IPC announced today the April 2020 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.19.

Total North American PCB shipments in April 2020 were up 4.3 percent compared to the same month last year. Compared to the preceding month, April shipments fell 18.2 percent.

PCB bookings in April increased 19.9 percent year-over-year, but fell 7.3 percent from the previous month.

“North American electronics manufacturers continue to serve surging demand for PCBs and other components in the shadow of COVID-19. Bookings in April were up 19.9 percent, the strongest year-over-year growth in orders in over two years,” said Shawn DuBravac, IPC chief economist. “We expect elevated shipments in May as a result of strong bookings in April and a lingering backlog of unfilled ordered from prior months.”

Note: The December 2019 ratios have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants

Note: The June, October, and December 2019 growth rates have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants

View Charts in PDF

Detailed Data Available

Companies that participate in IPC’s North American PCB Statistical Program have access to detailed findings on rigid PCB and flexible circuit sales and orders, including separate rigid and flex book-to-bill ratios, growth trends by product types and company size tiers, demand for prototypes, sales growth to military and medical markets, and other timely data.

Interpreting the Data

The book-to-bill ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in IPC’s survey sample. A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to twelve months. A ratio of less than 1.00 indicates the reverse.

Year-on-year and year-to-date growth rates provide the most meaningful view of industry growth. Month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they reflect seasonal effects and short-term volatility. Because bookings tend to be more volatile than shipments, changes in the book-to-bill ratios from month to month might not be significant unless a trend of more than three consecutive months is apparent. It is also important to consider changes in both bookings and shipments to understand what is driving changes in the book-to-bill ratio.

IPC’s monthly PCB industry statistics are based on data provided by a representative sample of both rigid PCB and flexible circuit manufacturers selling in the USA and Canada. IPC publishes the PCB book-to-bill ratio by the end of each month.

Electronics manufacturing contributes powerfully to the U.S. economy, according to a new report released by IPC, the global electronics manufacturing industry association. The report finds the electronics manufacturing sector directly supports more than 1.3 million U.S. jobs. For every U.S. electronics manufacturing job, three other jobs are supported in the U.S. economy, contributing to a total of 5.3 million American jobs. Also, the industry indirectly and directly contributes $714 billion (3.7 percent) to U.S. GDP.

“Electronics are at the heart of thousands of products and hundreds of industries in the U.S.,” said John Mitchell, president and CEO of IPC. “More than most industries, we are vertically and horizontally integrated across many markets, and the health of our industry is key to the overall success of the U.S. economy.”

The report also finds 16 states, led by California and Texas, account for about 75 percent of direct electronics manufacturing jobs in the United States. California alone has nearly 275,000 direct electronics manufacturing jobs and almost $197 billion in direct output, accounting for 3.4 percent of California’s GDP.
Other key findings from the report include:

• The electronics manufacturing industry is responsible for more than $1 trillion dollars in the content of final sales, spread across business investment and inventory change ($426.6 billion); personal consumption ($306.5 billion); exports ($223.9 billion); federal defense ($37.8 billion); and other government spending ($48.1 billion).
• Ten states have more than 100,000 workers each because of the electronics manufacturing sector, led by California and Texas.
• Electronics manufacturing employees average about $127,000 in total labor income, which is more than double the national average compensation of $60,820. Electronics manufacturing employees also earn more than the average manufacturing employee, who earns $83,000 a year.
• States with higher-than-average contributions to GDP from electronics manufacturing include Oregon, California, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Arizona, Texas, Wisconsin, and Colorado.
• The largest subsectors of electronics manufacturing, ranked by output, are computer and peripheral equipment manufacturing, semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing; and navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments manufacturing, which together make up over 73 percent of the total.  

COVID-19 Impacts on the Industry

Regarding the biggest economic concern of the moment, the coronavirus epidemic is being felt by the U.S. Electronics manufacturing industry. The electronics manufacturing industry is facing a variety of challenges, including unclear and evolving operating restrictions, changing demand patterns, abnormalities in supply chains, and an unsettled workforce that was already stretched thin.

While manufacturers and suppliers report several concerns, they appear most concerned about weaker demand. In April, more than half of manufacturers said this would be their biggest concern in the weeks ahead, according to IPC’s COVID-19 Survey of the Electronics Industry. Some 44 percent reported they are most concerned about supply shortages, while just over a third said they are worried about worker shortages.

Also, as work dried up, many manufacturers issued temporary layoffs in March and April, and now a majority of respondents report they expect to bring furloughed workers back to factories by the end of June 2020. However, one in five said furloughed workers would not return.      

Finally, nearly 70 percent of manufacturers have applied for a Payroll Protection Program loan to help cope through these challenging times. Of those who have applied, roughly 44 percent have received funding, while 25 percent are still waiting to receive funding.

“To help drive recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, we call on Congress to do more and establish a $10 billion Electronics Manufacturing Initiative to enhance the security of the U.S. electronics value chain,” said Mitchell. “By leveraging public-private partnerships, we can grow domestic capacity, research and development capabilities and bridge the workforce to elevate employee training.”

The 4th Annual M-EXPO Wire Processing Technology event, produced by WHMA/IPC, has been postponed due to COVID-19 and the uncertainty of the situation in the fall. The October 14-16, 2020 event will take place next fall, 2021 in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, pending improved conditions.

The health and welfare of all M-EXPO participants, as well as local, national and international communities at large, are our highest priority. For the past several weeks, M-EXPO and WHMA/IPC have been closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation and feel it is now clear that postponing the event is the best decision for all of those involved.

“The health, safety, and well-being of the show’s sponsors, attendees, exhibitors, speakers, and staff is the primary concern to M-EXPO,” said David Bergman, WHMA executive director. “Given the public health emergency we are currently facing, we believe the only action at this time is for M-EXPO 2020 to be postponed.”

M-EXPO looks forward to showcasing your latest wire and cable processing equipment, tools, materials and technologies to Mexico next fall, 2021!

To learn more about M-EXPO and stay up-to-date on next year’s event, visit www.mexpowire.com

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® announced today the March 2020 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.15.

Total North American PCB shipments in March 2020 were up 3.7 percent compared to the same month last year. Compared to the preceding month, March shipments rose 31.6 percent.

PCB bookings in March increased 10.1 percent year-over-year. Bookings in March increased 8.7 percent from the previous month.

“COVID-19 related disallocations in the global supply chain continue to drive North American PCB orders and shipments. March 2020 saw a near historic month-over-month rise in shipments as North American PCB manufacturers worked to deliver crucial components for equipment like ventilators into the medical supply chain,” said Shawn DuBravac, IPC’s chief economist. “March sales and orders are the highest the industry has seen since April 2017 and April 2020 shipments are poised to reach levels not seen since 2006.” 

Note: The January & December 2019 ratios have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants.
 

Note: The January, June, October, and December 2019 growth rates have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants.

View Charts in PDF

Detailed Data Available

Companies that participate in IPC’s North American PCB Statistical Program have access to detailed findings on rigid PCB and flexible circuit sales and orders, including separate rigid and flex book-to-bill ratios, growth trends by product types and company size tiers, demand for prototypes, sales growth to military and medical markets, and other timely data.

Interpreting the Data

The book-to-bill ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in IPC’s survey sample. A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to twelve months. A ratio of less than 1.00 indicates the reverse.

Year-on-year and year-to-date growth rates provide the most meaningful view of industry growth. Month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they reflect seasonal effects and short-term volatility. Because bookings tend to be more volatile than shipments, changes in the book-to-bill ratios from month to month might not be significant unless a trend of more than three consecutive months is apparent. It is also important to consider changes in both bookings and shipments to understand what is driving changes in the book-to-bill ratio.

IPC’s monthly PCB industry statistics are based on data provided by a representative sample of both rigid PCB and flexible circuit manufacturers selling in the USA and Canada. IPC publishes the PCB book-to-bill ratio by the end of each month.

As the electronics industry continues to respond to new challenges emerging daily on COVID-19, IPC answered the industry’s request to continue IPC certification and provide provisions for those individuals working from home offices.

IPC integrated a remote proctoring solution into IPC EDGE for all Certified IPC Specialist (CIS), Certified IPC Trainer (CIT), Certified Interconnect Designer (CID/CID+) and Certified Standards Expert (CSE) programs. Remote proctoring includes a combination of a live virtual proctor, artificial intelligence, and video/audio recording and analysis to monitor candidates as they sit for the certification exam without the need for an in-person proctor. Currently, remote proctoring is not available for hands-on modules and exams.

To help defray the additional cost of online proctoring, IPC has subsidized a portion of the fee for those seeking either certification or recertification.

“Our goal is to provide our entire training community a safe and secure certification experience during these trying times,” said David Hernandez, vice president, Education. “As governments enacted shelter in place orders, IPC moved to offer this remote exam proctoring service as quickly as possible. We are committed to serving our worldwide industry as we face this crisis together.”

For more information regarding online proctored exams, visit IPC’s certification portal at https://certification.ipcedge.org. Instructors and students require a log-in.

IPC invites experts in all areas of cleaning and coating for electronic assemblies to submit technical conference abstracts for the High-Reliability Cleaning and Conformal Coating Conference, presented by IPC and SMTA, to be held November 3-5, 2020 in Dallas, Texas.

The goal of this conference is to enable electronics assemblers to address cleaning and coating issues by showcasing industry knowledge covering technological developments in strategies to achieve surface reliability. This conference features technical presentations, tutorials, tabletop exhibits and networking events. Professional development courses will take place on November 3, and the technical conference will take place November 4–5.

Expert technical presentations are being sought in the following areas:

• Electrical Performance and Reliability
• Cleaning Process Design
• Maintaining and Monitoring the Cleaning Process
• Material Choices and Compatibility
• Conformal Coatings
• Supply Chain Management

An approximate 300-word technical conference abstract summarizing original and previously unpublished work covering case histories, research and discoveries must be submitted. The abstract should be technical in nature and must clearly state the topical content and benefits to the participants. Programs and presentations must be non-commercial, original work. Abstracts should include a title and short description of at least 30 words.

Abstracts are due July 10, 2020, and can be sent to Brook Sandy-Smith, IPC technical conference program manager, at BrookSandy@ipc.org.

To sponsor or exhibit at this event, contact Alicia Balonek, IPC senior director of tradeshows & events, at AliciaBalonek@ipc.org.

IPC, the global electronics manufacturing industry association, yesterday sent a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, urging them to launch a trilateral initiative to mobilize industrial base support for the continuing medical response related to COVID-19.

The plan also would spur the continent’s economic recovery in the months ahead. The electronics manufacturing industry and associated suppliers support more than 5.3 million jobs across North America and partner with every other critical sector.

“The electronics industry has ramped up operations to meet surging demand for electronic components that go into ventilators, respirators, and heart and blood pressure monitors,” writes IPC President and CEO John Mitchell. “Even as they prioritize healthcare-related manufacturing, they are also meeting customer requirements for other critical sectors, including national security and infrastructure. Yet, manufacturers tell us that conflicting restrictions, cross-border delays, and unclear demand signals are hindering production.”

IPC calls on all three governments to launch a joint North American Manufacturing Initiative comprising senior government officials and private sector leaders who are focused on strengthening the region’s manufacturing competitiveness.

The initiative would further trilateral cooperation in the following areas:

• Supply chain networking;
• Supply chain gaps;
• Skills shortages;
• Cross-border trade facilitation;
• Promotion of innovation, including factories of the future;
• Standards development; and
• Infrastructure needs. 

“About 80 percent of our members are small- and medium-sized companies,” Mitchell notes. “As such, our members are highly challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic, but we are enthusiastic about the North American region and eager to be part of the solution to current and future problems.”  

EDITORS NOTE: IPC’s President and CEO John Mitchell and company executives are available to answer any questions and give an update on how COVID-19 has impacted the industry.

The Wiring Harness Manufacturer’s Association (WHMA) launched a new corporate logo, marking the most dramatic change in its visual identity since 1993. Striving to maintain the iconic and recognizable look was a primary goal but the new logo better reflects the corporate brand as it looks towards WHMA’s future goals.

"Our new logo better communicates what WHMA stands for today," said David Bergman, WHMA executive director. "We've kept visual elements that reflect our legacy, but we emphasized our forward-thinking mindset and our mission to achieve strong growth through our initiatives to lead, educate and connect our members within in the industry."

The redesigned logo can be seen on the website (www.whma.org) and social media channels.

As a result of IPC’s advocacy work, the U.S. EPA yesterday announced that it is exploring exemptions to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) “Fees Rule.”

The TSCA Fees Rule is designed to collect revenues to pay for risk evaluations of toxic substances. However, the EPA now says it will consider exemptions for manufacturers that import articles containing high-priority substances or that produce such substances as byproducts or impurities.

This regulatory relief has the potential to reduce long-term administrative and financial burdens for those three categories of manufacturers. If the change is approved, manufacturers who fall into these categories would no longer be required to self-identify under the TSCA Fees Rule.

In addition, the U.S. EPA is providing a No Action Assurance to these manufacturers with respect to the self-identification requirements. This means the EPA will exercise its discretion to not pursue enforcement action against such companies for violations of the self-identification reporting obligations.

IPC worked with the EPA to bring awareness to challenges facing member companies via meetings with senior officials and through comments to the public docket on both a request for a comment period as well as a collaboration with the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) and ITI to address concerns regarding the requirement to self-identify as an importer of an article containing a TSCA High-Priority Substance. 

“IPC welcomes the news of these potential changes to the TSCA Fees Rule.” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “We appreciate that the EPA is responsive to our concerns about unnecessary financial obligations for some of our members.”

IPC will continue to engage with the EPA regarding the proposed changes and the process for executing these changes. We encourage all potentially affected companies to review the information provided by the EPA, and summarized in this IPC blog, to ensure they are doing their due diligence to comply with the TSCA Fees Rule.

IPC announced today the February 2020 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.15.

Total North American PCB shipments in February 2020 were down 1.1 percent compared to the same month last year. Compared to the preceding month, February shipments rose 1.5 percent.

PCB bookings in February increased 14.2 percent year-over-year. Bookings in February increased 21.8 percent from the previous month.

“The coronavirus outbreak in China in late January and February created an unprecedented supply shock that idled significant global capacity and drove a historic increase in new bookings for the North American PCB industry,” said Shawn DuBravac, IPC chief economist. “We expect to see further increases in both new bookings and shipments in the coming month as near-term demand in North America spikes due to dis-allocations in the global supply chain and the medical supply chain ramping production of medical equipment to combat COVID-19.”     

Note: The January & December 2019 ratios have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants.
 

Note: The January, June, October, and December 2019 growth rates have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants.

View Charts in PDF

Detailed Data Available

Companies that participate in IPC’s North American PCB Statistical Program have access to detailed findings on rigid PCB and flexible circuit sales and orders, including separate rigid and flex book-to-bill ratios, growth trends by product types and company size tiers, demand for prototypes, sales growth to military and medical markets, and other timely data.

Interpreting the Data

The book-to-bill ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in IPC’s survey sample. A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next three to twelve months. A ratio of less than 1.00 indicates the reverse.

Year-on-year and year-to-date growth rates provide the most meaningful view of industry growth. Month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they reflect seasonal effects and short-term volatility. Because bookings tend to be more volatile than shipments, changes in the book-to-bill ratios from month to month might not be significant unless a trend of more than three consecutive months is apparent. It is also important to consider changes in both bookings and shipments to understand what is driving changes in the book-to-bill ratio.

IPC’s monthly PCB industry statistics are based on data provided by a representative sample of both rigid PCB and flexible circuit manufacturers selling in the USA and Canada. IPC publishes the PCB book-to-bill ratio by the end of each month.