Total Solutions and Research & Development

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Amlex’s core competencies allows us to provide customers with a total solution when it comes to developing products for the rapidly changing and progressing technological environment. We have integrated our various processes and technical know-how to assist our customers in product development from conceptual stage to design and application. Our total solutions capability enables us to support various industries such as the automotive, semiconductor, interconnect packaging, consumer & industrial electronics ( motion control sensor and navigational sensors), MEMS & Optoelectronics sensors for the Internet of Things (IoT), medical / life sciences and LED markets.

We recognise the rapid development and fast pace of technological change in the various industries we work with and we are committed to continuously develop our total solutions and R&D capabilities so as to ensure we can meet the evolving needs of our customers.

Our team has forged strong working relationships with the respective MNCs over the years and has become a one stop centre for them to go to in their product development and needs.

Research and Development

Our R&D activities are usually initiated based on the plans of existing customers of the Company as well as the inquiries from existing and prospective customers. Continuous R&D activities are also undertaken to enhance our plating processes with the objective of attaining production and operational efficiency targets.

We place significant emphasis in identifying the latest plating process trends in collaboration with our customers and chemical vendors. Our R&D initiatives primarily focus on the consolidation of its inherent strengths and the latest direction in the interconnect and semiconductor industry into lead free processes namely nickel-palladium-gold finishing as well as non-metallic substrate plating.

We also focus our R&D on :

Developing New Plating Processes

Amlex Holdings is committed to addressing the environmental concerns that our customers encountered and will continuously conduct extensive R&D to develop lead free processes to assist us in this area. The Company does not only find ways to assist our customers in addressing environmental concerns in their products but we also do R&D to reduce discharge and conduct our operations in an environmentally responsible manner. In testimony to our endeavor and our R&D programs to develop lead free processes, Amlex Tech was awarded development grants from the government through SMIDEC for the development of Nickel-Palladium-Gold and Tin-Copper lead free processes.

Collaborations with MNCs

Over the years, our management has forged strong working relationships with the respective MNCs and has now brought that goodwill to Amlex. We regularly holds technical feedback sessions with the customers to discuss collaborations in terms of plating process improvements and yield enhancements. For example, we through close collaboration with the customer has successfully revised the design of a product resulting in material cost saving as the precious metal coating area is now reduced. The conversion was necessary as the quality of the coated surface using the former method was very inconsistent and inferior. On top of that, damage to the delicate part could not be consistently contained resulting in very low yield and throughput.

Plating Machine and Plate Tooling Design

Plating tools and automation systems form an integral part of Amlex’s manufacturing operations. The R&D team is constantly developing new tools and automation systems by re-engineering and re-designing plating tools to reduce defects, improve yields and efficiencies, and reduce cost. Modifications to the machine’s accumulator and carrier, and also the plating head enabled us to process 3 dimensional and extremely delicate parts. As cost of precious metal increases, the company will conduct extensive R&D in plate tooling design and masking technologies that will selectively plate precise locations of well defined and discreet spots.

Continuous Process Improvement

Process stabilization and simplification through customization, various chemical substitutions in the process flow without compromising the quality and reliability for lower cost of production, and yield improvement programs are continuously undertaken in collaboration with our customers. Regular in depth failure mode & effect analysis (FMEA) is conducted to identify areas where automation could be implemented to reduce defects and increase productivity. Re-engineering and re-designing of plating tools and heads are actively implemented to achieve higher precision in precious metal coating thickness which will ultimately reduce our chemical costs.

Superior and Consistent Product Quality 

Amlex is committed to maintaining high levels of quality and reliability assurance on all our products shipped to our customers. We aspires to exceed customers’ expectation through excellence, creativity and continuous improvement.

An effective system and process implementation is essential in ensuring high quality products and services are extended to our customers. A team of experienced personnel comprising engineers and technicians continuously monitor our process laboratory and in-process production indices to ensure that we meet industry and customers’ specific quality requirements.

Our in-house laboratory is equipped with the necessary equipment and resources for the R&D team to undertake experiments in chemical process engineering, machine and plating tool designs. We are committed to continuously and consistently provide the highest product quality and meeting those stringent standards set by its customers in order to maintain an edge over its competitors.

Amlex's commitment towards providing quality products to our customers is shown by our ISO9001, ISO14001, and IATF16949 certification. MNCs normally require an ISO certification before even allowing a company to conduct a product qualification as they take this certification as a litmus test for a vendor’s quality and control standards

Implementation of New Technologies

As the semiconductor and interconnect industries are characterized by rapid technological change, our R&D team is constantly keeping abreast with new technologies in plating chemical processes, machine capabilities and design innovations. We believe that it has to continuously redevelop and upgrade its technical knowledge by incorporating new developments in plating chemical processes and plate tooling innovations.

Our R&D team has the responsibility of identifying new developments in these areas and to procure the plating chemicals or processes, and plate tooling. This is to ensure that we are   continuously changing and moving in the same direction with the market trends.