Innovation gets applause, manufacturing gets contracts.

We’re almost out of time. That is the message underlying US Department of War Secretary Peter Hegseth’s “Arsenal of Freedom” speech on acquisition reform last month.¹ We’ve spent a long time chasing “perfect,” with successful programs creating low volumes of some of the most exquisite military systems in the world. These military systems have allowed us to dominate non-peer adversaries with little attrition. Recently, the war in Ukraine and threats in the Indo-Pacific have resurrected the threat of near-peer conflict. They have shown us what to expect from modern battlefields and have exposed a fundamental flaw in the DoW’s acquisition approach: slowness.

Treating technology as a human replacement strategy is a recipe for failure. Here’s the questions you should be asking.

I have good news: Your board just approved hiring a chief of staff for every single employee in your organization.

This person never sleeps. They learn instantly from every interaction and get better with use. They have encyclopedic knowledge across all human domains, from circuit design to supply chain optimization to regulatory compliance. And the cost? As little as $20 per month per employee.

There’s just one catch: They succeed only if you become their coach and manager.

Where excess inventory stops being clutter and starts being currency.

For years, companies have treated excess electronic components like an embarrassing secret. They get over-purchased, boxed up and quietly written off – destined for the trash, the gray market or whatever corner of the warehouse no one wants to inventory.

How do modern stencil materials and coatings influence transfer efficiency and volume repeatability as SMT features continue to shrink?

The key indicators of SMT stencil performance are transfer efficiency and volume repeatability. Transfer efficiency (TE) refers to the percentage of solder paste released from the stencil when compared to the stencil’s aperture volumes and is expressed as a percentage. Typical values range from 60% to 120%.