES

Electronics manufacturing, testing and quality control need test and measuring equipment and ergonomic environments that are flexible, versatile and safe. Messung brings the future of modern workplace systems for R&D labs, testing labs, calibration stations, manufacturing departments, assembly stations and training centres spread across the Indian electronic industry.

Messung’s innovative, modular & customised laboratory furniture systems are designed to improve efficiency, safety and comfort. Their world-class ESD workstations, ESD rack storage, industrial work tables, lab tables with drawers and other workplace and storage solutions enable users to optimise their work environment for enhanced productivity.

Messung also offer ergonomic ESD chairs, workstation chairs and laboratory chairs that are proven in tough industrial and critical cleanroom applications. They are trusted for enhancing user comfort, safety and health - to benefit your most valuable resource: your people.

Let’s see what Messung Workplace Technology has done for a leading multinational recently.

REVAMPING CISCO’S BGA-REWORK HARDWARE LAB,BANGALORE

The Cisco Global Development Centre in Bangalore is the largest outside the US. It houses Cisco's Research and Development (R&D), IT, Services and customer support teams and develops disruptive business models for Cisco to create new go-to-market channels, markets, processes and technologies for emerging markets.

Handling electrostatic charge is something Cisco takes very seriously as any failure due to static charge can harm the final product that gets manufactured or tested and in-turn affects Cisco’s brand equity and image. All areas within Cisco which handle electronics components or any static charge susceptible items have been declared as ESD (Electrostatic discharge) Zones, and guidelines with proper auditing measures have been drafted for employees to follow if they enter such areas. Among these guidelines is the compulsory use of ESD workstations and ESD chairs. The veracity of the static charge discharge ability of these ESD workstations and ESD task chairs is monitored by an internal ESD testing team.

For years, Cisco's team of BGA-rework hardware lab was using local-made ESD workstations installed with ESD sheet surface in their re-work laboratories. However, they required constant upgradation of technology. This made the team look for the latest technology in the market; they were in need of a customizable product.

Another aspect which Cisco’s rework hardware lab was facing was the storage of the reworked components and equipment. As per the procedures, all the storage of any ESDS components and equipment needed to be in an ESD-safe rack. Cisco was using the standard metal racks available in the market. This option also needed to be upgraded and the team decided to incorporate ESD rackstorage.

Messung partnered with Cisco to upgrade their labs to help increase productivity and efficiency. Messung developed the complete world-class quality ESD lab for Cisco’s BGA-rework hardware team. This includes the ESD workstations, ESD chairs and ESD storage racks which use the patented volume-ESD technology brought to India by Messung. The ESD workstations have facilities for adding accessories like the fume extractor, soldering station, ESD bins, monitor arm, LED tube, filing board for keeping testing instruments.

ABOVE VOLUME ESD

Volume ESD makes the entire worktop or storage shelves conductive with dissipative lamination on both the sides of the workstation. The properties for discharging the charge are uniformly present throughout the volume of the material as compared to its presence only on the contact surface in traditional technology.

This technology guarantees lifetime fail-safe ESD properties of the product which means that the chances of ESD failure are negligible; thus helping Cisco to save costs in repairs, warranties and replacements of products.

Moreover, Messung's ESD workbenches, ESD Chairs and ESD storage racks are tested as per IEC 61340-5-1 safety standards, which are mandatory for all international quality Electronic manufacturing and R&D facilities.

Messung's ESD work tables, chairs and storage racks exceeded the expectations of Cisco’s internal testing team. The indigenously designed and manufactured ESD workstations, chairs and racks for electronics laboratories have ensured consistent, long-lasting ESD properties and fewer electro-static failures in Cisco's re-work labs. The world-class looks and specifications of Messung's ESD tables have transformed the labs, causing work efficiency, productivity and safety to rise substantially.

CONCLUSION

Messung Workplace Technology manufactures innovative, modular & customised laboratory furniture systems, and intelligent test & measurement solutions that are designed to provide safety and improve efficiency while offering user comfort.

Messung also offers expert capabilities for designing and executing laboratory or training centre setups. ESD furniture, testing equipment & instrumentation, computers, storage systems, harmonics-free power supplies, server rooms with UPS and air-conditioners - whatever the customer needs as per their applications, Messung delivers the complete infrastructure from concept to commissioning.

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Five Key Elements to Remember Before Deciding ESD Safe Chair

We feel the effects of static electricity so often, and usually it’s quite harmless. But in Electronic workplaces such as an electronics assembly line or electronics testing laboratory, ESD or Electrostatic Discharge poses a serious danger. Not so much to the operators but to the high impedance microprocessor based PCB assemblies, Electronic equipments and components being worked upon.

Besides other equipment required to counter the effects of ESD, it is essential that you also equip your lab with specially and scientifically designed ESD safe furniture. Getting ESD safe chairs to complement your ESD work tables is definitely called for.

All design elements in an ESD chair including the ESD seats and backs, the mechanism for tilting, the hydraulic cylinder, the star base and the ESD casters should all be designed to conduct the ESD to be discharged to the ESD flooring in the respective laboratories.

So deciding to buy an ESD chair to minimize the risk of ESD is an important requirement.

But how do you pick the right chair? Here are 5 qualities to look for:

1. Third party verification

There are many ESD chairs available in the market that claim to be ESD safe. Ask for third party certification to ensure the chair has been tested and will deliver as advertised. From the chair seat and backrest to the ESD chair casters and other plastic or metal parts, every component should discharge static electricity as per recognized standards.

The world’s leading manufacturers such as Werksitz (Germany) produce ESD chairs as per stringent international standards i.e. ANSI ESD S20.20-2014 defined by Electrostatic Discharge Association [ESDA], IEC-EN-61340-S1 defined by The International Electro technical Commission.

While checking the Chair for its ESD properties, the resistive range while using a megger, should be in the range of (1*10^6) to (1*10^7) one megaohm to ten megaohm.

2. Ergonomics

While your primary motive may be ESD protection, don’t forget that the operator will be spending many hours at a stretch on the chair. The operator will also be reaching out to various instruments, bins, soldering iron and keyboards. For this he would be continuously moving left, right, up and down, so the chair selected should facilitate him to do it easily while supporting his back extensively. Long hours of such work without a properly designed chair, results in discomfort and thus loss of productivity. So comfort and ergonomics is extremely important. Ergonomic chairs are designed to promote good posture, promote productivity and minimise risks of workers developing injuries or problems from repetitive tasks or long hours of sitting.

The seat’s height, depth and angle; the backrest’s angle and lumbar support; the smooth movement of the casters; the supportive armrests – all this needs to be considered – and adjusted to serve individual employees. A chair that can be easily adapted for personal needs will assure sitting comfort and good back support. Moreover, the chair should be sturdy and well supported by heavy duty casters to allow smooth movement and prevent accidents.

The appropriate standard for this functionality is DIN 68877 (occupational health and safety standard).

3. Warranty

Check out the chair’s warranty before choosing to buy. There will be cheaper options with little or no warranty, but such chairs are sure to be less effective and less durable. Your chair should come with at least a 3-5 year warranty, to ensure you’re buying a good product from an excellent manufacturer.

4. Upholstery

While deciding the seat covering for the seat and back of the chair, you have many choices and you have to choose appropriately.

Some find ESD PU more suitable, others find Synthetic leather or fabric more comfortable; some prefer a material that’s stain-resistant and easy to clean. Depending on the needs of your workplace and operators, look for chair coverings that fulfill your needs while providing effective cover from static electricity. Please note that the ESD characteristic of the chair especially of the seat and back should not wear away with time. There are many cheaper chairs in the market where only an ESD spray is used over the material on the seat and back. This can soon wear off and you would have a chair with Zero ESD characteristic, which is dangerous for the electronic circuits. As per ISO 9000, when your assembly or test unit is checked for ESD compliance, you will find that such chairs made by these poor quality manufacturers will not meet the desired parameters of ESD.

Materials can be of different types:

Polyurethane: The PU chair has a typical material density of 300-700 Kg/m3 and is directly molded into the shape of the seat/backrest. This makes the chair extremely rugged, durable and wear resistant. The ESD type PU material is especially unique in its kind as it provides volumetric ESD properties and is washable with regular IPAs (Isopropyl Alcohol).

ESD chemicals are mixed in the PU material at the time of molding, which gives it uniform ESD properties throughout its volume. This material can be used in non-certified ESD & cleanroom areas (>class10000), regular ESD areas and shop floors.

Synthetic leather: This material needs to be upholstered over white PU foam with typical density of 50-55 Kg/m3. ESD leatherette material is made by mixing ESD material with the resin at the time of manufacturing. This material is easily cleanable with IPAs, and can be used in non-certified ESD & cleanroom areas (>class10000) and regular ESD areas.

Fabric:  This material needs to be upholstered over white PU foam with typical density of 50-55 Kg/m3. Fabric ESD material is prepared by interweaving ESD threads with regular fabric threads in an amount, which helps, achieve the ESD range as desired.

5. Reputed manufacturer

It makes sense to check out the credentials of the manufacturer when buying ESD chairs. What is their experience and reputation? Do they have a good track record? Do they have a good service network? Will they customize products for you? Do they have expertise in ESD & Ergonomics domains? It always pays to go with a supplier you can trust.

Most important is that the manufacturer should follow international standards for manufacturing, especially the ISO 9001-2008.

Conclusion

ESD chairs are essential furniture equipment for environments working with static sensitive electronics and devices. If you’re going to buy such chairs please evaluate the chairs on the basis of these five points to ensure you make the right choice, and keep not only your expensive electronics safe but also keep your workers happy, comfortable and productive for years.

Messung Group – the pioneer of automation industry in India brings you Navonmesh – a unique initiative to make India proud with its best-in-class Make in India capabilities. Under Navonmesh, Messung presents world-class ergonomic industrial furniture with ESD protection: the AFM-PLUS series of ESD worktables, ESD chairs and stools, test & measuring devices, antistatic workbench and testing equipment, and ergonomic solutions for the electronic industry. Messung is the exclusive ESD chair manufacturer in Pune offering ESD safe chairs tested as per IEC 61340-5-1 safety standards.

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Paradigm Shift of ESD Technology in Defence

Electro-Static charge is an invisible menace that lurks inside your electronics production areas, including zones dedicated to Research and Development, Manufacturing, Testing and Storage.

Very simply, Electro-static charge accumulated on the work surface area damages electronic PCB assemblies and microprocessors, memory chips and other high impedance components which come in contact with it.

We need highly efficient Electro-static dissipative surfaces and work areas where these sophisticated electronic components are used.

Defence microelectronics is very demanding in terms of the complexity and density of the microprocessors and high impedance circuitry in the PCG hardware. The constant evolution of warfare tactics has led to massive restructuring of radar, telematics, propulsion and many other systems used in varied military and space applications. If compared to their earlier versions, these systems are now more refined, compact and include highly sophisticated electronics. This intricacy and miniaturization of electronic components has made them more susceptible to ESD damage during any phase of manufacturing or testing.

Electro-static accumulated charge can damage and destroy intricate construction of today’s miniature electronic components and render them useless. Apart from causing varying degrees of inconveniences to the customer, failure of an electronic component in critical applications like telematics of a missile or space shuttle, radar system of a tank or submarine in the field might result in loss of lives. Industry estimates mention 8% to 33% losses as a direct result of Electro-static damage. Thus, non dissipated Electro-static charge imposes an unacceptably high cost to the bottom-line and addressing these issues is imperative for any defence and space related organization.

Electro-static Prevention and ESD Protection are thus vital to improving reliability and reducing defects in today’s defence electronics manufacturing facility. The good news is that Electro-static prevention and control is easy and sustainable with the advent of new technology that is driving managers to use fail-safe ESD products in their assembly, manufacturing and testing tables and stations.

What is traditional ESD technology?

Products such as ESD matting on workbenches, Chairs with fabric coated with ESD sprays are presently used in defence areas where semiconductor and PCB assembly and testing is carried out. Electronic products to be used in applications related to radar testing, missile manufacturing, missile electronics testing etc.

These traditional ESD measures enable the working area surfaces to be dissipative, but not with the same efficiency and reliability that we will describe in the forthcoming paragraphs “New ESD technology”.

The traditional methods of ESD mats and ESD sprays were OK till the 90’s, an era where the electronics components were simpler and the PCB assemblies were not so dense and complicated.

Problems of using traditional technology

While traditional technology was widely used till recent times they definitely had many pain areas, such as –

- Products using traditional technology are susceptible to frequent failures and thus need to be monitored on a regular basis. This requires allocation of resources and thus reduces productive time of employees

- ESD mats which are placed on top of a regular table often wear out within 6-7 months due to usage and need timely replacement. This increases the cost and also poses a danger of working with non-ESD safe work surfaces when the ESD mat has reached the end of its life cycle.

- ESD or Anti-static sprays, commonly used on Chair surfaces’ to make it ESD safe do not last long as their ESD properties wear out quickly mostly within few months and then the customer is exposed to working with ESD unsafe chairs and work surfaces and if there is an accumulation of Static electricity, it can lead to major damages to the electronics being tested or assembled.

- Traditional ESD mats and ESD Chair fabrics cannot be cleaned because any cleaning method will partially or completely destroy the ESD properties. The Table mats and chairs have to be kept just as they are and the production and testing set-up may not look very tidy and clean.

What is new age ESD technology?

New age ESD technology involves use of Volumetric ESD products for both the table and chairs. This technology is causing a paradigm shift in how managers used to approach ESD safe designs and products. With the use of volume ESD, users are guaranteed ESD-safe properties for lifetime. Let us understand what exactly Volume ESD is.

Volume ESD as used on table and shelf tops, means embedding carbon polymers along with the base material used to manufacture the ESD product. This essentially means that with volume ESD, the properties for discharging the charge are present throughout the volume of the material as compared to its presence only on the contact surface in traditional technology.

For instance, Volumetric ESD in workbench is when the wooden laminated worktop is integrated with conductive carbon polymers, which makes the entire worktop conductive with dissipative lamination on both the sides of the workstation. This is a technology which ensures lifetime ESD protection of the workbench.

(insert image)

In the above image you can see that the worktable laminate is embedded with conductive carbon polymers with lamination on both sides of the workstation, unlike normal wooden worktop which is Medium-density fibreboard.

Similarly, this technology can be used to manufacture Volume ESD Polyurethane chairs where the base material of the seats and backs of the chair; which is Polyurethane, is embedded with ESD particles throughout the volume.

All the products mentioned above are used in making world class ESD work tables and ESD chairs which are tested as per IEC 61340-5-1 safety standards. These standards are mandatory for use in all international quality Electronic laboratory and Electronic manufacturing facilities.

Benefits of using new technology

Volume ESD is beneficial over traditional ESD in many ways such as –

- It guarantees lifetime fail-safe ESD properties of the product which means that the chances of ESD failure are negligible. This saves customers, costs in repairs, warranties and replacements

- Even after wear and tear, the ESD properties remain homogenous throughout the material. This essentially means that the product, like workstation or chair, will have the same ESD properties effectively throughout. Thus rather than concentrating on whether ESD properties of the work tables and chairs are working fine, the user can now concentrate on his testing and assembly and other matters. This improves efficiency and productivity and a big relief to the Production and testing line managers as now he can be rest assured that he will have no problems with Static electricity.

- The use of unreliable ESD mats is avoided by the use of volume ESD technology on the wooden table tops. It saves the customer the hassle and repeated capital costs of replacing the mat every 6-7 months

- Volume ESD products are resistant to regular cleaning agents like IPA, Ethanol and other chemicals. The products do not lose any ESD properties due to cleaning. Thus the work area can be kept neat and clean in turn improving employee productivity and motivation.

Case Study

A senior scientist head of Power Electronics division of a government Laboratory in Cochin talks about shifting from old ESD technology to new technology.

This senior Scientist had issues with Electro-static failures during testing of various electronic hardware and PCB assemblies. He also faced severe productivity issues, as most of the employee time was getting utilized in wondering as to why the electronic components were failing without any reason.

Our customer, the senior Scientist,  wanted to make his lab with world-class technology and found that by using these new technology products for his Laboratory Work tables and Chairs with volumetric properties worth the investment. This new technology guarantees him lower Electro-static failures and the improved ergonomics of the new ESD chairs improved the productivity of his employees.

Currently, as per the senior scientist, the new technology is proving to be worth its value as failure rates have dipped to near to negligible and productivity has risen by almost 15-20%. His employees can now concentrate better on their work rather than worrying about any Electro-static failures.

Numerous Government labs and defence organizations are now updating and equipping their labs with new cutting-edge technology (Volume ESD) to counter the rising failures due to static energy on work surfaces damaging critical components.

Authors: Mr. Farook Merchant and Mr. Azeem Merchant

Messung is proud to partner with Defence and other sectors to provide world-class workplace technology solutions in India. The Messung range of Volume ESD laboratory worktables and ESD safe chairs as per IEC 61340-5-1 safety standards,  is designed to eliminate risk of electro-static failures and delight users with their smart looks and proven ergonomics.