Heraeus Electronics, a leading provider of materials solutions for the semiconductor and electronic packaging industries, recently obtained IATF 16949 certification for their manufacturing facilities in Germany, Singapore and Changshu, China. The certification underlines the commitment made by Heraeus to ensure the highest quality standards for automotive customers worldwide.
At the newly certified sites, Heraeus Electronics produces bonding wires, solder pastes, solder wires, solder powder and fluxes, as well as thick film pastes, metal substrates and metal ceramic substrates, including product and process development, purchasing and sales as supporting functions for other sites. All sites were already certified according to ISO/TS 16949 when the transition to IATF 16949 began, inducing Quality Management System Gap Analysis, IATF Transition Change trainings, documentation update, as well as internal audits.
IATF 16949 is one of the most recognized and stringent standard in the automotive sector and was published by the International Automotive Task Force to replace ISO/TS 16949. Improvements overall include additional business process requirements, cleanliness, ethics, training, supplier and customer communications and detailed records.
The transition was completed by an audit of TÜV Rheinland and Bureau Veritas and TÜV SÜD Management Service respectively in the beginning of 2018. Heraeus Electronics will adjust all productions sites globally to the new standard to be prepared well ahead of the expiration of ISO/TS 16949 in September 2018.