In a Sept. 29 ceremony at SMTA International, in Rosemont, IL, Yi  will receive The Founder's Award, SMTA's highest form of recognition.  

Yi has been a member of SMTA since 1997 and was a directors from 2000 to 2003. He is a former chair of the Chapter Leadership Committee and an active member of the Technical, Awards, Membership, and Certification committees.

In a press release, the SMTA said Yi's greatest accomplishment may be his role in international development. Yi has been the SMTA's liaison for activities in China, including a chapter in Hong Kong, an office in Shenzhen, and four technical conferences.

Other award recipients:

• Jeffrey Forster of Universal Instruments, a 14-year member of SMTA and a founder and officer of the Oregon Chapter, will receive the Member of Distinction Award. 
• Randy Cherry of Telllabs will receive the Excellence in Leadership Award. Cherry, a member since 1987, has been heavily involved in the association's Chicago chapter, and served on the SMTA Membership Committee.
• Kester Corp. will receive the SMTA+ Corporate Partnership Award. A corporate member since 1985, Kester has institutionally supported SMTA's educational and other programs.
• Abby Tsoi will receive the International Leadership Award, a new award. He has been president of the Hong Kong Chapter since 2001, and gainedsupport from the City University of Hong Kong in order to provide a low-cost office and free venue for chapter activities.

Effective Sept. 20, SMTEK president and CEO Edward Smith will depart for a senior executive position with Avnet Electronics Marketing.

In a press statement, Smith said, "The financial performance reported over the last several quarters shows how SMTEK's initiatives are paying off. I have decided for personal reasons to relocate to the area of the country that I call home."

SMTEK's board has named senior vice president and chief financial officer Kirk Waldron as interim president.

Smith will continue as a director of SMTEK, the company said.

SMTEK chairman James Burgess said the company's financial guidance remains unchanged.

The position reports to president and COO James McClintock.  

Dr. Lessner, who has been with Kemet for eight years, was director of technical marketing services. He has a bachelor's in chemical engineering from Cooper Union and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering with a focus in electrochemical engineering from the University of California Berkeley.

NORTHBROOK, IL, Aug. 27 -- Orders for rigid boards upticked in July and demand for flex circuits continues to be strong, according to the latest 90-day moving average of North American manufacturers.

For all board types, shipments rose 31.1% and bookings were up 42.2% vs. a year ago, said IPC, which administers the monthly poll. The figures may include some sales of products built offshore and brokered by the surveyed companies.

The July book-to-bill was 0.99 for rigid, up 0.04 points sequentially. The B2B for flex circuits remained even at 1.57.

The book-to-bill for all board types rose to 1.10, up 0.04 points sequentially.

The ratio is calculated by averaging the number of orders booked over the past three months and dividing by the average sales billed during the same period. A ratio of 1.06 means that for every $100 in shipments, $110 worth of PCBs were booked. An increasing ratio is generally considered a sign of a market poised to rise.

Shipments are up 34.8% year-to-date, bookings 43%. Combined July shipments fell 18.1% sequentially, while bookings inched up 1.9%.

July rigid shipments were up 17.6% and bookings 20.5% over last year. Year-to-date, rigid shipments are up 25.5% and bookings are up 23.1%. Among those surveyed, rigid shipments fell 21.2% sequentially and bookings dropped 7.5%.

July flex shipments were up 76.1% while bookings reversed last month's decline, rising 71.1% vs. last year. Year-to-date, flex shipments are up 77.8% and bookings 133.2%. Sequentially, flex shipments fell 3.7% and bookings were up 56.1%.

Flex sales, which include some value-added services, make up about 17% of total PCB sales in the IPC poll.

The data come from a sample of North American rigid and flexible PCB manufacturers.