April, 2011

Electronics Manufacturer Achieves Certification Milestone

( Torrington, CT) Altek Electronics, Incorporated announces it has achieved AS9100 Rev C certification including all aspects of ISO 9001:2008 for contract manufacturing and customer supported design of printed circuit board assemblies, cables, harnesses and electromechanical products such as chassis and control panels.  AS9100 is the internal management system standard for the Aircraft, Space and Defense industry. This certification designates and certifies that the company has built a quality management system that meets regulatory requirements and focuses on product safety and reliability.

The audit was performed by TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc., located at 1300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boxborough, Massachusetts in accordance with the requirements of SAE AS9104A by an ANAB accredited Certification Body under the Aerospace Registration Management Program administered by the Americas Aerospace Quality Group (AAQG) in accordance with the Aerospace Sector Scheme and documented in Report No. 3400.

About Altek Electronics, Inc.

Founded by Stephen Altschuler in 1972, Altek Electronics, Inc., is a one-stop contract manufacturer providing turn-key solutions for customers in Connecticut and beyond.  A world-class manufacturer of printed circuit board assemblies, chassis and control panels, the company also provides customer supported PCB layout and design.  Utilizing a combination of lean manufacturing and Six Sigma techniques for customers needing prototyping, short run or continuous delivery, Altek can meet today’s manufacturing “just-in-time” demands.  The company has a new, 54-thousand square foot, state-of-the-art facility in Torrington, Connecticut housing high speed surface mount assembly lines as well as the equipment necessary to support through hole and mechanical assembly, inspection and test.

About TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc.

October, 2010

Altek in the News, October 2010

Click to see Register Citizen Article

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Slideshow Video of Altek's Move

We created a slide show presentation depicting the move and expansion of the Altek Electronics' facility. Please click the link below to see pictures comparing the old and new facility.

Click Here to View Video

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April-May, 2010,

Altek Installs State-of-the-Art SMT Line

Altek is pleased to announce the addition of a new, state-of-the-art surface mount line consisting of some of the industry’s newest and most advanced equipment:

The Ekra X4 stencil printer features maximum flexibility and performance. The X4 comes standard with the EVA vision system which includes two CCD-cameras. . In addition, this machine has 2 ½ D inspection and high end repeatability performance.

Samsung SM421 surface mount machine has the ability to place 21,000 components per hour (based on IPC9850) with an accuracy of +/- 30µ. This model is also equipped with a high resolution video system.

The Samsung SM411 chipshooter has a strong and stable frame to allow extreme placement accuracy at high speeds. This machine has a maximum placement rate of 42,000 chips her hour (based on IPC9850), and an accuracy of +/-50µm.

BTU’s Pyramax 125A reflow oven is in every way efficient and accurate. Closed loop convection control allows for precise heating and cooling along with constant heat transfer. Maximum process control grants temperature uniformity, guaranteed process repeatability and convection efficiency.

Mirtec’s MV-7U in-line AOI machine features five cameras and Intelli-Scan laser inspection to detect any defects that can be found on the boards with the highest acuracy. Other aspects includ 5 megapixel digital color camera technology, telecentric compound lens design, simple programming and operation. The MV-7U also has pre and post reflow inspection capability.

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March-April, 2010,

Altek Upgrading Facility

See our article in the Republican-American

We are excited to announce that Altek is moving to a more modern, one story facility at 89 Commercial Boulevard in Torrington. The renovations are under way and we are on schedule to move the week of April 19 th. We are building customer orders ahead so as not to disrupt schedules. This new location is very conducive to the LEAN manufacturing concepts we practice at Altek.

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Feb, 2009,

Proud Recipient of Supplier of the Year Award

On Thursday, February 5, 2009 Stephen Altschuler, Chairman of Altek Electronics, attended a supplier conference at Hologic in Bedford, Massachusetts where he was presented with Hologic’s Supplier of the Year Award for 2008. This award was given in recognition of Altek’s outstanding achievements and contributions to Hologic throughout the year.

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Published in Waterbury Republican on Saturday, 4/12/08:

Altek Electronics, city to plant tree to help celebrate Earth Day

A longtime city-based manufacturer will donate a tree to Torrington as part of its Restriction of Hazardous Substances Month activities.

Altek Electronics, in the city for 36 years, additionally expects to host a number of activities throughout the month, including a logo contest, quizzes, word games, and a month-end celebration where employees will have the opportunity to win prizes including iPod Shuffles and other lead-free electronic devices.

RoHS is a European Union directive banning the use of six hazardous substances from electrical and electronic equipment. To comply with the RoHS Directive, Altek manufactures many products using lead-free solder, said Sabrina Beck, vice president of Altek’s Business Development.

Officials expect to work with city leaders to plant the tree on Earth Day, April 26.

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Jan, 2008,

Altek is “Keeping it Simple” with new “KISS” Machine by ACE Production Technologies.

Altek has recently added a new technology to its facility, the “KISS 104” Selective Soldering Machine. “KISS” stands for “Keep it Simple Soldering” and holds true to its name. This new advancement allows us to do precision soldering around heavily populated SMT and heat sensitive components. This new equipment also eliminates much of the time consuming prep work such as taping and masking that is typically required when utilizing a wave solder machine. The “KISS” allows the programmer to have flux delivered to specific points on the board, and then selectively solders these points with an appropriately sized nozzle; creating consistent solder joints and minimizing the need for hand soldering or rework. This “Simple” device cuts work that once took hours down to minutes, and from what once took minutes, to only seconds.

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Dec, 2007,

Altek Employees participate in an SMTA sponsored “Lean Day”

On December 5 th, 2007, The Surface Mount Technology Association sponsored a day of LEAN training featuring trainer Herb Robbins from Robbins International (www.LEAN2020.com).  One of three parts to a Six-Sigma Yellow belt, Altek employees learned a variety of topics including Lean processes, Kan-ban, Waste, Quick Changeover, and 5S.  Class participants “worked” in a virtual factory building “products” from legos.   Matt Kandefer shares his thoughts on the class:  “Before applying the LEAN concepts, workers struggled to meet customer deadlines while combating rejects and navigating a cluttered work environment.  Steadily applying LEAN principles allowed us to cut our virtual travel time, reduce build time from 11 minutes to 2.5 minutes and reduce overhead costs.  Now we can apply the LEAN principles we learned in Altek’s actual factory.”

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Sept, 2007,

Continuous Improvement Brings Success

Line operators at Altek have a reason to smile. New, flat panel monitors and flexible keyboards make their manufacturing jobs easier and more enjoyable. Employees no longer have to get up from their work stations to pull paper assembly documents, wrestle with ESD sleeves, or walk to other departments to get help. At the touch of a button assemblers, solderers and inspectors can call up assembly documentation, bills of material, Engineering Alert Notices and other records. An icon in the program allows employees to summon help without leaving their seats. All of this is made possible by Altek’s ‘Digital Traveler’ program.

The ‘Digital Traveler’ is the brain-child of an employee who started his career with Altek in the Oliver Wolcott Technical School’s work-share program. Over the past seven years, Matt Kandefer has worked his way up to a leadership position in our Document Control department. Matt embraces Altek’s Continuous Improvement concepts, and Altek supports Matt’s vision. The result is improved efficiency and happier employees!

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Aug, 2007,

Altek Acquires 2nd AOI Machine

Delivering quality products to our valued customers is a high priority for Altek. To support this goal, Altek recently acquired a second Mirtec MV-2HT Desktop Automated Optical Inspection machine. This equipment automatically inspects component placements and solder bridges on printed circuit board assemblies. SPC data enables operators to trace the causes of defects and eliminate them.

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Sept, 2006,

Altek Tech Day

Click here to see the Article

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July, 2006,

Altek Receives Recognition in Japan

Click here to see the PCB007 Article

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June, 2006,

Stephen Altschuler: Business leader

Monday, June 19, 2006

BY KARI BANACH

Copyright © 2006 Republican-American

TORRINGTON -- Stephen Altschuler doesn't just lead a business in town. He sets an example of how to run a profitable business.

The president of the Altek Co. is this year's recipient of the Northwest Connecticut Chamber of Commerce "Business Leader" award, said the group's president, JoAnn Ryan.

"We selected Steve because he is the epitome of how to run a small business in a community and region that is needing jobs," Ryan said. "His company prospers. It has grown leaps and bounds."

Altek, which rents space in a factory at 245 East Elm St., manufactures circuit boards and equipment that tests lids of aluminum cans, and today employs nearly 100 local workers.

Altek's customers are other manufacturers, and the parts the firm makes are mainly used in other manufacturing equipment, Altschuler said.

He wasn't an overnight success. He founded the company with his friend Tom Helms in 1972 after they lost their engineering jobs at a large manufacturer that shut down. When the company equipment went up for auction, he and Helms snagged what they needed to start again on their own, he said.

"What happened to us -- a bigger business closes down and the people who were working there start little companies -- happens often," Altschuler said. "There are many, many small companies, 25 to 100 employees, in this area."

Altek is one of 60 companies in the state that manufactures circuit boards and one of 3,000 in the country, Altschuler said. Many of his clients are local manufacturers, he said, citing Danbury-based Lorad Corp., South Windsor's Gerber Scientific, and Otis Elevator in Farmington as customers.

The chamber award isn't Altschuler's first honor. Last year, Altek received an award from the University of Connecticut, naming the firm the state's "family business" of the year.

Altschuler has a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Connecticut and a master's degree in electrical engineering from Yale University. He is a past director and vice president of the Northwest Connecticut Chamber of Commerce.

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Nov 2005,

Winners announced for the UConn Family Business
Program's 10th annual Connecticut Family Business
of the Year Awards Ceremony

STORRS, CT (11/18/05) - The University of Connecticut Family Business Program announced the winners of the 2005 Connecticut Family Business of the Year Awards 10th Anniversary Celebration.  This prestigious award honors Connecticut family firms that embody core family values and the best of American free enterprise.  Nine finalists were honored at the ceremony, which drew a crowd of three hundred people, at the University of Connecticut's South Campus Rome Ballroom on Thursday, November 17th, 2005.

The Connecticut Family Business of the Year Awards recognize successful family firms in three categories: small--sized businesses, medium-sized businesses and large-sized businesses.  Winners were chosen by a panel of judges and evaluated based on business success, positive family and business linkage, multi-generational family involvement, dynamic contributions to community and industry, and innovative business practices or strategies.  The 2005 Connecticut Family Business of the Year Award winners are:

Small Business Category (5 - 49 employees):
1st Place:  Foxon Park Beverages; East Haven
1st Runner-up:  Lesko & Polke Funeral Home of Fairfield Center; Fairfield
Finalist:  Aurora-McCarthy Funeral Home; Colchester

Medium Business Category (50 - 99 employees)
1st Place:  Altek Electronics; Torrington
1st Runner-up:  David S. Lapine Co., Inc.; Stamford
Finalist:  Component Engineers; Wallingford

Large Business Category (100+ employees)
1st Place:  Torrington Supply Company; Waterbury
1st Runner-up:  Dymax Corporation; Torrington
Finalist:  Palmer's Market; Darien

Pegasus Manufacturing of Middletown was also honored with the 2005 "People’s Bank Ulizio Business Achievement Award" presented by People's Bank.  The "People’s Bank Ulizio Business Achievement Award" is awarded to a family firm that has made significant contributions to and advancements within its industry.

Mr. David Neeleman, Founder & CEO of JetBlue Airways gave a dynamic keynote address emphasizing the importance of customer service.  With a vision to "bring humanity back to air travel," Mr. Neeleman stressed how much family firms mattered to their employees and communities.  "I believe that in business, there is the possibility to do well by doing good," noted Mr. Neeleman.

Leaning on the academic backbone of the University of Connecticut's School of Business, the Family Business Program is a self-funded organization that offers a unique opportunity for family businesses in the state to learn about the unique challenges that occur at the intersection of "family" and "business" from professionals and peers.  The Family Business Program is a “think tank” for family business owners, successors, family members and outside managers to gain exposure to new ideas and challenge, validate or reject ideas and ultimately incorporate best practices in their own family firms. 

For more information on the Connecticut Family Business of the Year Awards, please contact Priscilla Cale, UConn Family Business Program Director, at (860) 486-5628, e-mail pcale@business.uconn.edu.

Click here to see the Letter From Jodi Rell

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June 2005,

Altek Supplies Electrical Controls for Fuel Cell Bus

In 2004, Altek won a bid with UTC Power to manufacture the electrical controls for a hydrogren fuel cell bus. Altek particpated in the design and manufactured these complex electromechanic structures. The control cabinets were delivered in December 2004, and in June of 2005 we received photographs of the bus, now operating in California.

Used with permission of UTC Power.

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May 2005,

Altek's Information on RoHS and WEEE

Click here For information on ROHS/WEEE, and Altek's compliance plan.

Note: Adobe Acrobat is required to view these .PDF documents. If you do not have Acrobat, click here for the free Acrobat reader.

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April 2005,

Altek Aquires New State of the Art Stencil Printer

Altek is excited about the acquisition of the new Ekra X4 automated Screen and Stencil Pinter for SMT applications. This stencil printer offers a high level of repeatability and precision. It features an advanced vision system with two CCD cameras, allowing operators to inspect for proper paste application.

For more information on Ekra, CLICK HERE

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