Plug & Play Factory Project (completed)

Based on findings of the 1996 NEMI roadmap, the Plug & Play Factory Project was organized to develop an open, vendor-independent environment for electronics assembly, inspection and test equipment, and related software. This project, which was completed in late 1999, addressed the issues of how to quickly integrate new pieces of electronics assembly equipment into a shop floor line management system and how to manage the vast amounts of data available in today's electronics manufacturing environment. It also addressed issues relating to the collection of shop floor data from disparate pieces of equipment and how that data could be transferred between remote locations via a Web browser.

The Plug & Play Project developed specifications which have become part of IPC's Computer-Aided Manufacturing using XML (CAMX) standards. These standards provide a common, XML-based interface among all the hardware components on a PCB manufacturing line. They also leverage GenCAM, the industry standard that defines how product data for PCBs should be described, including information needed for tooling, manufacturing, assembly, inspection and testing requirements.

Standards

Press Releases

Several Companies Demonstrate New CAMX and PDX Standards at Productronica Trade Show in Munich (see also: Backgrounder) (11.07.01)

GenRad Product Commercializes Technologies from NEMI'S Plug & Play Factory Project (3.13.00)

IPC, NEMI Team to Standardize Factory Floor And Supply Chain Communications (9.7.99)

NEMI's Factory Information Systems Group Demonstrates "Plug & Play" Manufacturing Capabilities at IPC/SMTA Electronics Assembly Expo (10.28.98)

Articles

"PCB Equipment Communication Standards Today and Tomorrow," Brian Rubow, Cimetrix, Inc., APEX 2003, April 2, Anaheim, CA.

"Lessons Learned from the IPC-2501 Testbed Prototype Performance Test at a Motorola Factory," D. Pattyn and M. Motherway, Motorola, APEX 2003, April 2, Anaheim, CA.

"Speaking a Common Language," Von Campbell, Agilent Technologies, IPC Review, February 2003, pp. 14-16.

"The Framework Implementation Project," Andrew Dugenske, Circuits Assembly, March 2001, p. 51.
PDF: 229K download

"Plug and Play Creates Manufacturing Interoperability," Allan Fraser, Robert Voitus and Andrew Dugenske, Electronic Packaging & Production, December 2000 (requires log-in).

"The National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative's (NEMI) Plug and Play Factory Project," Andrew Dugenske, Allan Fraser, Tuan Nguyen and Robert Voitus, International Journal of CIM, Volume 13, Number 3 (May/June, 2000). (1MB PDF)