I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week

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One thing I love about summer is watching the return of the birds and animals in my backyard. Sometimes I feel like Marlin Perkins on Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. (Most of your remember that show, I imagine.)

My home office is in front of a giant window overlooking a few acres of woods, and things really get interesting in the summer. I’ll be in the middle of a meeting, and a couple of deer will walk by, or an owl will chase some of the smaller birds through the treetops. All the animals get active when the temperature starts to rise.

Things are heating up in the world of PCB design and manufacturing as well. In the past week, we published quite a bit of news—some good, some not so good. Some of the news is mixed, as we see with the EMS industry shipments rising YOY in April, but falling from the previous month. It’s nice to see NASA investing in American small businesses, but they didn’t really have a choice, did they? 

We also have some timely articles and columns from our regular contributors to round out this shortened work week. Now, grab some iced tea and get ready for the weekend. 

NASA Supports Small Business Research to Power Future Exploration
Published May 30

Like the old saying goes: If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. NASA realized that the bullpen of small-business aerospace contractors is looking a tad lean, and it’s only going to get worse in the future. NASA has decided to invest almost $50 million in small companies located across the U.S. under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. It looks like the feds are starting to get a clue.

All Systems Go!: Can You Design Without Electronic Data Management?
Published June 2

Can you design a PCB today without electronic data management system? You probably can, but it might take you longer and leave you open to more errors, as columnist Nitin Bhagwath says in this article. He also answers a question we’ve heard quite a few times over the years: What’s the difference between PLM and PDM? Aren’t they basically the same? Nitin explains why the two are definitely not synonymous.

Surveying the Fab Landscape: Where to Find ROI
Published June 1

It all comes down to making a return on your investment, and earning a solid ROI as a fabricator is no easy task. In this interview, Torsten Reckert of all4-PCB shares some tips for manufacturers seeking to bring in good ROI numbers, including implementing more automation.

North American EMS Industry Up 4.3% in April
Published May 31 

We saw a little bit of positive news in the EMS segment, as well as a little negative. North American EMS shipments in April 2022 rose 4.3% YOY. But April shipments dropped 10.7% from the previous month. EMS bookings in April dropped 7.2% YOY and 2.4% from March. We’re keeping an eye on this segment.

IPC Training Course: PCB Design for Military & Aerospace Applications
Published May 30

IPC is expanding its milaero PCB design curriculum offerings with an upcoming training class titled PCB Design for Military & Aerospace Applications. The course will be held every Tuesday and Thursday from June 7–July 14, and presented by a veteran IPC-certified milaero design expert.

   

03/21/2023 | Dan Beaulieu, D.B. Management Group

I have always felt that automation has the potential to make a big difference in our PCB industry, especially domestically, where labor is at premium. For the past year, I have been looking for the story of how automation can and will make a significant difference in established PCB shops. I was fortunate enough to find that story in Multicircuits, located in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Only a few short years ago, this company was considered a “plain vanilla” PCB fabricator holding its own in our industry; now it has suddenly assumed a true leadership position in the industry in terms of capability, technology, operations, and profitability.

03/07/2023 | Patty Goldman, I-Connect007

Dieter Bergman IPC Fellowship Award winner Curtis Grosskopf, a senior engineer at IBM, reflects on the evolution of IPC committees and the vital importance of their work, especially in collaboratively creating industry-wide standards to guide the work of professionals in every sector. This commitment to multidisciplinary cooperation is a mindset that should be fostered at the start of every career.

03/02/2023 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007

In his State of the Union address in early February, President Biden departed from his usual topics about education and the economy to mention the new CHIPS Act, as well as supply chain and infrastructure issues. For perspective on those remarks, Nolan Johnson chats with David Schild, executive director of the Printed Circuit Board Association of America (PCBAA).