Test Department: A Safety Net Ensuring Flawless Quality

Jacob Hussak has spent 22 years in the test department at Micro Technic, and if there’s one thing he’s learned, it’s the importance of testing products. As he puts it, both people and machines can make mistakes. Even minor errors can significantly impact a product’s functionality, quality, and lifespan when working with something as complex as electronics. Jacob describes the test department as a safety net that ensures products do not fail when they reach your customers. “We sometimes discover faults in the production process or PCB design that were not visible before troubleshooting. Our job is to ensure these faults are corrected before the products reach the customers and are passed on to the end user, who would otherwise experience a problem with the product,” he explains.

Sustainability through Maintenance

Jacob is also proud that the test department contributes to a more sustainable electronics industry. In the test department, we can maintain older products, allowing customers to reuse them rather than produce new ones. “We service power supplies that still function after three decades, which not only saves money for the customer but also helps reduce resource consumption,” Jacob says. By replacing components such as electrolytic capacitors, products can gain a new lease of life and avoid being scrapped. He points out that while electronics production itself is not particularly green, maintenance can mitigate the environmental impact that would otherwise arise from producing new products. We must manufacture with the mindset that products should last as long as possible.

Collaboration is Key to Success

For Jacob, good collaboration with both customers and colleagues is essential. When a product needs to be tested, effective communication with the customer about test equipment and work instructions is crucial. The better the collaboration, the easier it becomes to ensure a smooth process. “The same applies internally within the company. If we encounter a problem, it is important to be able to consult a colleague and resolve it together,” he emphasises. For Jacob, openness and helpfulness characterising the culture in the test department are among the most important aspects for him to support as a manager, as it ensures we can deliver quality products every time.