During IPC APEX EXPO 2019, the IPC Education Foundation launched six IPC student chapters at: Auburn, North Carolina State, Sacramento State, Central Carolina Community College, Gwinnett Technical College, and Michigan Technical University. The student chapters at North Carolina State, Central Carolina Community College and Michigan Technical University provide examples of how industry can partner with education institutions to prepare engineering students with knowledge specific to the electronics industry.

Weller’s Susan Spaulding remarked, “Weller Tools, the world-wide leader in manual soldering equipment, is supporting students at North Carolina State and Central Carolina.”By sponsoring the annual student fee, Weller provides students access to industry produced video courses, IPC standards, and the benefits of IPC membership including additional industry courses at member discounted rates.

Calumet Electronics is another industry partner that is helping college students at Michigan Technical University enter the electronics sector better prepared with specific knowledge and skills. “As we recruit students and faculty to start IPC Student Chapters, we’re creating special partnerships, facilitated by the IPC Education Foundation, to pair IPC member companies with universities and technical schools in their region,” said Colette Buscemi, senior director of IPC education programs. “We’ve built this cooperative model to open opportunities for students to enter our industry with knowledge and skills that give them an advantage in the job market. Companies benefit because their job candidates come to the table with specific, industry knowledge.”

The IPC Education Foundation, a 501©(3) organization, focuses on strengthening and shaping the emerging workforce by providing educational opportunities, connecting the emerging workforce with industry opportunities, improving the perception of the industry, and offering scholarships to deserving students.

For more information on the IPC Education Foundation, contact Buscemi at ColetteBuscemi@ipc.org or visit www.ipcef.org.

Representing the views of more than 2,500 U.S. companies engaged in the global electronics industry, and their nearly 1 million workers, IPC, is joining the new USMCA Coalition, which is being launched today in Washington by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

More than 200 companies and associations representing an array of economic sectors are backing the USMCA Coalition, which will advocate for congressional approval of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. 

“Building a stronger U.S. electronics industry depends in no small measure on building a stronger North American supply chain,” said IPC President and CEO John Mitchell. “Our association has members with both headquarters and thousands of jobs in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, and thus we have a strong interest in securing enactment of this agreement.

“The USMCA promises to spur even greater integration among the North American economies and strengthen the region’s stature as a formidable global manufacturing base. Improving the manufacturing competitiveness of North America will unlock more growth, innovation and job creation, benefiting people across the continent and the world.

“As always, IPC will continue to advocate for our members’ interests as the debate goes forward.”

With a mission to show the world the altruistic works of companies in the electronics industry, IPC announces the launch of the Electronics for a Better World | IPC Cares initiative. A global effort being scheduled during IPC Founders Week, June 9-15, Electronics for a Better World | IPC Cares will shine a spotlight on the charitable efforts of the electronics industry and will recognize the activities of each participating member company through IPC’s social media platforms.

“There are many generous companies in this industry, and we want to highlight their efforts,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO “We’re asking companies to select the charity of their choice and to support it through staff volunteer efforts during the week of June 9-15. We’re proud of our industry’s efforts to make our communities a better place to work and live.”

“We’re asking supporting companies to take part in a local litter collection; organize a food drive; any event to make a difference, said David Bergman, IPC vice president of standards and technology and program lead. “IPC was founded June 14, 1957 and holding Electronics for a Better World | IPC Cares during IPC Founders Week will show how our industry has a positive impact around the globe — this week of volunteerism is a great way to show the world the good things we do beyond the products we manufacture!”

Supporters who have already pledged to participate are Altex Engineered Electronic Solutions, ASM Assembly Systems, Burkle North America Inc., Chemcut Corporation, Green Circuits Inc., Huawei, ITW EAE, Koh Young Technology, Mycronic Inc., Nordson, and Viscom Inc.

IPC staff has chosen to support Clean the World Foundation, a global health organization whose mission is to improve the quality of life for vulnerable communities around the world by providing sustainable resources for programming, and education focused on water, sanitation, and hygiene for all those affected by poverty, homelessness, and humanitarian or natural crises. 

For more information or to pledge participation, visit the Electronics for a Better World | IPC Cares website at www.ipc.org/ipc-cares.

PCB Technology Trends 2018, a new global study published by IPC is now available. The survey-based study shows how printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturers are meeting today’s technology demands and looks at the changes expected by 2023 that will affect the whole industry.

Based on data from 74 companies worldwide, the 213-page report presents data on PCB technology and OEMs’ PCB requirements as of 2018, as well as OEMs’ use of emerging technologies. Predictions from both industry segments indicate what these measurements are expected to be five years into the future.

The data on OEMs’ use of emerging technologies showed that more than half of those surveyed are currently making products that communicate with the Internet of Things and three quarters make products that depend upon sensor inputs. By 2023, more than half of the reporting OEMs expect at least some of their products to incorporate artificial intelligence and more than one-third expect to make products that interface with humans via neural networks.

Interesting regional differences emerged on the use of blind vias, which are more commonly specified by OEMs in North America and Europe than in Asia. The use of stacked vias by PCB fabricators is also more prevalent in Asia today, but fabricators in all regions expect the use of stacked vias to grow, displacing staggered vias. Asian PCB fabricators are also leading the way in the use of printed electronics, which is expected to grow in all regions by 2023.

Data on board properties cover thickness, layer count, density, line width and spacing, via diameters, aspect ratios, I/O pitch, via design, blind and buried vias, and thermal properties. Use of materials looks at rigid, flexible, stretchable, metal core, loss characteristics and surface finishes. The PCB industry’s use of special structures covers embedded components and chip packages, and its use of printed electronics includes 3D printing and e-textiles. Survey participants’ comments on compliance and technical challenges and trends are included. In addition, the data in the report are segmented by two regions — North America and Europe in one segment, and Asia in another segment — and by two types of products — installed and mobile.

PCB Technology Trends 2018 is available to IPC members for $675 and $1,350 for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase the report, visit IPC’s Online Store.

IPC invites engineers, researchers, academics, technical experts and industry leaders to submit abstracts for IPC APEX EXPO 2020 to be held at the San Diego Convention Center. Professional development courses will take place February 2, 3 and 6, 2020 and the technical conference will take place February 4–6, 2020.

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 Corporation, 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 are due June 21, 2019 and course proposals are due June 24, 2019. To submit an abstract or course proposal, visit www.IPCAPEXEXPO.org/CFP. For more information on technical conference or professional development course participation, contact Brook Sandy-Smith, IPC technical education program manager at BrookSandy@ipc.org.

IPC Validation Services has introduced a new Qualified Manufacturers Listing (QML) program, the IPC-1791, Trusted Electronic Designer, Fabricator and Assembler Requirements QML, to address gaps in current electronics industry trusted supplier accreditation programs. This program provides the electronics industry with a competitive network of “trusted suppliers” to ensure a high level of integrity in the entire PCB assembly supply chain. 

Requirements for certification and QML listing includes; a product and quality system, a supply chain risk management system (SCRM), a security system including compliance to NIST SP 800-171, Export Control Laws (ITAR and EAR), and a chain of custody system (ChoC). Additionally, suppliers can select to hold any combination of the certification types available; designer, fabricator or assembler.

IPC conducted beta site audits of the new program with the following companies which have achieved an IPC-1791 QML as a result of the audit. Companies awarded an IPC-1791 QML for assemblers are: AbelConn Electronics, a Celestica Company, New Hope, Minn; Teledyne Advanced Electronic Solutions, Lewisburg, Tenn.; and Zentech Manufacturing, Inc., Baltimore, Md. Awarded an IPC-1791 QML for fabricators are; Calumet Electronics Corporation, Calumet, Mich.; Colonial Circuits, Fredericksburg, Va.; and Electrotek Corporation, Oak Creek, Wis. Awarded an IPC-1791 QML for designers and assemblers is Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Indianapolis, Ind.

During the IPC Validation Services QML audit, all seven companies met or exceeded the requirements for the electronics industry’s newest most comprehensive system for supply chain security. These companies are now listed and recognized as an IPC trusted source capable of delivering secure systems in accordance with industry best practices.

IPC's Validation Services QPL/QML Program was developed to promote supply chain verification and recognition. It also provides auditing and certification of electronics companies' products, and identifies processes which conform to IPC standards.

"Different from other audit programs, IPC's Validation Services Programs uniquely provides technical and in-depth assessments of products and processes in accordance with IPC standards," said Randy Cherry, IPC director of Validation Services. "We are pleased to especially recognize AbelConn Electronics, Calumet Electronics Corporation, Colonial Circuits, Electrotek Corporation, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Teledyne Advanced Electronic Solutions and Zentech Manufacturing, Inc. for becoming a member of IPC's network of trusted QML suppliers."                                       

For more information about IPC's Validation Services QPL/QML Program, visit www.ipcvalidation.org or contact Randy Cherry at RandyCherry@ipc.org or +1 847-597-2806.   

From revolutionary advancements to expert insights, IPC APEX EXPO 2019 provided education, Buzz sessions, professional development courses and connections fostered in the technical conference, enabling 5,292 attendees from 56 countries prepare for the future. The 440 exhibitors welcomed a busy three days of business development and qualified sales leads on 150,400 net square feet of show floor space. IPC APEX EXPO attracted 9,796 total visitors including attendees and exhibitor personnel.

In keeping with the event’s theme, “Technology’s Future Comes Together,” IPC APEX EXPO 2019 featured nearly 75 technical papers detailing original research and innovations from industry experts around the world. With programs grounded in and driven by real-world application, attendees had access to new research on materials and processes, opportunities to learn more about trending materials, applications and processes such as printed electronics, Industry 4.0, smart manufacturing, product miniaturization 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 chosefrom an array of leading topics such as: PCB fabrication, SMT and through hole defect analysis, electronics reliability, design for manufacturing best practices, soldering challenges, and more.

With a focus on developing important standards, IPC committee members joined to discuss, revise, and improve documents that will be used to create quality products. “I recently took on a role as my company's IPC/ESD champion, so attending the committee meetings were a great place to network with industry experts. I was also able to gain more in-depth knowledge on IPC standards and standards development processes, such as what direction technology and standards are heading,” said Rodney Doss, global IPC/ESD coordinator, Samtec, Inc.

Many attendees indicate that IPC APEX EXPO influences their buying decisions throughout the year which is an important factor for the show exhibitors. “IPC APEX EXPO is an anchor show that brings the entire electronics industry supply chain together. Networking on the show floor allows you to maintain and strengthen old relationships and to prepare for the innovations of the future,” said Simon Fried, president, Nano Dimension USA.

Gregg Elliott, president and CEO of Seacole agrees, “IPC APEX EXPO is the premier networking event for the printed electronics industry. Whether you come to buy, learn or connect this is the place to be.”

In 2020, IPC APEX EXPO will return to the San Diego Convention Center, February 1–6. 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.

IPC presented Committee Leadership, Special Recognition and Distinguished Committee Service Awards on January 28 and January 30 at IPC APEX EXPO 2019 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.

Receiving Special Recognition Awards for their contributions to the 2018-2019 Technical Program Committee were Steve Butkovich, Test Innovation, LLC; Weifeng Liu, Flex; Russ Nowland, Nokia; Julie Silk, Keysight Technologies; and Bhanu Sood, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

For his leadership of the 8-81 PERM Self-Mitigation of Tin by SMT Task Group that developed IPC/PERM-WP-022, Mitigation of Pure Tin Risk by Tin-Lead SMT Reflow, David Pinsky, Raytheon Company, received a Committee Leadership Award. Ben Gumpert, Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control; Thomas Hester, Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems; David Hillman, Collins Aerospace; Anduin Touw, The Boeing Company; Ross Wilcoxon, Collins Aerospace; and Paul Zutter, U.S. Army AMRDEC, received a Distinguished Committee Service Award.

For their leadership of the 7-31FT IPC/WHMA-A-620 Technical Training Task Group that developed IPC/WHMA-A-620C, Requirements and Acceptance for Cable and Wire Harness Assemblies, Catherine Hanlin, Prevision Manufacturing Company, Inc; Shelley Holt, L3 Communications; and Debbie Wade, Advanced Rework Technology-A.R.T, earned a Committee Leadership Award. For their extraordinary contributions to IPC/WHMA-A-620C, Garry Maguire, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; Michelle Morring, STI Electronics Inc; and Pat Scott, STI Electronics Inc, received a Special Recognition Award.

Symon Franklin, Custom Interconnect Ltd. And Debbie Wade, Advanced Rework Technology-A.R.T, were honored with Committee Leadership Awards for their leadership of the 5-22BTEU European Technical Training Task Group that developed IPC/WHMA-A-620C, Requirements and Acceptance for Cable and Wire Harness Assemblies.

For his leadership of the D-33AA IPC-6012 Automotive Addendum Task Group that developed IPC-6012DA, Automotive Applications Addendum to IPC-6012D, with Amendment 1, Qualification and Performance Specification for Rigid Printed Boards, Jan Pederson, Elmatica, earned a Committee Leadership Award. For their extraordinary contributions, Kelvin Chang, Veoneer Canada Inc.; Nancy Deng, Ford Motor Research & Engineering; Emma Hudson, Gen3 Systems Limited; Andrew Goddard, ZF TRW Automotive; Todd MacFadden; Bose Corporation; Laurent Nardo, Continental Automotive France SAS; Michael Schoening, Q-Products Enterprise Limited; and Udo Welzel, Robert Bosch Co. Ltd., received a Special Recognition Award.

For their leadership of the 5-22a J-STD-001 Task Group that developed J-STD-001G, Requirements for Soldered Electrical and Electronic Assemblies with Amendment 1, Dan Foster, Missile Defense Agency, and Kathy Johnston, Raytheon Missile Systems, earned a Committee Leadership award. Doug Pauls, Collins Aerospace, and Udo Welzel, Robert Bosch GmBH, received a Committee Leadership Award for their leadership of the Rhino Team that developed IPC-WP-019A, An Overview on the Global Change in Ionic Cleanliness Requirements/ J-STD-001G, Requirements for Soldered Electrical and Electronic Assemblies with Amendment 1.

Dock Brown, DfR Solutions; Karen McConnell, Northrop Grumman Corporation; and Steve Golemme, Google Inc., were honored with a Committee Leadership Award for leading the 1-14 DFX Standards Subcommittee that developed IPC-2231, Design for Excellence Guideline during the Product Lifecycle. Don Dupriest, Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control, received a Special Recognition Award. Jimmy Baccam, Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control; Benny Barbero, Allied Telesis Inc; Scott Bowles, L3 Fuzing and Ordnance Systems, Cincinnati; Peter Fernandez, Lab 126; Michelle Gleason, Plexus Corp.- Neenah Operations; Kayleen Helms, Intel Corporation; Eddie Hofer, Rockwell Collins; Waleid Jabai, Zentech Manufacturing; Kevin Kusiak, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company; Dale Lee, Plexus Corp.- Neenah Operations; Kristopher Moyer, CSUS; James Pierce, Axiom Electronics, LLC; Robert Rowland, Axiom Electronics, LLC; Steven Roy, Hamilton Company; Rainer Taube, Taube Electronic GmbH; Theodore John Tontis, Rockwell Automation/Allen-Bradley; Cheryl Tulkoff, DfR Solutions; Louis Ungar, Advanced Test Engineering Solutions, Inc.; Pietro Vergine, Leading Edge; and Linda Woody, LWC Consulting, received a Distinguished Committee Service Award for their contributions to IPC-2231, Design for Excellence Guideline during the Product Lifecycle.

For more information on these awards or the award recipients, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at +1 847-597-2871.

In recognition of their significant contributions of time, talent and ongoing leadership in IPC and the electronics industry, long-time IPC volunteers, Bhawnesh Mathur; Mark Wolfe, John Deere Electronic Solutions; and Udo Welzel, Robert Bosch GmbH, were presented with an IPC President’s Award at IPC APEX EXPO 2019.

Bhawnesh Mathur is an experienced executive with OEM, distribution and EMS experience. He has been head of supply chain at IBM’s Server Group, Arrow Electronics and Sanmina. He currently consults with an EMS company and is an advisor/investor to several start-ups. He works with the UCSD Rady School of Business in industry outreach and building a supply chain curriculum, and also serves as the Chair of Colorado’s largest non-profit helping local entrepreneurs.

Mathur has been one of IPC’s strongest supporters for more than a decade. He and his companies have supported standards development, IPC APEX EXPO and IPC IMPACT Washington, D.C. and have hosted more than a dozen members of Congress at their facilities.

Mathur has been an active and contributing IPC Board Member, chair of the Government Relations Committee, and a member of the EMS Committee. He has provided leadership from the Board-level to individual IPC members who have expressed interest in learning more about IPC.

A recipient of the IPC Rising Star Award in 2017, Udo Welzel, Ph.D., leads a team in the department of engineering assembly and interconnect technology at Robert Bosch, and is responsible for assembly and interconnect technology integration for high-performance logic automotive electronic control units.

Welzel is deeply involved in standardization activities for IPC and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). For IPC, he serves as co-chair of the 5-21M Cold Joining Press Fit Task Group and 7-31BV IPC-A-610 Automotive Addendum Task Group and serves on an additional 18 IPC technical committees; at IEC he is the chair of Technical Committee TC91 for electronics assembly technology.  

Mark Wolfe currently leads electronics supply chain activities for John Deere Electronic Solutions, formerly known as Phoenix International. Wolfe has been involved with IPC and the EMS Executive Council for nearly 30 years, he served on the IPC Board of Directors and is currently chairman of the EMS Steering Committee.

In addition, he has been directly involved in the development and launch of key EMS related IPC programs: program manager certification and EMS industry contracting.

“IPC and the entire electronics industry are fortunate to have Mark, Bhawnesh and Udo volunteer their time and expertise,” said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. “Their work has enriched both the industry and IPC and we are thankful to all three of them for their dedication to the electronics industry and hard work supporting IPC’s global standards development activities and advocacy efforts.”

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

IPC’s hand soldering competition returned to the United States with the first-ever IPC Hand Soldering World Championship and Rework Competition, held at IPC APEX EXPO 2019 in San Diego, California. Contestants representing Britain, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and Thailand participated in the event.  

Competitors were presented with a fully functional soldered assembly. They were required to remove six specific components, remove old solder and clean the area of removed components. During the removal of the components, the competitors were evaluated by IPC Master Instructors (MITs) in accordance with IPC-7711/7721C Rework, Modification, and Repair guidelines. The MITs deducted points from the possible score according to a standardized set of rules and best practices.

Time to completion was paused while an MIT/judge evaluated the assemblies, the removed components, and the board according to IPC-A-610G Class 3 criteria. Points were deducted for any damaged components, board features, or surrounding areas of the board. Once the evaluation was completed, time was restarted, and contestants were required to place new parts in the locations of the removed components. Competitors had a total of 75 minutes to complete the rework and reassembly of the circuit board.

The assemblies were then tested for function and evaluated in their entirety according to IPC-A-610G Class 3 criteria.

With a perfect score of 634 points, Ryosuke Matsunami, PWB Corporation, Japan, took first place, $1,000 USD and the IPC Hand Soldering World Championship title. Matsunami completed the challenge within the allotted time of 75 minutes, without a single error, earning his perfect score. With a score of 628, second place and $500 went to Wenji ZHANG, Jiangsu Jinling Mechanism Manufacture Factory, China. Third place and $250 was claimed by Le Van Linh, Spartronics Vietnam Co, Ltd., Vietnam, who earned 625 points out of a possible 634.

“The contestants deserve a great deal of respect,” said Kris Roberson, IPC director of certification programs. “It’s intricate work, especially as components keep getting smaller and smaller. This is a very challenging competition and we had a very talented field competing against one another.

“This year’s championship was a really exciting event,” added Roberson. “The global interest and involvement in hand soldering and the showcasing of very specific skill sets made for an invigorating international challenge. We would like to thank the competitors from across the globe for attending and competing in this year’s event.”

IPC would like to thank 2019 Hand Soldering World Championship and Rework Competition premiere sponsor HAKKO, and sponsors Blackfox and Thales for their enthusiastic support. Additional support was provided by Excelta, Aven Inc., Tronex Technology, Inc. and Indium Corporation.

For information on upcoming IPC Hand Soldering Competitions, visit www.ipc.org/events.