IPC® presented Committee Leadership, Distinguished Committee Service and Special Recognition Awards at IPC APEX EXPO 2018 at the San Diego Convention Center. The awards were presented to individuals who made significant contributions to IPC and the industry by lending their time and expertise through IPC committee service.

For their leadership of the D-32 subcommittee in the development of IPC-TM-650 2.6.27A, Jerry Magera, Motorola Solutions; Jim Monarchio, TTM Technologies, Inc.; and Joey Rios, Massachusetts Institute of Technology earned a Committee Leadership award. For their contributions to IPC-TM-650 2.6.27A, Lance Auer, Conductor Analysis Technologies, Inc.; Tim Estes, Conductor Analysis Technologies, Inc.; Chris Mahanna, Robisan Laboratory, Inc.; Nick Meeker, Conductor Analysis Technologies, Inc.; Wesley Moreau, Extreme Engineering Solutions, Inc.; Jeff Sonnenberg, Extreme Engineering Solutions, Inc.; and Jennet Volden, Rockwell Collins, earned a Distinguished Committee Service Award.

For their leadership of the 2-18K committee that developed IPC-1754, Materials and Substances Declaration for the Aerospace, Defense, Heavy Equipment and Other Industries, Walter Jager, ECD Compliance; Rick Shanks, Pratt & Whitney; and Jean-Pierre Theret, Dassault Systemes, earned a Committee Leadership award. For their significant contributions to IPC-1754, Dr. N Nagaraj, Papros Inc., and Raj Takhar, Assent Compliance Inc., earned a special recognition award. For their contributions to IPC-1754, Douglas Aylward, Raytheon; Brenda Baney, B Cubed Consulting; Dave Billings, Rolls-Royce PLC; James Calder, Assent Compliance Inc.; Cindee Cognetta, Raytheon; Francois Ducamp, Airbus SAS; Renato da Nova Favarin, Embraer S.A.; Linda Fetterman, Boeing Company; Marelle Fogel, DXC; Richard Forselius, Sikorsky Aircraft; Brenda Fukai-Allison, Boeing Company; Andy Gbur, Tetra Tech; Valerie Kuntz, Assent Compliance Inc; Chuck LePard, DXC; Manish Patel, Cummins Inc.; Mussie Pietros, Gelcore; Margaret Proul, Lockheed Martin; Timothy Sheehan, Raytheon Company; Eric Straw, Rockwell Collins; Gail Sutherland, Tetra Tech; John Wagner, Association of Equipment Manufacturers; Michael Wurzman, RSJ Technical Consulting, and Paul Ylioja, Granta Design, earned a Distinguished Committee Service Award.

For their leadership of the 3-11 Subcommittee that developed IPC- 4101E, Specification for Base Materials for Rigid and Multilayer Printed Boards, Tony Senese, Panasonic Industrial Devices Sales Company of America (PIDSA); and Doug Sober, Essex Technologies Group Inc., earned a Committee Leadership award. For their contributions to the revision of IPC-4101E, Steven Ethridge, Dell Inc.; Terry Fischer, Hitachi Chemical Company America, Ltd.; Mahendra Gandhi, Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems; Pierre-Emmanuel Goutorbe, Airbus Defence and Space; Vicka Hammill, Honeywell Inc. Air Transport Systems; Stan Hertzel, European Space Agency; Philip Henault, Raytheon Company; Doug Leys, Neltec, Inc.; Renee Michalkiewicz, NTS – Baltimore; Jim Monarchio, TTM Technologies, Inc.; Karl Sauter, Oracle America, Inc.; Bhanu Sood, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; Chris Totten, Isola Group SARL; and Dan Welch, Rogers Corporation, earned a Distinguished Committee Service Award.

For their leadership of the 5-23a Printed Circuit Board Solderability Specifications Task Group that developed J-STD-003C, WAM 1& 2, Solderability Tests for Printed Boards, Gerard O’Brien, Solderability Testing and Solutions, Inc.; and Michah Pledger, Vivant, Inc., earned a Committee Leadership award. For their contributions, Martin Bayes, TE Connectivity; Scott Bowles, L-3 Fuzing and Ordnance Systems; Lenora Clark, MacDermid Enthone Electronics Solutions; Dave Hillman, Rockwell Collins; Henry Rekers, Schneider Electric; and Joey Rios, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, earned a Distinguished Committee Service Award.

For their leadership of the IPC Component and Wire Solderability Specification Task Group that developed EIA/IPC/JEDEC-J-STD-002E, Dennis Fritz, MacDermid Enthone Electronics Solutions; Dave Hillman, Rockwell Collins; Ife Hsu, Intel Corporation; and Douglas Romm, Texas Instruments Inc., earned a Committee Leadership Award. For their contributions to this standard, Beverley Christian, HDP User Group; James Daggett, Raytheon Company; Todd MacFadden, Bose Corporation; Graham Naisbitt, Gen3 Systems Limited; Bradley Smith, Allegro Microsystems Inc.; Donald Tyler, Corfin Industries LLC; and Vijay Kumar, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, earned a Distinguished Committee Service Award.

For their leadership of 5-22a, the J-STD-001 Task Group that developed J-STD-001G, Requirements for Soldered Electrical and Electronic Assemblies, Dan Foster, Missile Defense Agency; and Kathy Johnston, Raytheon Missile Systems, earned a committee leadership award. For their leadership of 7-31b, the IPC-A-610 Task Group that developed IPC-A-610G, Acceptability of Electronic Assemblies, Robert Fornefeld, L-3 Technologies; Constantino Gonzalez, ACME Training & Consulting; and Mary Muller, Crane Aerospace & Electronics, earned a committee leadership award. For significant contributions in the development of IPC-A-610G, and J-STD-001G, Robert Cooke, NASA Johnson Space Center; Dan Foster, Missile Defense Agency; Dave Hillman, Rockwell Collins; Kathy Johnston, Raytheon Missile Systems; Joseph Kane, BAE Systems; Leo Lambert, EPTAC Corporation; Mary Muller, Crane Aerospace & Electronics; Doug Pauls, Rockwell Collins; Debbie Wade, Advanced Rework Technology-A.R.T.; and Udo Welzel, Robert Bosch GmbH, earned a special recognition award. For their contributions and efforts to either or both IPC-A-610G or J-STD-001G, Erik Bjerke, BAE Systems; James Blanche, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; Gerald Leslie Bogert, Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc.; William Cardinal, UTC Aerospace Systems; Robert Cooke, NASA Johnson Space Center; James Daggett, Raytheon Company; Ross Dillman, ACI Technologies, Inc.; Symon Franklin, Custom Interconnect Ltd.; Dave Hillman, Rockwell Collins;  Ife Hsu, Intel Corporation; Milea Kammer, Honeywell Aerospace; Joseph Kane, BAE Systems; Patrick Kane, Raytheon System Technology; Gary Latta, SAIC; Garry McGuire, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; John Mastorides, Honeywell Aerospace; William D. May, NSWC Crane; Scott Meyer, UTC Aerospace Systems; David Mitchell, Lockheed Martin Mission Systems & Training; Gregg Owens, Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Agnes Ozarowski, BAE Systems; Helena Pasquito, EPTAC Corporation; Irene Romero, Delta Group Electronics Inc.; Richard Rumas, Honeywell Canada; James Saunders, Raytheon Company; Patricia Scott, STI Electronics, Inc.; Jose Servin Olivares, Continental Temic SA de CV; Zenaida Valianu, Celestica; Jon Vermillion, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp.; and Debbie Wade, Advanced Rework Technology-A.R.T., earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 5-22BT Task Group that developed the J-STD-001 Training and Certification Course, Dan Foster, Missile Defense Agency; and Zenaida Valianu, Celestica, earned a committee leadership award. For their significant contribution to the development of the J-STD-001 Training and Certification course, Carol Stirling, EPTAC Corporation, earned a special recognition award. For their contributions, Kevin Boblits, Circuit Technology Inc.; Charles Gamble, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; Leo Lambert, EPTAC Corporation; and Agnieszka Ozarowski, BAE Systems, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership in the development of the J-STD-001 Training and Certification course for the 5-22B TEU task group, Symon Franklin, Custom Interconnect Ltd.; and Debbie Wade, Advanced Rework Technology-A.R.T., earned a committee leadership award. For his contributions, Eric Hinsley, The Electronics Group Ltd., earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 7-31BT Task Group that developed the IPC-A-610G Training and Certification Course, Mary Muller, Crane Aerospace & Electronics; and Helena Pasquito, EPTAC Corporation, earned a committee leadership award. For his significant contribution to the training course, William Graver, NTS – Baltimore, earned a special recognition award. For her contributions, Elizabeth Allison, NTS – Baltimore, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their contribution to the 5-22BTEU Task Group that developed the IPC-A-610G Training and Certification Course, Symon Franklin, Custom Interconnect Ltd.; and Debbie Wade, Advanced Rework Technology-A.R.T., earned a committee leadership award. For his contributions, Rob Mullane, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For his leadership of the Process Consumable Statistical Committee, Michael Carano, RBP Chemical Technology, Inc., earned a committee leadership award.

For his excellent leadership of the PERM council in the development of IPC/PERM 2901, Anthony Rafanelli, Raytheon Missile Systems, earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions to IPC/PERM 2901, Martin Anselm, Rochester Institute of Technology; Jelena Bradic, Honeywell Aerospace; Richard Coyle, Nokia; Reza Ghaffarian, Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Ben Gumpert, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control; David Hillman, Rockwell Collins; Milea Kammer, Honeywell Aerospace; Jeff Kennedy, Celestica; Frank-Peter Kriesch, Diehl Aerospace GmbH; Gary Latta, SAIC; Dale Lee, Plexus Corporation; David Locker, U.S. Army Aviation & Missile Command; Stephen Meschter, BAE Systems; Steven Middleton, Foresite, Inc.; Mick Miller, NSWC – Crane; Andre Oliveira, Embraer; David Pinsky, Raytheon Missile Systems; Jeff Rowe, JR Consulting; Mark Van Solkema, GE Aviation; and Linda Woody, LWC Consulting, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 5-31j committee in revising IPC-7526A, Mike Bixenman, Kyzen; and Greg Wade, Indium, earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions to IPC-7526A, Dave Adams, Rockwell Collins; Caroline Ehlinger, Rockwell Collins; Jason Keeping, Celestica; Ravi Parthasarathy, Zestron; Doug Pauls, Rockwell Collins; Mark Reimer, Rockwell Collins; Jeff Schake, ASM Assembly Systems; Chrys Shea, Shea Engineering Services; Umut Tosun, Zestron; and Lee Wilmot, TTM Technologies, Inc., earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 5-33aUT subcommittee in the development of White Paper 021, Considerations of New Classes of Coatings for IPC-CC-830C, Doug Pauls, Rockwell Collins; and Amanda Rickman, Raytheon, earned a committee leadership award.

For his leadership of the 7-31H committee in the development of IPC-HDBK 620, a guidance document for those using IPC-WHMA-A-620 and IPC-D-620, Robert Cooke, NASA Johnson Space Center, earned a committee leadership award. For their significant contributions to the completion of IPC-HDBK 620, Gerald Leslie Bogert, Bechtel Plant Machinery Inc.; Bud Bowen, Winchester Electronics Division; Larry Joy, Amptech, Inc; Sean Keating, Amphenol Limited (UK); Theodore Laser, L-3 Communications; John Tinker, Teledyne Reynolds, earned a special recognition award. For their contributions, James Blanche, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; Constantino Gonzalez, ACME Training & Consulting; Russell Kido, Practical Components Inc.; Garry McGuire, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; Randy McNutt, Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems; Bob Potysman, AssembleTronics, LLC.; Erik Quam, Schlumberger Well Services; Richard Rumas, Honeywell Canada; Sharon Ventress, US Army Aviation & Missile Command, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the D-23 subcommittee in the new revision of IPC-4103B, Specifications for Base Materials for High Speed/High Frequency Applications, Ed Sandor, Taconic Advanced Dielectric Division; and Dan Welch, Rogers Corporation, earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions to the standard revision, Mahendra Gandhi, Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems; Scott Herrmann, Dupont Circleville; Tony Senese, Panasonic Industrial Devices Sales Company of America (PIDSA); Mamoru (Mark) Takahashi, Asahi Glass Company, Ltd.; Stephen Tisdale, Tisdale Environmental Consulting, LLC.; Chris Totten, Isola Group SARL; Jennet Volden, Rockwell Collins; and David Wynants, Taconic Advanced Dielectric Division, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their significant contributions to the 2017-2018 IPC APEX EXPO Technical Program Committee, Bev Christian, HDP User Group; Todd MacFadden, Bose Corporation; and Stan Rak, Continental Automotive Systems, earned a special recognition award. For their contributions, Steve Butkovich, Beverley Christian, HDP User Group; Martin Goetz, Northrop Grumman Corp; Dave Hoover, TTM Technologies; Jason Keeping, Celestica; Weifeng Liu, Flextronics; Todd MacFadden, Bose Corporation; Russell Nowland, Nokia; Brook Sandy-Smith, Indium Corporation; Karl Sauter, Oracle America, Inc.; Jeff Schake, ASM Assembly Systems; Julie Silk, Keysight Technologies; Bhanu Sood, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; and Udo Welzel, Robert Bosch GmbH, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 2-18b committee that developed IPC-1752A, Amendment 3, Materials Declaration Management Standard, Mark Frimann, Texas Instruments, Inc.; and Aidan Turnbull, BomCheck, earned a committee leadership award. For their significant contributions to this standard, Dr. N Nagaraj, Papros, Inc.; and Jim Kandler, RoHS Ready, LLC, earned a special recognition award. For their contributions, Brenda Baney, B Cubed Consulting; David Carnevale, Dolby Laboratories Forrest Christian, Innovation Machine, Ltd.; Tord Dennis, WSP; Randall Flinders, GreenSoft Technology Inc; Marelle Fogel, DXC; Jason Gooden, Anthesis Group; JB Hollister, Apple, Inc.; Walter Jager, ECD Compliance; Nikki Johnson, Total Parts Plus; Kurk Kan, Bose Corporation; Jim Kandler, RoHS Ready, LLC; Chuck LePard, DXC; Dr. N Nagaraj, Papros, Inc.; Gary Schmalfeld, Raytheon; Eric Straw, Rockwell Collins; Jean-Pierre Theret, Dassault Systemes; Bryan Tran, LSI Logic Corporation; James Vetro, GE Healthcare; Larisa Vishkovetsky, Seagate Technology; Bakul Wadgoankar, Bose Corporation, Tedie West, Siemens; Michael Wurzman, RSJ Technical Consulting; and Michael Zepp, Dassault Systemes, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 2-18j committee in the development of IPC-1753, Amendment 1, Laboratory Report Standard, Jason Gooden, Anthesis Group; and JB Hollister, Apple, Inc., earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions to IPC-1753, Emma Gates, Intel Corporation; William Haas, Jim Kandler, RoHS Ready, LLC.; Valerie Kuntz, Assent Compliance, Inc.; Chuck LePard, DXC; Dr. N Nagaraj, Papros, Inc.; Stacy Stannard, Bureau Veritas Consumer Products Services; Jean-Pierre Theret, Dassault Systemes; Stephen Tisdale, Tisdale Environmental Consulting, LLC.; Aidan Turnbull, BomCheck; Larisa Vishkovetsky, Seagate Technology; Bakul Wadgaonkar, Bose Corporation; Tedie West, Siemens; Michael Wurzman, RSJ Technical Consulting; Michael Zepp, Dassault Systemes, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For leadership of the D-13 Flexible Circuits Base Materials Subcommittee in the new revision of IPC-4202B, Flexible Base Dielectrics for Use in Flexible Printed Boards, Clark Webster, ALL Flex, LLC., earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions, Michael Collier, Teledyne Advanced Dielectric Solutions; Mark Finstad, Flexible Circuit Technologies, Inc.; Thomas Gardeski, Gemini Sciences, LLC.; Scott Herrmann, Dupont Circleville; Michael Jawitz, Orbital ATK; Nick Koop, TTM Technologies; John Leschisin, Minco Products, Inc.; Mark Seelhammer, Rogers Corporation; Terry Fischer, Hitachi Chemical Company America, Ltd.; Rebecca Steinbauer, ALL Flex, LLC.; and Brent Sweitzer, Multek Flexible Circuits, Inc., earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their leadership of the 5-24c Solder Alloy Task Group that developed Amendment 1 to J-STD-006C, Dave Adams, Rockwell Collins; and Jennie Hwang, H-Technologies Group, earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions, Mahendra Gandhi, Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems; Renee Michalkiewicz, NTS – Baltimore; Tetsuro Nishimura, Nihon Superior Co., Ltd.; and Brook Sandy-Smith, Indium Corporation, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For their contributions to Printed Electronics standards, Leonard Allison, NTS – Baltimore; Sai Avuthu, Jabil Circuit, Inc.; Neil Bolding, MacDermid Enthone Electronics Solutions; Alan Brown, Engineered Materials Systems, Inc.; Alan Burk, ALMAX; Ken Gann, Lab Tech; Mary Alice Gill, Jabil Circuit, Inc.; Josh Goldberg, Taiyo America Inc.; Scott Gordon, DuPont Teijin Films; Mary Herndon, Raytheon Company; Mike Mastropietro, NextFlex; Jeffrey Parker, Insulectro; Haridoss Sarma, GO 2 Scout 4 R&T; Paul Shaw, In2Tec; Jeff Shubrooks, Raytheon Company; Richard Snogren, Bristlecone, LLC.; Hector Valladares, Honeywell Aerospace; and Steve Vetter, NSWC Crane, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For his leadership of the 7-24 subcommittee that developed IPC-9121 Amendment 1, Michael Carano, RBP Chemical Technology, Inc., earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions, Paul Cooke, TTM Technologies; Happy Holden; and Bhanu Sood, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, earned a distinguished committee service award.

For his leadership in the development of IPC-7095D, Ray Prasad, Ray Prasad Consultancy Group; and Rob Rowland, Axiom Electronics, LLC., earned a committee leadership award. For their contributions, Dudi Amir, Intel Corporation; Raiyomond Aspandiar, Intel Corporation; Ife Hsu, Intel Corporation; Karen McConnell, Northrop Grumman Corporation; Bhanu Sood, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; John Thompson, FCI USA, Inc., earned a distinguished committee service award.

Photos from the IPC APEX EXPO committee awards ceremonies as well as the rest of the show are available at www.ipc.org/IPCAPEXEXPO2018Photos. For more information on these awards or the award recipients, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at +1 847-597-2871.

IPC invites engineers, researchers, academics, technical experts and industry leaders to submit technical conference abstracts and course proposals for IPC APEX EXPO 2019 to be held at the San Diego Convention Center. Professional development courses will take place January 27, 28 and 31, 2019 and the technical conference will take place January 29–31, 2019.

The industry’s premier conference and exhibition for the electronics industry, IPC APEX EXPO provides presenters and their companies with a notable and cost-effective opportunity to promote their expertise and gain visibility with key engineers, managers and executives from all segments of the industry worldwide. Staff from companies such as Ericsson, Flex, IBM, Indium, MacDermid Enthone, Northrop Grumman, Oracle and Robert Bosch GmbH have presented papers at past technical conference sessions at IPC APEX EXPO. To recognize exceptional achievement, awards will be presented for “Best Paper.”

Expert papers and presentations are being sought on design, materials, assembly, processes, test, reliability and equipment in the following areas:

An approximate 300-word technical conference abstract summarizing original and previously unpublished work covering case histories, research and discoveries must be submitted. The submission should describe significant results from experiments and case studies, emphasize new techniques, discuss trends of interest and contain appropriate technical test results.

In addition, course proposals are solicited from individuals interested in presenting half-day (three-hour) professional development courses on design, manufacturing processes and materials.

Technical conference paper abstracts and course proposals are due June 15, 2018. To submit an abstract or course proposal, visit www.IPCAPEXEXPO.org/CFP.

In recognition of their leadership and contributions to IPC and the electronics industry within the past five years, IPC® presented an IPC Rising Star award to Yusaku Kono, Japan Unix, and Pierre-Emmauel Gourtorbe, Airbus, at IPC APEX EXPO 2018.

The IPC Rising Star award is given to individuals who have shown significant leadership ability in the past five years, making an impact on IPC and the electronics industry because of their support to IPC standards, education, advocacy and solutions to industry challenges.

Yusaku Kono, Japan Unix, an active IPC volunteer, has dedicated the past three years to enhancing the value of IPC standards among Japanese electronics manufacturers. Kono serves on the IPC-A-610 Automotive Addendum Task Group and the J-STD-001 Task Group.

Pierre-Emmanuel Goutorbe, Airbus, is a PCB expert, covering PCB development, PCB-related standards and PCB technical support for all space projects at Airbus’ European sites. Goutorbe serves on seven standards development committees at IPC, including the Base Materials Roundtable Task Group, the IPC-6012 Aerospace Addendum Task Group, the Rigid Printed Board Performance Specifications Task Group and the Terms and Definitions Committee.

“Both Pierre-Emmanuel and Yusaku have taken on strong leadership roles in IPC, and we and the entire electronics industry have benefited from their skills and expertise,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “We are very fortunate that they have chosen to share their knowledge with IPC and the industry at large.”

For more information on the IPC Rising Star Award and this year's award recipients, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at +1 847-597-2871.

It was all business at IPC APEX EXPO 2018 as 9,169 electronics manufacturing professionals from 43 countries converged at the San Diego Convention Center. In addition to experiencing a 22 percent increase in first-day show floor attendance, IPC APEX EXPO hosted a sold-out exhibition: 479 exhibitors showcased cutting-edge products and services on 149,700 net square feet, making it the largest exhibition in a decade. And with more than 80 percent of the 4,574 attendees identifying themselves as key buyers or influencers, the exhibitors at North America's largest electronics assembly event enjoyed three days of qualified leads, business development and brisk sales.

In keeping with the event’s theme, “Succeed at the Velocity of Technology,” APEX EXPO 2018 featured nearly 100 technical papers detailing original research and innovations from industry experts around the world. Attendees had access to new research on materials and processes, opportunities to learn more about trending materials, applications and processes such as Industry 4.0 (including a live demonstration on the show floor by more than two dozen exhibitors using IPC’s CFX standard) and e-textiles.

IPC APEX EXPO’s full- and half-day professional development courses blended traditional electronics industry topics with hot-new developments, delivered by corporate technologists, consultants, training center staff and university faculty. Attendees choose from an array of leading topics such as: PCB fabrication troubleshooting; dispensing/jetting; printing; manufacturing yield, defect analysis, failure analysis; reliability and design for excellence (DFX).

“When I spoke with exhibitors and attendees at this year’s show, feedback was resoundingly positive. Attendees said that networking and educational events and activities helped them find new ways to solve challenges; the exhibition provided them the opportunity to meet suppliers that could help them save time and money, and foster new business opportunities,” said John Mitchell IPC president and CEO. “Overall, I am proud of everything we accomplished in San Diego, I am equally as invigorated with everything we will do in the rest of the year. We are already working on putting together next year’s show, and look forward to our industry’s continued support in making IPC APEX EXPO 2019 a success.”

In 2019, IPC APEX EXPO will return to the San Diego Convention Center, January 26-31. Industry researchers, engineers and academics are invited to submit an abstract for consideration in next year’s technical conference or professional development courses in the online Call for Participation at www.IPCAPEXEXPO.org/cfp.

In recognition of their ongoing leadership in developing and promoting IPC standards on a global basis, IPC bestowed an Dieter Bergman IPC Fellowship Award upon Linda Woody, LWC Consulting, and Stephen Tisdale, Tisdale Environmental Consulting LLC at IPC APEX EXPO® 2018.

This recognition is given to individuals who have fostered a collaborative spirit, made significant contributions to standards development, have consistently demonstrated a commitment to global standardization efforts and the electronics industry and embody the work ethic and spirit of the late Dieter Bergman, an industry pioneer and icon. Award recipients are eligible to bestow the Dieter Bergman Memorial Scholarship upon the university or college of his/her choice. Woody’s selection was University of Central Florida in Orlando and Tisdale selected the Thomas J. Watson School of Engineering at Binghamton University in New York.

Linda Woody has supported IPC’s standardization efforts for more than 20 years and made her first technical presentation in 1997 on behalf of IPC. Since then, she has served on more than 40 IPC committees, chaired the 2-18d Printed Board Declaration Task Group and the Lead-free Electronics Risk Management consortia known as PERM and has been working on lead-free issues since the mid ‘90s. Woody has not only had a direct hand in drafting IPC documents, but has also participated in numerous round robin testing programs to collect data to support the requirements within the documents.

Woody recently retired from Lockheed Martin after 36 years, serving as a member of the Lockheed Martin Production Technical Excellence staff, where she was a corporate subject-matter expert for electronics assembly and soldering processes. She now serves as president and CEO of her own consulting business.

Stephen Tisdale has been involved in the electronics industry for more than 40 years, participating in IPC standards development activities and initiatives for most of his career. He is a recognized content expert in the areas of environmental compliance, semiconductor packaging, PCB design, materials and assembly.

While at Intel, Tisdale directed RoHS compliance implementation strategy, and technology compliance evaluations and set internal direction for halogen free strategies. He received a company excellence award for contributions to its lead-free program.

Tisdale currently lends his talent and expertise on technical compliance issues on 30 IPC committees and serves as chair of the 4-34B Marking, Symbols and Labels for Identification of Assemblies, Components & Devices Task Group. He has also presented at past IPC APEX EXPO events and is a published author on several technical topics. "IPC and the entire electronics industry are fortunate to have both Linda and Stephen volunteer their time and expertise to IPC standards and program development," said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. "Their work has enriched both the industry and IPC and we are thankful for their dedication."        

For more information on the Dieter Bergman IPC Fellowship Award and this year's award recipients, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at +1 847-597-2871.

IPC announced today the January 2018 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. Both sales and orders were up year-over-year in January. Due to continued strong order growth in January, the book-to-bill ratio climbed to a 12-year high of 1.16.

Total North American PCB shipments in January 2018 were up 9.8 percent compared to the same month last year. Compared to the preceding month, January shipments decreased 8.5 percent.

PCB bookings in January grew 25.3 percent year-over-year. January bookings were down 13.9 percent compared to the previous month.

“Year-over-year sales growth for the North American PCB industry continued to climb in January and growth was positive for the fifth consecutive month,” said Sharon Starr, IPC’s director of market research. “Strong bookings growth also continued, pushing the book-to-bill ratio to its highest point since September 2005. This performance, capping 12 consecutive months of positive book-to-bill ratios, offers a strong indication of continued sales growth in the first half of 2018,” she added.

Note: The June 2017 growth rates have been revised since their original publication due to updated data from statistical program participants.

View Chart in PDF

Detailed Data Available

IPC’s North American PCB Market Report, is now a quarterly publication. The next edition,containing detailed first-quarter 2018 data from IPC’s PCB Statistical Program, will be available in early May. The report presents detailed findings on rigid PCB and flexible circuit sales and orders, including separate rigid and flex book-to-bill ratios, growth trends by company size tiers, demand for prototypes, and other timely data. This report is available free to current participants in IPC’s PCB Statistical Program and by subscription to others. More information about this report can be found at www.ipc.org/market-research-reports.

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 at the end of each month. Statistics for the current month are normally available in the last week of the following month.

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® announces the appointment of Chris Mitchell as its new vice president of global government relations. Mitchell starts his new position today, March 5, 2018, and will be based in IPC’s Washington, D.C. Office.

In this new role, Mitchell will be responsible for development and implementation of the organization’s global advocacy efforts and public policy agenda with a focus on electronics industry business improvement; environment, health and safety; and defense initiatives. He will work closely with IPC’s Government Relations Steering Committee, and IPC Washington, D.C. office staff, to represent IPC and the electronics industry before key governmental policymakers globally and to identify issues and other opportunities where IPC can demonstrate its global leadership in government relations and public policy.

Mitchell was most recently a director at Prime Policy Group, a leading Washington, D.C. government relations firm, where he represented U.S. and international interests before Congress and the Executive Branch. Previously, Mitchell spent more than eight years working for members of Congress from the State of California for whom he handled technology, trade, and transportation issues. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from The George Washington University and a Master’s degree in philosophy from San Jose State University and currently serves on the board of directors for Partners Global and the Fabretto Children’s Foundation.

“Chris’s expertise in providing strategic council and advising members of Congress on technology and trade issues has made him a trusted advocate not only in Washington D.C. but in the halls of government across the globe,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “His entrepreneurial approach to championing past advocacy efforts will set IPC’s own advocacy efforts apart from other organizations while advancing IPC’s members and industry’s causes. We look forward to welcoming Chris to IPC.”

Mitchell can be reached at 202-661-8097 or ChrisMitchell@ipc.org.

In recognition of his significant contributions of time, talent and ongoing leadership in IPC and the electronics industry, long-time IPC volunteer, Robert Cooke, NASA Johnson Space Center, was presented with an IPC President’s Award at IPC APEX EXPO 2018.

Cooke joined his first Task Group meeting in February 2003, subsequently became a member of several task groups through the early 2000s, and in 2010 he increased his focus by nearly double. He continued to take on more projects, and in 2016, he accepted the invitation to become the General Chair of the 7-30 Product Assurance Committee where he has worked with the leaders of the task groups and subcommittees under that umbrella to make meetings more productive.

He has often come to the aid of IPC technical staff and taken a concept from a task group and turned it into an info graphic for discussion. These helpful gestures have led to new, more accurate graphics in some of IPC’s standards. He often provides clear and well-formatted working drafts from his meetings, and every note, comment and graphic is completely traceable to its source.

In 2016, Bob provided his committee members and IPC staff with a “wow” moment when he was asked what projects may fill industry gaps, and he provided a long list of possible projects that could answer industry needs. IPC continues to consider each idea carefully to see when and where programs and standards can be launched with industry support.

In addition to chairing the 7-30 committee, Cooke also chairs the 7-31M Fiber Optic Cable Acceptability Task Group, the 7-31H IPC-HDBK-620 Handbook Task Group and the 7-31K Wire Harness Design Task Group, with service on a total of 38 committees. He has led standards efforts that resulted in the release of three white papers and several standards including IPC-D-620, IPC-HDBK-620, IPC-D-640 and IPC-A-640.

“IPC and the entire electronics industry are fortunate to have Bob volunteer his time and expertise,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “His work has enriched both the industry and IPC and we are thankful for Bob’s dedication and hard work.”

For more information on the IPC President’s Award and this year’s award recipient, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at SandyGentry@ipc.org or +1 847-597-2871. 

IPC bestowed its highest corporate honors on two, member companies, Rockwell Collins and Northrop Grumman Corporation. During a luncheon at IPC APEX EXPO 2018, the Peter Sarmanian Corporate Recognition Award was presented to Northrop Grumman and the Stan Plzak Corporate Recognition Award was presented to Rockwell Collins.

The Peter Samarian Corporate Recognition award, named for a former IPC Board Chairman, recognizes an IPC-member company in the printed board industry that has supported IPC through participation in technical and management programs while providing leadership for the industry.

Northrop Grumman, an IPC member since 1962, has long held a leadership role in IPC, participating in meetings for decades, making a significant impact on both IPC and the industry. More than 50 of its staff members are active on approximately 120 technical committees ranging from flexible circuits and fabrication processes to conflict minerals and intellectual property standards. Almost 1,000 Northrop Grumman employees have earned CIT, CIS, CID, CID+ and EMS certifications across all Northrop Grumman locations.

Named for former IPC Board Chairman and founding member of the IPC Electronics Manufacturing Services Industry Management Council, the IPC Stan Plzak Corporate Recognition Award honors an IPC-member company in the electronics assembly industry that actively contributes to the industry while supporting IPC technical and/or management programs.

Rockwell Collins has been a member of IPC since 1965, and has devoted many staff members to IPC standards development. Nearly 40 Rockwell Collins employees provide leadership and technical expertise on more than 100 standards development committees dedicated to topics such as assembly and joining, electronic documentation and e-textiles. More than 250 staff members have earned CIT, CIS, CID, CID+, and EMS certification across all Rockwell locations.

“We are privileged to have Northrop Grumman and Rockwell Collins as members of IPC,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “Their decades of leadership, commitment to providing staff resources to standards development, and engagement in IPC education and event activities, have contributed to IPC’s global growth in the electronics industry.”

For more information on IPC’s Corporate Recognition Awards and other honors presented at IPC APEX EXPO, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at SandyGentry@ipc.org or +1 847-597-2871.

The Nominating and Governance Committee of the IPC Board of Directors presented five candidates for election at the IPC Annual Meeting on February 27, held in conjunction with IPC APEX EXPO 2018 at the San Diego Convention Center. Three candidates were elected as Board officers and will serve two-year terms. Two were elected as new Board members and will serve a four-year term.

The newly elected Board officers are:           

• Board Chair – Mikel Williams, CEO and Board Chair, Targus Inc.
• Vice Chair – Shane Whiteside, President and CEO, Summit Interconnect
• Secretary/Treasurer – Bob Neves, Chair and Chief Technology Officer, Microtek Laboratories

The newly elected Board members are:

• Rick Bromm, President, Altex Inc.
• Jay Hill, Chief Operating Officer, Imaging, GE Healthcare

"IPC is privileged to have these directors and officers added to our current slate of Board members. All are active contributors to IPC initiatives and we look forward to their continued contributions to advancing IPC and industry," said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO.

In addition to holding Board elections, IPC honored outgoing Board Chair, Joe O’Neil, CEO, Power Design Services. O’Neil will serve as the Immediate Past Chair on the IPC Board of Directors Executive Committee for a two-year term. Out-going Board Member Marc Peo was honored for his nearly 10 years of service on the IPC Board of Directors.

For additional information on IPC's Board of Directors including bios on newly elected Board members, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at SandyGentry@ipc.org.