Television: Reality is Still In.... the shows keep getting better too!

I haven't posted in a long time, so I thought it was time to come back and share some "newer" (to me that is) shows that I have thoroughly enjoyed. Most of my old favorites are still around, so I won't bother relisting there here.

The great thing for people in search of knowledge/content is that as time goes on, Youtube continues improving with an ever growing user base.... I'm not sure the networks are benefiting much, but that's a separate issue...

General
Ultimate Factories - A show truly dedicated to the documentation of world's Ultimate Factories! If I could choose but one show to watch this would be the one. - National Geographic
How Do They Do It? - A Broad Range of Topics (This is a British show, but they have a surprising amount of US content.) - Discovery Channel
Man Made - Covers everything from factories to Construction - National Geographic
Factory Made - A Broad Range of Topics - Discovery Channel
Some Assembly Required - Plant Tours - Discovery Channel
How'd That Get On My Plate? - This show is more friendly for average viewers who may not normally watch a factory specific show. - Food Network
CEO - A monthly show that focuses on an interview with a current CEO. It looks similar in style to History's Business (I haven't actually watched the show yet, but it looks interesting) - PBS


Military
GI Factory - Military specific Factory Tours; There aren't many episodes, but the ones that were made are very comprehensive. - Military Channel
Weaponology - This show covers the history of many different military organizations, and educates about a broad range of weapons, strategies, cultures. - Military Channel

Cutting Edge: Intel's Fab 32 (Arizona)

Intel's Fab 32 is a Cutting Edge $3 Billion Dollar, 300mm Fab with a 45nm process that will go into production in the second half of 2007 (Now!). Intel's Press Release and video tell you almost everything you need to know:

"When completed, Fab 32 will become Intel's sixth 300-mm wafer facility. The structure will be about 1 million square feet with 184,000 square feet of clean room space. The project will create up to 1000 new Intel jobs at the Arizona site over the next several years. During the construction phase, more than 3,000 skilled trades people will be hired to work on the project.

Intel currently operates four 300-mm fabs that provide the equivalent manufacturing capacity of about eight 200-mm factories. Those factories are located in Oregon, Ireland and New Mexico. The company also has an additional 300 mm fab currently under construction in Arizona (Fab 12) scheduled to begin operations later this year, and one expansion in Ireland (Fab 24-2) scheduled to begin operations in the first quarter of next year.

Manufacturing with 300-mm wafers (about 12 inches in diameter) dramatically increases the ability to produce semiconductors at a lower cost compared with more widely used 200-mm (eight-inch) wafers. The total silicon surface area of a 300-mm wafer is 225 percent, or more than twice that of a 200-mm wafer, and the number of printed die (individual computer chips) is increased to 240 percent. The bigger wafers lower the production cost per chip while diminishing overall use of resources. Three-hundred-mm wafer manufacturing will use 40 percent less energy and water per chip than a 200-mm wafer factory."

Facility Showcase: BMW Leipzig

BMW has a short yet detailed video on their facility in Leipzig, Germany. It discusses the thought process that went into deciding facility attributes, and also provides some insight into BMW as a whole. The robotics in the body shop, paint shop, welding, etc. are amazing to watch, and the facility layout is also quite impressive. From what I can tell there are few if any paper travelers at Leipzig, and the operation itself appears world class.

Television: Reality is In....

With all of the everyday-life television programming out there and many networks becoming niche markets for things (Food, News, Sports, Education [TLC, Discovery, History Channel, etc.]) it should come as no surprise that there is even a market for plant tours and manufacturing, especially when it allows manufacturers to enhance their presence in the marketplace and show off their latest and greatest products. Not all of the shows are of the same caliber, but there are several TV shows that I have found to be both entertaining and educational (my wife even likes a few!).

I record several shows because you never know what tidbit you will learn (even if the plant tour/subject has already been covered). And since it is recorded I can always fast forward or stop watching if the content isn't up to par. So, here is a list that may be worth investigating further if you are looking for more media to view. Many shows will provide company/product history in addition to showing you how things are made.

If you search YouTube and elsewhere some of the shows are even available.

How Its Made - Paintballs

General
How Its Made (US, Canada I actually prefer the Canadian version...) - Plant Tours for many products - Discovery & Science Channel
Modern Marvels - A Broad Range of Topics - History Channel
Unwrapped - Food Product Plant Tours - Food Network
History's Business - Interviews with company CEOs - History Channel
Made in America - American Plant Tours - Travel Channel

Automotive
Fifth Gear - Automotive reviews and information - Formerly on Speed; This is a British show
Top Gear - Automotive reviews and information - Formerly on Discovery; This is a British show

Military
Mail Call - Military history with some discussion of development/manufacturing - History Channel
Modern Marvels - A Broad Range of Topics - History Channel
Shooting USA - Coverage of the shooting sports with Plant Tours and other good technical information - Outdoor Channel
Shooting Gallery - Information about the firearms industry, related products and services. There have been several good Plant Tours on this show as well.
Sighting In with Shooting USA - I think this one got cancelled, but it was also good. - Outdoor Channel


Websites
How Stuff Works
How Products are Made

Technical Tutorials: How to Make a Chip & Flat Panel Display

This isn't exactly a plant tour, but these Technical Tutorials made by Applied Materials have some good information on how semiconductors are made. Some of the presentations are a little long, but you'll learn more than you ever wanted to know about the steps required to manufacture a chip. The two directly linked tutorials are How to Make a Chip and How to Make a Flat Panel Display respectively. Other presentations available at the Applied Materials How We Do It page include:
What is Nanomanufacturing Technology
What is Solar Electric Power,
How to Make a Transistor,
How Clean is Clean,
Build a Transistor Challenge ,
How to Make a Chip,
How to Make a Flat Panel Display

SMT Machines Amaze me...

With coverage on the two Plant tours below (Kingmax and Gigabyte) I thought it was worth sharing more information on Surface-mount technology (SMT) machinery such as the Fuji machine pictured to the right. For high volume products with many components (chips, capacitors, resistors, etc.) SMTs are generally a sound investment, as can be seen by their speed (0.068 Seconds per Component aka 40,000 cph) and precision (Placing Accuracy:+/- 0.0039 in. aka +/-0.1mm). As if the speed and precision weren't enough, surface mount components (SMCs) are generally smaller than their leaded counterparts, so the overall PCB and therefore the entire electronic device can be made smaller.

In order to utilize Surface mount technology, surface mount components must be purchased. An SMT component is usually smaller than its leaded counterpart because it has no leads or smaller leads. It may have short pins or leads of various styles, flat contacts, a matrix of balls (BGAs), or terminations on the body of the component (passives). The part shown in the picture on the left has 112 pins on it. To do this as a standard DIP, the part would be nearly 7 inches in length! That is just too big. With SMT, this part is a little under 1 square inch.


So on to the videos..... I have never seen a SMT machine operate in person, but I would equate the fastest machines of the bunch as essentially being component gatling guns!


Gigabyte Mainboard Factory


Fuji pick and place