- Customer Success with Koh Young
Identifying the Challenge
FermionX, a trusted Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) provider with nearly five decades of experience, continues to reinforce its commitment to quality and innovation. Under the leadership of Managing Director Will Patrick, the UK-based company has embraced a strategy centered on operational excellence, customer satisfaction, and strategic technology investment. Serving demanding industries such as aviation, defense, and medical technology, FermionX has earned a strong reputation for precision, dependability, and long-term partnership.
The latest step in this ongoing evolution is the enhancement of FermionX’s surface mount technology (SMT) inspection process. Partnering with Altus Group, the company invested in a next-generation 3D Automated Optical Inspection (AOI) solution from Koh Young Technology, a global leader in 3D Inspection Technology.
As FermionX grew, the limitations of its previous 2D AOI platform became increasingly apparent. Programming required substantial engineering time, false calls created unnecessary rework, and inconsistent performance hampered operator trust. These challenges were particularly acute given the growing complexity of the PCB assemblies FermionX produces and the critical nature of the end-use applications. Customers were demanding faster turnaround times and greater reliability, and the inspection system needed to match those expectations. Will Patrick and his team recognized that to uphold their quality standards and maintain efficiency, a shift toward True 3D inspection with metrology-grade performance was necessary.
After a detailed evaluation process led by Altus Group, FermionX selected the Zenith Alpha HS+ as the ideal platform to meet its current and future inspection requirements. The Alpha HS+ is a high-speed, high-resolution True 3D AOI system that uses a four-projector Digital Light Processing (DLP) engine to accurately measure components and solder joints, even in complex and densely populated assemblies. To make the right choice, Kiet and his team evaluated three other manufacturers alongside Koh Young in a side-by-side analysis. As Kiet elaborated, “We eliminated two of those manufacturers early, which left Koh Young head-to-head against another manufacturer. We were able to visit other local users who had the machines. This personal engagement gave us a good understanding of the company. Koh Young's reputation was very highly regarded.”
- “This system ensures we are not only producing the highest-quality PCBAs for our customers, but also harnessing the power of data to enhance our process improvement decisions.” – Will Patrick, Managing Director of FermionX
The Solution: Koh Young Zenith Alpha HS+ with KSMART
After a detailed evaluation process led by Altus Group, FermionX selected the Zenith Alpha HS+ as the ideal platform to meet its current and future inspection requirements. The Alpha HS+ is a high-speed, high-resolution True 3D AOI system that uses a four-projector Digital Light Processing (DLP) engine to accurately measure components and solder joints, even in complex and densely populated assemblies.
“And I think now I am on board, and data has come so far, I can see that.
Unlike previous generations who relied on decades of accumulated knowledge, Patrick’s approach is fundamentally different. “I don’t have 40-years of experience walking in knowing every single part number, every single job and how it runs, so I needed something to be able to look at its top level effectively. I fell in love with Power BI quite a lot.
This is about more than simply adopting new software, it is about reimagining how manufacturing intelligence is gathered, analyzed, and acted upon. “Also, it’s industry 4.0, I needed to see how we get data from machines”
Will Patrick
Managing Director
The Future of Intelligent Manufacturing
FermionX’s journey illustrates how forward-thinking electronics manufacturers are embracing the convergence of data analytics, artificial intelligence, and strategic equipment partnerships to build truly intelligent operations.
By investing in industry-leading technology from Koh Young, partnering with knowledgeable distributors like Altus, and architecting a comprehensive data strategy unifying inspection, production, and business intelligence, FermionX is doing more than improving its current operations, it is building the foundation for the smart factory of the future.
Gary Rice, Technical Sales Manager with 17 years at FermionX, emphasizes the central role of quality equipment: “Quality is what keeps customers with you basically. We’ve obviously got a good setup in terms of flexibility, all our machines across surface mount match, so we can be much more agile and flexible with customers when you’re running small batches… And then in terms of the quality, yeah, obviously it becomes key that it needs to be upheld and that customers have that guarantee that it’s been checked and everything’s going to be good. So, the Koh Young is a massive part of that.”
Gary Rice
Technical Sales Manager
“FermionX came to us with a clear vision. They wanted to go beyond defect detection and truly unlock the value of metrology-based inspection and process data. With Koh Young and its Zenith Alpha HS+ with KSMART, they have done exactly that.
What impressed us most was their team’s understanding of how inspection data could drive broader operational gains. This is not just about installing a machine. It is about embedding smarter tools into the manufacturing culture. We are proud to have played a role in helping FermionX elevate their inspection capabilities.”
Joe Booth
CEO of Altus Group.
digital transformation
Empowering Innovation, Perfecting Production
