Rick Lathrop Email & Phone Number

Nebo, North Carolina

Novel wood carvings with precision CNC and ceramic gifts.www.mountainartgifts.com

Pottstown, Pa

Contract electronic material research and development, toll manufacturing and prototype/pilot production. Fuel Cell, Photovoltaic, Thick Film and Electronic packaging materials. Developed company website. Currently developing application specific customer sponsored Cermet and Polymer based materials for electronics.

Hands-on development of a new business unit in cSi photovoltaic metallization material manufacturing.• Wrote and presented three solar technical papers at the 2011 and 2012 EUPVSEC conferences.• Designed and produced all marketing and product documentation and presentations including website layout and artwork.• Specified, ordered and implemented CapX to support R&D and Applications Engineering with core cell fabrication, test and material analysis equipment in first six months. This included the first blue laser confocal measurement system in the US used for finger topography characterization.• Supported R&D with product test development for properties of solderability, adhesion, printability, rheology, tackiness, IR dry and fire and screen inspection.• Designed over different 50 solar cells for material characterization and customer correlation.• Designed new 15,000 sq ft facility including labs and production with expansion planned to 2016.• Created customer database with first order on first product in July 2011, 19 months from startup

Full time consultant to Green material supplier supporting business case development for starting a new Thick Film Photovoltaic material business unit.• Developed material cost models based on a combination of CAD simulation of typical PV designs and known expertise of Thick Film material science and processing. • Translated founder’s business goals into a strategic detailed project plan for starting and sustaining a profitable business unit. Specified critical capital, facility and key talent specifications to ensure a rapid and successful startup.• Developed detailed worst case break even and cash flow analysis for multiple sales and capitalization scenarios. As a result of efforts, project was approved 12/2009.

Started and managed SMT Technical Service in the America’s. Developed and mentored in-house SMT capabilities and engineering support with expansion into semiconductor packaging over the past 14+ years. Designed, staffed and capitalized a 2000 sq ft applications lab that supported Heraeus customer base in the America’s and SE Asia. From this lab over 1300 technical projects have been documented supporting customers, R&D, Operations and QA. • Designed and developed 90% of the unique material testing tools at Heraeus and implemented worldwide. An example was the Benchmarker II test board that streamlined material testing for rapid customer support, product development and problem solving. • Researched and authored over 35 papers on such subjects as comprehensive solder paste testing, adhesive printing, wafer bumping process and design, lead free and recently flip chip flux printing and pin transfer of dippable solder pastes. These papers raised the company’s technical image bringing in over $2M in high margin sales.• Provided worldwide customer support to over 500 customers. This support was directed to not only retaining but increasing their business. On-site training and problem solving, lab services for process development, yield improvement and failure analyses, stencil and PCB design critique as well as component and laminate testing were provided to existing and prospective customers. • Developed curriculum and conducted regular sales training sessions to ensure thorough understanding of key products for various electronic assembly applications to new hires, salesman and sales representatives.• Pioneered Cyber Technologies Cyberscan 3D with Keyence confocal sensor. First system sold in the world, which placed Heraeus ahead of their competition to quantify performance of wafer and substrate bumping materials with high accuracy.

Managed SMT front end development engineering start-up to enable manufacturing of new designs critical for Intergraph’s new CAD workstation products. Implemented production equipment, materials, designed tooling, trained designers, technicians and production staff. • Modernized companies manufacturing technology from through-hole technology to complex double sided multilayer SMT in 1 1/2 years while industry standard was 2-3 years.• Implemented, and learned, solder paste printer, adhesive dispenser and reflow oven. Specified solder paste and adhesive materials.• Trained layout designers, process technicians and production staff.• Mastered 2D CAD and designed unique production tooling for printer and dispenser as well as a novel adjustable board stiffer for reflow and wave solder. Simplicity, cost effectiveness and flexibility were key design themes utilized in all tooling.• Worked closely with captive multilayer board shop to replace dry film with LPI and vertical HASL with horizontal. These actions enabled manufacturing fine pitch designs in the second generation SMT designs.

Managed 15 engineers and technicians on three shifts in high volume hybrid factory. Managed qualification of all thick film and substrate materials, equipment maintenance and programming as well as screen making supporting production. • Pioneered high volume copper thick film and large array (5X6) hybrid production for extensive manufacturing cost savings. These actions kept the US factory competitive with outside suppliers around the world.• Invented, implemented and patented two novel hybrid surge designs, later adopted by the entire telecom industry and still current after 20 years. Even today every landline has one of these circuit designs in the central switch. This invention enabled combining two designs into one for a 40% material reduction.

Production Sustaining Engineer in high volume thick film circuit fab as well as some thin film process support. Managed incoming inspection of more than 50 different hybrid thick film materials consumed at both Florida and Penang facilities. Key engineer for design review for manufacturability, cost reductions and complex problem solving. There were over 400 active designs which included active trimable chip resistors and capacitors.