In the past, when electronics manufacturers needed to add fasteners to a printed circuit board, they had two choices. They could deal with the inconvenience and poor productivity of loose fasteners. Or, they could use broaching fasteners, which hold circuit boards securely but can easily damage populated boards if not installed correctly. Now, there is another option. Surface mount technology can now be used to add fasteners to PCBs. These fasteners are affixed directly onto a solder pad on the surface of the board, using the same soldering processes as the board’s other components.

The fasteners are designed with productivity in mind. They are supplied on tape-and-reel packages that are compatible with existing pick-and-place machines. A fastener can be installed as quickly as 0.33 second, as opposed to as much as 30 seconds for a secondary operation.

Not only are there labor savings, but scrap savings as well vs. broaching. Manufacturers typically install broaching fasteners once the boards have been fully populated. But, the broaching process can subject the boards to significant amounts of stress after they are populated, ruining very expensive assemblies.

Surface-mount fasteners available in several varieties, including panel fasteners, spacers, nuts and right angle styles.

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