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In this issue, our expert contributors discuss the many opportunities and challenges in the PCB design community, and what can be done to grow the numbers of PCB designers—and design instructors.
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I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
April 22, 2022 | Andy Shaughnessy, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
It’s been a busy week in this industry, and we have news and articles from the PCB design, fabrication, and assembly communities. The roller coaster ride continues, with whiplash-inducing news from IPC about March North American shipment—they’re up from February but down from the same period a year ago.
We also have articles that cover everything from upskilling your labor force to using big data to help bring manufacturing back to North America. We have a review of one of our latest books, Printed Circuit Designer’s Guide to… Stackups: The Design within the Design, and a great column by Anaya Vardya about the need for American manufacturers to stop viewing one another as adversaries and start working together. We’re down to 200 domestic fabricators; cooperation may be the only answer.
As Ben Franklin said, “We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”
IPC Releases PCB Industry Results for March 2022
Published April 22
Good news, bad news: According to IPC, March North American PCB shipments rose 5.6% over the previous month but fell 11.7% YOY. As Shawn DuBravac says, supply chain issues are improving just as orders are dropping in various markets. Never a dull moment in this industry.
Training the Future Manufacturing Labor Force
Published April 19
There’s been a lot of talk about the need to “upskill” the PCB manufacturing labor force, but what does that entail, exactly? In this interview, Michael Connella, Matt Stevenson, and Debra Coburn discuss Sunstone Circuits’ plans to keep their staff trained on the latest in fabrication technology and processes.
Big Data Can Bring Your Business Back
Published April 20
It’s all about data. In this industry, you either manage your data or you get left behind. But big data may provide the advantage that North America needs to regain some of the work lost to overseas companies. In this article, Siemens’ Zac Elliott explains how big data just might be the differentiator that American companies have been waiting for.
The Printed Circuit Designer’s Guide to… Stackups: The Design within the Design
Published April 18
The I-Connect007 book Printed Circuit Designer’s Guide to… Stackups: The Design within the Design has been flying off our virtual newsstand. No wonder: The stackup may be the most important part of your PCB design. One of our readers, signal integrity engineer Skyler Sopp, has written a review of this timely tome. Check it out.
Standard of Excellence: From Adversaries to Collaborators—Let’s Do This Together
Published April 20
Columnist Anaya Vardya makes a great point here: “Our domestic PCB industry could have stood stronger and been much more vibrant today if we had stood together, shoulder to shoulder as one united industry. But alas, we did not, and today this what we have: fewer than 200 companies striving to stay alive with our wagons still moving in a straight and vulnerable line instead of coming together in a circle of strength.” Don’t miss this column.
Suggested Items
The New Chapter: Attracting ‘Generation Green’
03/28/2024 | Hannah Grace & Paige Fiet -- Column: The New ChapterIn the electronics industry, we talk a lot about sustainability in terms of recruitment and retention of the next generation of engineers. But what if the key to sustaining the industry long into the future is through the more common definition of the word? What if, for just a moment, we think about sustainability in terms of the environment and what we as an industry are doing to care for it? Because, if you weren’t aware, Gen Z cares tremendously about the environment and the actions companies are taking to preserve it. Without Gen Z joining the electronics industry’s workforce, we won’t be able to sustain the industry for much longer.
Accenture Invests in Sanctuary AI to Bring AI-Powered, Humanoid Robotics to Work Alongside Humans
03/27/2024 | BUSINESS WIREAccenture has made a strategic investment, through Accenture Ventures, in Sanctuary AI, a developer of humanoid general-purpose robots that are powered by AI and can perform a wide variety of work tasks quickly, safely and effectively.
Don Dennison Appointed to Roll Out KIC’s Latest Thermal Analysis System Software in the Northeast
03/26/2024 | KICKIC, a renowned pioneer in thermal process and temperature measurement solutions for electronics manufacturing, is pleased to announce the appointment of PIT Equipment Services, LLC, led by Don Dennison, as its representative for New York, New Jersey, and Eastern Pennsylvania.
iNEMI/IPC White Paper on Complex Integrated Systems Highlights Future Technology and Manufacturing Ecosystem Needs
03/25/2024 | IPCToday’s system solutions combine more varied functionality, such as digital, analog, optical, micro-mechanical, etc., packed into smaller form factors. As a result, electronics manufacturing has to deliver increasingly complex integration of diverse technologies with system designs that blur the distinction between chip, package, board, and assembly.
Seeking Employment: Meet Gary Turner
03/25/2024 | Barry Matties, I-Connect007Meet Gary Turner, a recent graduate from the University of Texas at Dallas with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s in material science and engineering. He is currently seeking employment in the industry. The following interview will allow you to learn about Gary and see if he might be a good candidate for a position you are looking to fill.