University of Maryland's CALCE Electronic Products & Systems Center Hosts BMP Survey

The Computer Aided Life Cycle Engineering (CALCE) Electronic Products and Systems Center (EPSC) at the University of Maryland, College Park, hosted a Best Manufacturing Practices (BMP) survey of its practices the week of November 1, 2004.

BMP conducted the survey in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Through BMP's unique survey process, an organization's practices are gathered, validated, and documented in a survey report. Organizations that are surveyed receive feedback and recommendations from BMP's survey team of experts, enjoy a high level of visibility through the distribution of their Survey Report, and are recognized by the BMP Program.

BMP reports are disseminated to a large U.S. industrial base. They are available in print and on-line on their website at www.bmpcoe.org. Numerous companies and government facilities access these reports daily looking for solutions to reduce costs and to improve their overall competitiveness in both domestic and global markets.

CALCE presentations prepared for the survey showed some very unique capabilities that the Center possesses especially in the area of health monitoring, uprating and obsolescence forecasting.

CALCE EPSC is recognized as a founder and driving force behind the development and implementation of physics-of-failure approaches to reliability and life cycle prediction. In 1999, CALCE EPSC became the first academic research facility in the world to be ISO 9001 certified. Over the past 15 years, CALCE EPSC has developed methodologies, models, and tools that address the design, manufacture, analysis, and management of electronic systems. UMCP is a partner in the BMP Center of Excellence, which made this survey an exciting event.

Published November 15, 2004