Speed versus Flexibility: Why Traditional SMT Metrics No Longer Work

For years, the electronics manufacturing industry relied on a simple equation: higher placement speed = better productivity. But today’s SMT world is very different.

For years, the electronics manufacturing industry relied on a simple equation: higher placement speed = better productivity. This logic made sense in stable, high-volume environments where product changes were rare and lines ran the same assemblies for days or even weeks, speed versus flexibility was never the issue.

But today’s SMT world is very different.
Markets are fragmented. Products evolve constantly. Batch sizes are shrinking. Variants are multiplying. Components availability and cash exposure of high stock levels have been some other reasons for a change in the production model.

In this environment, traditional metrics such as placement speed (CPH) are no longer reliable indicators of real performance.

The SMT industry has entered the high-mix era, and this requires a completely different way of measuring productivity.