By John W. Mitchell, IPC president and CEO

I’m very happy to be traveling again on behalf of IPC.  There is nothing to take the place of meeting with our members in person, in their companies, and talking to them directly about the challenges in our industry.

Not only are the members worldwide beginning to come back together, but IPC staff is looking toward future activities and events, outlined in this issue of Executive Briefing.

In Europe, the focus is on standards, a return to participation in trade show events, and ongoing education of the workforce, particularly engineers, as explained in this article by Sanjay Huprikar, President, Europe, and South Asia operations.

Focusing on South Asia, IPC India’s Executive Director, Gaurab Majumdar, provides highlights of the past decade of IPC involvement in India, and how they are celebrating their accomplishments as they plan for the inaugural Integrated Electronics Manufacturing and Interconnections (IEMI) event later this year.

IPC continues to emphasize educating the worldwide workforce while seeking new ways to encourage the next generation of engineers and electronics industry employees. Dave Hernandez, Vice President of Education, introduces IPC’s new Director of IPC Mexico, Lorena Villanueva, as IPC increases our support and growth for our Spanish-speaking membership.

Our educational outreach to students is ongoing with the IPC Education Foundation (IPCEF). IPCEF’s Charlene Gunter du Plessis, senior director, describes the many ways electronics manufacturing professionals can impact the lives of students interested in pursuing careers in the industry in this article.

While we celebrate many successes in the industry, we are paying close attention to worldwide events that affect the economy and the electronics manufacturing industry. Three main forces exerting pressure on the industry are the Russian invasion of Ukraine, inflationary pressures pushing costs higher, and China’s strict COVID policy that is hindering production in China and compounding existing supply chain issues. IPC releases monthly reports on the state of the economy, and you can access the most current reports here.

For a broad view of the many ways IPC is involved in the industry, please look at the Annual Review. As always, please reach out to me with any questions, concerns, or comments. I am eager to hear your views.