BANNOCKBURN, IL – IPC and the Electronic Components Industry Association are planning to create an industry guideline for the best practices of communicating component obsolescence.

The document will address issues such as the time between the announcement of a manufacturer’s intention to cease production of a component and the date the component will no longer be manufactured, so assembly companies are ensured an adequate time to prepare; how the component manufacturer should announce its intention to discontinue a component, so the industry has a streamlined source of information, and notification of estimated available quantity, so the industry can better determine the best short-term strategy.

A joint committee of representatives of IPC’s EMS Management Council Steering Committee and members of the ECIA will meet Apr. 23 to strategize on building a consensus body of participants, the process to develop the document, and the document’s intended scope and content.

For more information, contact SusanFilz@ipc.org or Rwillis@eciaonline.org.