Many businesses experience a "summer slowdown" in manufacturing volumes and orders and, in electronics, use this time to prepare for the typical ramp up for the holiday buying season. It’s not an unusual phenomenon, but one which has not affected ECD’s SmartDRY™ Intelligent Dry Storage™ product line.

The demands of moisture sensitive devices (MSDs) and the standards that govern their handling have generated additional manufacturing processes and procedures. In some cases, these processes and procedures are no longer needed because the standards have changed, are conservative in application or even misinterpreted. Regardless of these realities, some processes, like baking, have become entrenched – a permanent fixture that may waste precious time, energy and money.

Much has been written on the subject of electrostatic discharge (ESD) and moisture and their destructive impact on sensitive electronic devices. With today’s ever-increasing densities and shrinking package sizes, damage is caused by even lower potentials and less moisture than ever before. It’s time to take a renewed look at the issues and consider better ways to monitor and document the environment in the electronics manufacturing industry.