Waste minimization in electronic component processing-a systems approach

Environmental concerns over waste disposal and efficient utilization of manufacturing process materials, together with evolving state, federal, and international government policy on these issues, have led to the conceptual development of a “smart” systems analysis for tracking process materials flow, consumption, and the generation of waste or by-product (per unit of manufactured product), at each step in the manufacturing process. Of particular interest to the authors is the manufacture of electronic components, which involves many process intensive, semicontinuous, and repetitive wet chemical and physical operations that define circuit patterns on polymer, ceramic, or silicon substrates. The value of the application of systems analysis concepts for environmental considerations to complex sequential manufacturing operations lies in its capability to ascertain materials flow, consumption and waste generation at all times, at the individual process step, manufacturing line, or factory levels, and to provide process optimization and control from an environmental perspective. A proposed architecture for the application of systems analysis in a typical manufacturing process line in a UNIX System environment is illustrated. A major element incorporated in the platform is the “smart” module, which provides intelligent manufacturing systems assessments having environmental impact at both the micro and macro manufacturing levels, and recommends process alternatives or control using knowledge of best available process technology