Most automated assembly systems are designed to make one specific product. When production of that assembly ends, the systems are scrapped or reconfigured at great expense. But, it doesn’t have to be that way.
Despite years of research by electronics assemblers, the problem of tin whiskers defies an easy solution. And the stakes are high, to say the least. Since 1992, tin whiskers have been blamed for the complete failure of three commercial satellites and the partial disabling of four others.
Without lubrication, even the fastest, most accurate, most elegantly designed assembly system will literally grind to a halt. Lubrication does more than just reduce friction between moving parts. It also prevents corrosion, dissipates heat, and keeps mechanisms free of contamination.