Features Articles
Or how to follow the No Outburst in the Face of Idiocy rule.
The dearly beloved, firm believers and associated hangers-on were reverently assembled to begin a Teams meeting or, rather, an inquisition.
Amid forced pleasantries, while we captives killed time awaiting latecomers, they appeared. Like viruses. One after the other, after the other: The Swarm. Blackened screens with names, resembling any college lecture, with the students doing their utmost to remain inconspicuous. Except the disembodied names on the screens concealed adults, not camera-shy undergrads. One said Ted’s AI Notetaker. The second said Claire’s AI Notetaker. Then Evan’s. Then Irene’s. And Muhammad’s. Plus Sanjay’s. And Chin’s. Then Dylan’s. Always a Dylan in 2025. We live in accursed times.
All that the Swarm lacked was a soundtrack blaring “Flight of the Valkyries.”
Focusing on fundamentals to drive world-class quality and throughput.
Most electronic products incorporate surface mount technology (SMT). Consequently, it is a critical process to monitor in terms of quality and cost. Lean manufacturing principles provide a solid foundation for eliminating the variation that can create defect opportunities as well as methodologies for improving throughput. Lean manufacturing-related philosophies in SigmaTron International’s facility in Tijuana, Mexico, include good manufacturing practices (GMPs), the single-minute exchange of die (SMED) methodology and total productive maintenance (TPM).
Everything is changing in high-performance substrates, from materials technology to engineering priorities.
Materials science is a quiet contributor to high-performance electronics, playing a huge yet mostly unseen role, enabling everything from smartphones and automotive systems to 5G radio access, communication infrastructures and high-performance computing systems. That conventional-looking circuit board, which the user may never see or think about, is anything but ordinary underneath. While ICs sit serenely on the surface, the processes going on inside couldn’t happen without the engineering that created the substrate beneath. Demand for improvement is ever-present, and many avenues may be explored in search of a solution.
Lessons from a chaotic EMS warehouse.
Many years ago, after punching out of a negative-culture electronics manufacturing services company, I interviewed with a smaller, family-run EMS. After numerous phone interviews, I flew to their facility and met with the president and the newly hired COO. After spending some time addressing a Q-and-A session in the president’s office, we took a facility tour, starting in the warehouse.
We never made it to the SMT lines before things went off the rails. What happened?
Riding out tariff turmoil takes more than watching the balance sheet.
I took a few economics courses in college, but I’m no Adam Smith. And I have predicted the future reasonably accurately, but no one would mistake me for a prophet. What I do understand, however, after nearly 50 years in manufacturing, most spent as a corporate president, is the impact of costs on profitability. More specifically, the impact of dramatic and unpredictable rising costs on a business’s ability to thrive, survive or founder.
Cost accountants typically separate expenses into two overall buckets: fixed costs and variable costs. Fixed costs may include items such as insurance, occupancy, benefits and so on. Variable costs include materials, supplies, labor, etc. Within a couple of years in manufacturing, however, I realized that in the real world only a small portion of costs are fixed, and the majority are truly variable. While all costs must be watched, monitored and managed, variable costs are the ones that make or break a balance sheet and income statement.
Navigating change in tech isn’t just about tools.
Research & development drives new technology, and new technology development fuels the lifeblood of technology, industrial and consumer companies. Without product development there is no “new!” As an essential technology industry, electronics showcases how amazing, productive and cost-effective new technologies get developed, refined and launched so all industries can leverage and integrate these advancements into their versions of “new.”
For decades, companies have honed the R&D and product development process to be incredibly quick, robust and cost-effective. They have achieved this via globalization, allowing them to leverage their global footprint and specific expertise to react quickly to changing market needs or expedite the timeline for entirely new technologies. Teams collaborate among facilities in North America, Asia and Europe, creating a common and highly successful approach that companies use across various end-products and markets.
Press Releases
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- ECIA Executive Conference Announces Session on eCrime Tradecraft