Floor Life

Floor life is the maximum allowable time moisture-sensitive components may remain in ambient production conditions before reflow - it is a central operational limit derived from package moisture sensitivity classification.

What Is Floor life?

• Definition: Clock starts when dry pack is opened and exposure to ambient begins.
• Condition Basis: Specified at standard temperature and relative humidity conditions.
• Reset Logic: Expired floor life generally requires bake before parts can be reflowed.
• Tracking Need: Accurate timer control is necessary across split lots and multiple workstations.

Why Floor life Matters

• Failure Prevention: Exceeding floor life increases popcorning and delamination risk.
• Line Discipline: Defines safe handling windows for planning kitting and assembly sequencing.
• Quality Audit: Floor-life records are key evidence in reliability and compliance reviews.
• Inventory Control: Supports prioritization of exposed lots to minimize bake and scrap.
• Risk Exposure: Manual tracking errors can cause hidden moisture-related escapes.

How It Is Used in Practice

• Digital Timers: Use MES-linked exposure tracking with lot-level visibility.
• Visual Controls: Label open times and expiry deadlines directly on work-in-progress containers.
• Containment: Quarantine expired lots automatically pending bake or disposition.

Floor life is a critical time-based control for moisture-sensitive package reliability - floor life management must be automated and auditable to prevent moisture-driven assembly failures.