From AI-server boards to automated SMT lines, ASMPT is advancing electronics manufacturing with smarter placement, software and AI-powered optimisation. See what’s next In this exclusive interview, Rahul Chopra, MD, EFY, speaks with Neeraj Bhardwaj, GM – India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, ASMPT SMT Solutions, about the technologies shaping the future of intelligent electronics manufacturing.
Watch the full Interview:
Q. How would you present ASMPT as a brand and as an organisation to a customer, who’s new to electronics manufacturing ecosystem?
A. ASMPT is a global market and technology leader in semiconductor and electronics manufacturing. It covers key processes from advanced semiconductor packaging to SMT production. Within the SMT Solutions segment, we focus on enabling the intelligent factory via hardware, software, automation & process expertise.
Q. Besides the machines themselves, speed and quality of Technical Support (provision of Repairs and availability of spares) is a critical factor when investing in high-value equipment. How does ASMPT support in this aspect?
A. We have an extensive coverage of sales and service centres in India. We also have business partners Maxim SMT Technology and ALN Tronics to support us in delivering to our customers. In addition, besides the team in India, support can come from a global level. Customer support and satisfaction are also our priority.
Q. How was FY 25-26 for ASMPT in South Asia? And India?
A. We had exceeded our expectations last year and we are proud to share that it was a recording breaking with over 350 machines order in the South Asia market.
Q. How’s FY 26-27 looking for you?
A. Currently, with the government support in the electronics industry, and the industry demands on AI and Telecommunications, the outlook is looking positive.
Q. Are there any key application areas/industry segments driving demand for your machines?
A. There are several segments:
- AI servers and HPC – major growth areas
- IT and network infrastructure – increasing demand
- Automotive and industrial electronics – key established markets
- Smartphones and consumer electronics – high-volume applications
Across these segments: higher complexity, higher quality requirements and increasing automation are needed, and we see that ASMPT can fill in the gaps.
Q. What are the highlights of your booth at this event?
A. There are a number of highlights:
- India debut of the new SIPLACE V – our key highlight at Productronica India
- Live demonstration of large BGA placement for AI-server applications on the SIPLACE SX
- DEK TQ for highly precise solder paste printing
- WORKS Software Suite and SMT Analytics – using production data to improve yield
- Latest Virtual Assist, including enhanced AI chat and image-based spare-parts recognition
- Our new Customer Portal for easier access to services and support
Q. What’s special about SIPLACE V?
A. The SIPLACE V is a completely new placement platform, developed from the ground up. It combines performance, quality and flexibility. The SIPLACE V is real game changer in terms of performance. It achieves a performance increase of up to 30% more real performance in key applications, provides a broad component spectrum: from 016008M components to large and challenging OSCs. There are three specialized and optimized placement heads, of which the Placement Head CP20 delivers up to 52,500 cph at ±25 μm @ 3σ.
It is highly flexible, allowing various options such as as a single- or dual-lane, Smart Pin Support, 90 feeder slots, Tray Unit SIPLACE V Ready for the future, the SIPLACE V is prepared for further automation and AI-based analysis functions.
Q. How do these features translate into benefits for the customers?
A. There are various benefits:
- More capacity from available factory space thanks to the compact 2.4 × 1.1 m footprint
- Fast adaptation to changing products and volumes
- Efficient high-volume and high-mix production
- Compatibility with existing SIPLACE X feeders and established ASMPT software
- Step-by-step integration of future technologies and automation
- Long-term investment protection
Q. Any specific type of customers who will benefit more?
A. We cater to customers across all segments, including both EMS and OEM organizations, serving key industries such as Automotive, IT Hardware /AI Servers , Mobile Devices, Aerospace and Industrial Electronics.
Q. What are the symptoms or challenges being faced by customers which SIPLACE V promises to overcome?
A. Electronics manufacturers today face a constant challenge: doing more with every square meter of the factory floor while adapting faster to an ever-changing product mix. Higher equipment utilization, rapid changeovers, well-balanced lines, consistently high yields, smarter material management, and long-term investment protection are all critical to staying competitive. The latest V platform, seamlessly integrated with our advanced software suites, is designed to turn these challenges into opportunities—enabling manufacturers to build more agile, efficient, and future-ready production environments.
Q. From an engineering perspective, what are the key technological changes in SIPLACE V—particularly in its placement head, motion system, and vision architecture—that enable higher throughput while maintaining placement accuracy?
A. There are a number of technological changes:
- New, more rigid machine design for higher dynamics
- Up to 6G acceleration and optimized travel paths for higher throughput
- Efficient linear drives and high-resolution measurement systems for speed and precision
- Placement Head CP20 with 20 independently driven segments for individual component alignment during movement
- High-resolution vision and closed-loop correction of X, Y and angular offsets
- Integrated component sensor for monitoring from pickup to placement and height measurement down to 50 μm
- Gigabit Ethernet and Free Space Optics for high-bandwidth, low-latency data transmission
- Integrated mechanics, sensors, vision, data and software as the basis for higher real performance
Q. When was it launched globally? And is it available in India now?
A. The SIPLACE V platform made its global debut at Productronica Munich in November 2025, marking the beginning of an exciting new chapter in electronics manufacturing. Its market introduction is planned globally, including India, starting in Q3 2026.
Q. Coming to SIPLACE SX and accompanying DEK TQ printer—what’s special about the duo?
A. Both platforms are designed for high precision and integrated process quality. For the DEK TQ, it is a precise and stable solder-paste printing, while the SIPLACE SX is machine-integrated quality control from pickup to placement. They are both ready for the demanding AI-server applications.
Q. How do these features translate into benefits for the customers? Any specific type of customers who will benefit more?
A. Customers who are entering new markets such as AI servers and HPC with the proven SIPLACE SX platform. The SIPLACE SX is a highly flexible platform, it protects previous investment and is capable in handling highvalue applications with high process reliability.
Q. AI, HPC and advanced computing boards are increasingly using very large, heavy and complex BGAs. What fundamentally changes in the placement process when component size and mass move beyond conventional SMT packages?
A. Some changes include:
- Large and heavy BGAs require significantly more demanding handling
- Component-specific pickup requires adapted nozzles, suction capacity and defined pickup zones
- Mass inertia requires component-specific motion profiles in X, Y, Z and Delta
- Advanced vision enables multi-image inspection of large BGA ball fields
- Coplanarity requires precise height measurement with solder-paste thicknesses of only 100–120 μm
- Component orientation requires reliable Pin-1 identification
Q. How does ASMPT address challenges such as placement force, component handling, coplanarity, component/PCB warpage and Z-axis accuracy while maintaining production throughput?
A.
- Placement Head TWIN VHF with component-specific nozzles and placement forces up to 100 N
- Component-specific mass inertia and software-controlled force profiles
- Heavy-Duty Conveyor for PCBs up to 10 kg
- Smart Pin Support and PCB warpage compensation
- High-resolution vision and Pin-1 verification for BGA inspection and correct orientation
- On-Board PCB Inspection for foreign-object detection before placement
- 3D coplanarity measurement with laser triangulation and height resolution down to 0.5 μm
- In-machine spacer inspection for presence and position with almost no impact on placement performance
Q. What are the symptoms or challenges being faced by customers which SIPLACE SX promises to overcome?
A.
- Larger, heavier and more complex AI-server boards
- Well over 20,000 placement positions
- Large BGAs combined with thousands of miniaturized passive components
- Processor BGAs up to 150 × 150 mm and >500 g
- 10,000 to 20,000 BGA connections expected for future AI generations
- High-value processors make process reliability business-critical
Q. With the increasing adoption of large, complex PCBs, what are the biggest technical challenges in maintaining consistent solder-paste deposition and print accuracy across a large printing area, and how does the DEK TQ XL address these challenges?
A.
- High print accuracy and process stability across large board surfaces
- PCBs up to 850 × 610 × 8 mm and 12 kg, with warpage up to 4 mm
- ±20 μm @ 2.0 cpk wet-print accuracy at a 12-second core cycle
- Automatic Smart Pin Placement with position and height verification
- Automated paste management and understencil cleaning for process stability
- Process Lens SPI + WORKS Optimization for closed-loop offset correction
- Automated setup changeover reduces the time required for manual changeovers on the printer from about four minutes to just 30 seconds
Q. As printing and placement processes generate increasingly large amounts of process data, how is ASMPT using this data to move from simply monitoring defects to predicting and preventing them?
A.
- Machine-integrated sensors, vision and quality functions detect and correct deviations during production
- Process and quality data from printing, placement and inspection provide an end-toend view of the SMT process
- Process Lens SPI + WORKS Optimization create a closed loop with automatic printing parameter corrections before deviations affect board quality
- From inspection to prevention through machine-integrated quality control and closed-loop process optimization
Q. Can you shed some light on WORKS Software Suite? How does it compare with an ERP or an MES suite typically being used by electronics manufacturers?
A.
- WORKS supports workflows around the SMT line
- E.g. planning, material flow, operator support, monitoring and process optimization
- Connecting machines, materials, operators and process data
- Specialized SMT functionality complementing ERP and MES
- Integration via standard interfaces
Q. How does WORKS compare to other software solutions offered by ASMPT— Factory Solutions, SMT Analytics, etc?
A.
- Factory Solutions operates at a higher, factory-wide level and work together with WORKS.
- Factory Equipment Center: factory-wide asset and maintenance management
- Factory Material Manager: holistic view and management of material logistics
- SMT Analytics: deep analysis of SMT production data, identifying patterns, deviations and optimization potential
- Complementary solutions rather than competing systems: WORKS > workflows around the SMT line. Factory Solutions > broader factory-level perspective and analytics
Q. What are the pain points that WORKS promises to solve for your customers?
A.
- Complex production planning and frequent product changes
- Material shortages and inefficient material flow
- High manual workload and limited operator support
- Lack of real-time transparency into production performance
- Process deviations and quality issues that are difficult and time-consuming to analyze
- WORKS helps manufacturers plan, run, monitor and continuously optimize their SMT production more efficiently
Q. Is it correct to assume that Works will work only with ASMPT machines?
A. No. Openness is a key principle of WORKS and of ASMPT. Open standards such as IPC-CFX and IPC-HERMES support integration into heterogeneous production environments.
Q. AI is the talk of the hour. Are any of ASMPT solutions demonstrating the power of AI? If yes, please share details.
A. Yes, we are increasingly combining AI with data analytics to turn production and machine data into actionable information.
- SMT Analytics: identifying bottlenecks, line imbalances and optimization potential with AI-supported reporting
- WORKS Optimization: using AI to identify process deviations and root causes and recommend placement adjustments
- Virtual Assist: AI chat based on technical documentation and image-based spare-parts recognition AI supports data analytics, process optimisation and practical operator support.
Q. We are seeing a deluge of new brands (mainly from Asia) claiming high-tech features often accompanied by lower prices selling in India. How do you advice Indian customers who are confused between price, performance and brand?
A. As mentioned earlier, the right investment decision goes far beyond the initial investment. Customers should look at the bigger picture—overall equipment efficiency, total cost of ownership, floor space performance, and long-term investment protection. Ultimately, the smartest investment is not simply the equipment that costs less today, but the solution that continues to create greater value, flexibility, and competitiveness for years to come.
Q. Electronics manufacturers seem to be facing challenges in getting trained manpower. While you have introduced such high-tech solutions, any solutions to address their skill-set gap?
A. We address the skills gap through a combination of modern training, digital assistance and easy access to support.
- ASMPT Academy offers a broad training portfolio from instructor-led hands-on training and eLearning to Virtual Reality and blended learning.
- Virtual Assist brings expert knowledge directly into daily operations, supporting onboarding, service and maintenance. Its AI chat answers questions in natural language
- ASMPT SMT Customer Portal provides a central access point for additional services including ASMPT Academy training, support requests, spare parts and information about the installed machine base.
Q. Lastly, any myth amongst Indian customers that you’d like to dispel so that they make the “right choice” when selecting equipment for electronics manufacturing?
A. Indian customers should look beyond initial investment cost and focus on the right balance of price, performance, productivity, and long-term value—turning every investment into a stronger foundation for future competitiveness.
