ANSI/ESD
S20.20
Electrostatic discharge
(ESD) and static electricity can cause numerous problems for organizations
across several industries, particularly the electronics industry. Product
quality and reliability, manufacturing costs and production can all be
affected by ESD.  ANSI/ESD
S20.20-1999, Electrostatic Discharge Control Program Standard, was created
to help organizations design, develop, implement and maintain an Electrostatic
Discharge (ESD) Control Program to protect ESD-sensitive electrical or
electronic parts, assemblies and equipment from being damaged by Human
Body Model (HBM) discharges greater than or equal to 100 volts.
About S20.20
Until recently the military has been the driving force behind the development
of ESD standards in the United States. MIL-STD-1686 was the ESD Program
Standard for the Department of Defense until 1992 when, as part of the
Military Standardization Reform Act, it was targeted for replacement with
a commercial standard. S20.20 was created
by the ESD Association (ESDA) and approved
by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) in 1998. The U.S.
government accepts both
S20.20 and MIL-STD-1686. Industry giants such
as IBM, Lucent and Lockheed Martin have all adopted or require their subcontractors
to implement S20.20.There are three fundamental
control principles included in this standard:
- All conductors
in the environment, including personnel, must be bonded or electrically
grounded.
- Ionization systems
must be used to neutralize charges on necessary nonconductors in the
environment.
- ESDS items being
transported outside an Electrostatic Protected Area must be enclosed
in static protective materials.
The standard is divided
into two main parts: Administrative Requirements and Technical Requirements. Administrative Requirements
include:
- ESD Control Program
Plan
- Training Plan
Requirement
- Compliance Verification
Plan
Technical Requirements
include:
- Grounding / Bonding
Systems
- Personnel Grounding
- Protected Areas
- Packaging
- Marking
- Equipment
- Handling
Implementation guidelines
are also provided after each requirement. TÜV SÜD America,
a leading ISO 9001 registrar in North America,
is one of just six Registrars certified to issue S20.20 certificates. For more information, contact us.
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