Regional Electronics Assembly Centre - REACT 2000-2004

The Regional Electronics Assembly Centre (REACT) was set up in 2000 by TWI at their Technology Centre in Middlesbrough. The programme boosted business opportunities for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the North East of England which worked in the area of electronics assembly.

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REACT Background

REACT was set up by TWI with the support of the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund. Housing a comprehensive range of equipment, the centre enabled local companies to try state-of-the-art PCB assembly and soldering technology on their existing products and prototypes.

This powerful source of technical back-up for the North East electronics industry provided a full demonstration, instruction and assembly line for surface mount and through-hole technology. Manual assembly and soldering processes were available.

Staff at the centre provided expert advice and helped companies select appropriate technologies before purchasing potentially expensive capital equipment

TWI Product & Process Reviews and Feasibility Studies

By correctly choosing and implementing joining technology, companies were able to:

Reduce costs
Increase productivity
Improve product quality

But how do you know if you are getting it right?

A Product & Process Review established the needs and identified opportunities for improving profits and future growth.

A Feasibility Study provided the facts to support decisions on improvements to your products and processes.

How it worked

A Product & Process Review (PPR) came first. You gave TWI some basic information about your company's activities and manufacturing processes. We then determined whether your company was eligible for a Review, and which specialist should carry it out. We then arranged to spend up to a day at your company to assess and evaluate your manufacturing practice.

A brief report was then prepared for you, focusing on opportunities for change leading to increased profitability.

What it covered

A PPR could cover any aspect of joining technology, related materials engineering, product design, manufacturing systems and training issues.

What it cost

Fully subsidised by the programme, the PPR was free of charge to your company. Companies were allowed one Review in this scheme.

How can I implement your specialist's recommendations?

This is where a Feasibility Study came in. A Study could include trials and development work to provide the facts to support the Review's findings. The work was carried out at TWI North East, Middlesbrough, UK. Extra resource and expertise was also available at TWI's headquarters in Cambridge. TWI has extensive facilities in microtechnology, adhesive bonding, materials and mechanical engineering, destructive and non-destructive testing, and production systems.

The outcome of a Study would be comprehensive report giving you hard evidence of the potential benefits of implementing the Review.

And the cost?

A Feasibility Study cost £150 (+VAT) per day, up to a maximum of four days, a 75% discount on real costs. Again companies were entitled to one subsidised Study.