ST. LOUIS – Viasystems Group today reported third-quarter net sales for its contract assembly segment were $54.4 million, up 7.9% year-over-year.

WASHINGTON – Counterfeit electronics, and the semiconductors they are built with, pose a growing threat to the health and safety of military and civilians alike, the president of the Semiconductor Industry Association testified before a US Senate committee.

“The catastrophic failure risk inherently found in counterfeit semiconductors places our citizens and military personnel in unreasonable peril. A counterfeit semiconductor is a ticking time bomb,” Brian Toohey told the Senate Armed Services Committee, which is investigating counterfeit electronic parts in the Department of Defense supply chain. “Counterfeiters violate American companies’ intellectual property rights and cost American’s jobs. We estimate that counterfeiting costs US-based semiconductor companies more than $7.5 billion each year.”

The SIA recommended five actions to the Committee to stem the tide of counterfeit electronics in the DoD supply chain: continue partnerships between industry, the DoD and Department of Justice to develop a more effective authentication system; strengthen procurement procedures at DoD for mission-critical components, including purchasing exclusively from authorized distributors; ensure industry’s ability to fully partner with Customs and Border Patrol Officials to stop suspected counterfeits at the border by ending CBP's redaction policy; aggressively prosecute counterfeit traffickers, and more strongly enforce IP rights internationally.

ANGLETON, TX – Benchmark Electronics said its CEO and cofounder Cary Fu will retire, effective Dec. 31.

Benchmark's current president, Gayla Delly, will replace Fu and become a member of the board effective immediately.

Delly has been president since 2008.

LOUISVILLE, KY – Sypris Solutions reported third quarter revenue of $91.2 million, up 24% year-over-year, driven by a 38% increase in sales for the Industrial Group.
Net income was $6.1 million, compared to a net loss of $1.9 million for the prior year period.

For the nine months ended Oct. 2, the company reported revenue of $252 million, up 26.4% year-over-year. Net income was $6.6 million, compared to a net loss of $8.6 million in 2010.

 “Revenue for our Electronics Group increased 15% sequentially for the quarter, while gross profit increased 223% sequentially,” said Jeffrey T. Gill, president and CEO.

Revenue for the Electronics Group was $18.5 million in the third quarter, down 10.7% year-over-year, while gross profit for the quarter was $3.3 million, or 18% of revenue, down 33% compared to the same period in 2010.

Revenue for the period continued to reflect the impact of the delay in funding for orders as a result of the late enactment of 2011 federal budget, while gross profit was impacted by unfavorable mix and additional engineering costs for product portfolio improvements, the firm says.

For the Electronics Group, Sypris expects to see continued recovery of the defense market once the 2012 budget authorization is enacted.