The IPC Conference on Securing Intellectual Property Through Physical Security, IT and Regulatory Compliance will be held November 3–4, 2011, in Washington, D.C. The conference will examine an issue that’s getting increased attention from OEMs and the U.S. Department of Defense; the protection of intellectual property that is designed into printed circuit boards.

For the past year, engineers from companies like Honeywell Aerospace and Rockwell Collins have been meeting to lay the groundwork for IPC-A-630, Requirements and Acceptance for Enclosures, better known as “the box build standard.” These volunteers have come largely from the OEMs that specify the cabinetry they will use. When the IPC 7-31j task group gathers at its upcoming meeting at IPC Midwest on September 21, it will seek greater participa...

IPC Association Connecting Electronics Industries® released the summer 2011 edition of its quarterly business report, Electronics Industries Market Data Update, showing slower growth in most national economies as well as in the worldwide electronics industry.

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® and six IPC-member companies have agreed to participate in a pilot evaluation program to review and refine the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development due diligence guidance for conflict minerals. IPC members participating in the study encompass the breadth of the electronics supply chain: PCB manufacturer Circuit Connect; component manufacturers Freescale Semiconductor and Tri...

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries has announced the July findings from its monthly North American Printed Circuit Board Statistical Program. PCB Industry Growth Rates and Book-to-Bill Ratios Announced. Rigid PCB shipments were down 10.2 percent and bookings were down 17.0 percent in July 2011 from July 2010. Year to date, rigid PCB shipments increased 2.3 percent and bookings declined 10.0 percent. Compared to the previous mon...

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries is inviting researchers, technical experts and industry leaders to submit abstracts for poster presentations at IPC APEX EXPO, the industry’s premier conference and exhibition for printed board design and manufacturing, electronics assembly and test, February 28–March 1, 2012, at the San Diego Convention Center, San Diego, Calif. Poster presentations offer exposure to key engineers, manage...

In an era of intense scrutiny over “what” materials are used in electronic products and “from where” those materials originate, Krista Crotty, founder of Alberi EcoTech, and Jørgen Vos, product management director at PTC, have accepted the co-leadership roles of IPC’s 2-18 Supplier Declaration Subcommittee. Charged with the development and oversight of the 175x family of data exchange standards, such as IPC-1752A, Materials Declaration...

After 12 years as the president and CEO of IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries, Dennis “Denny” P. McGuirk has resigned to accept a new position as president and CEO of SEMI, a global industry association serving the manufacturing supply chains for the microelectronic, display and photovoltaic industries. His last day at IPC will be November 1.

IPC will begin development of a data exchange standard to help the electronics manufacturing industry comply with forthcoming U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations on conflict minerals at a kickoff meeting on September 22, 2011, held in conjunction with IPC Midwest Conference & Exhibition, Schaumburg, Ill. The IPC data exchange standard will build upon the due diligence communication tool recently released by the Electronic In...

Association Connecting Electronics Industries has announced the June findings from its monthly North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. PCB Industry Growth Rates and Book-to-Bill Ratios Announced. Rigid PCB shipments were up 5.4 percent and bookings down 7.3 percent in June 2011 from June 2010. Year to date, rigid PCB shipments increased 4.4 percent and bookings declined 8.9 percent. Compared to the previous month, rigid P...

IPC— Association Connecting Electronics Industries® will host the IPC Executive Summit, “Succeeding in a Disruptive Environment: From Earthquakes to Nanoparticles,” on October 4–5, 2011, in San Jose, Calif. An event that combines the strategic planning focus of IPC’s Management Meetings with the global business insights of its Market & Technology Conference, the IPC Executive Summit will provide ideas and solutions that will help seni...

It’s well-known that residues on printed board assemblies can lead to serious reliability problems. Over the past several years the migration from the use of lead-bearing materials to lead-free materials has resulted in many changes in electronics manufacturing operations. Some of the residual materials that remain on the circuit card assembly are becoming increasingly more problematic to clean. Component densities and component under-clearance...

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® announces the first annual IPC Midwest Hand Soldering Competition, September 21–22, 2011, at the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center, Schaumburg, Ill. Held in conjunction with IPC Midwest Conference & Exhibition, the contest will pit competitors against each other to build a functional electronics assembly within a 30-minute time limit to ultimately determine who the best-of...

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® announced today the May findings from its monthly North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program.

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® recently submitted comments to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding the legal basis for a phase-in of the conflict minerals regulatory requirements. Submitted in early June, the comments were prepared by SEC expert Thomas White of WilmerHale®. The four-page brief, “The Commission’s Statutory Authority to Phase-In its Conflict Minerals Disclosure Rules,” outlines...

Counterfeit products are reported to have grown to a $600 billion business worldwide. The electronics assembly industry has been impacted, with reports of counterfeit feeders, spare parts and software causing equipment breakdowns and production delays. To assist IPC member companies in keeping their equipment and lines running, the Surface Mount Equipment Manufacturers Association (SMEMA) Council of IPC – Association Connecting Electronics Indu...

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries has announced the EMS Program Manager Training and Certification dates for 2012. A four-part curriculum that culminates with a certification exam, IPC’s EMS Program Manager Training and Certification is designed to provide preparation for and insight into the varied business, operations and management issues specific to an EMS organization.