MINNEAPOLIS -- The SMTA International Opening Session and Annual Meeting will be held on Sept. 26 and 27, respectively, at the Donald Stephens Convention Center in Chicago, IL.
 
The Opening Session, free to all attendees, will include a discussion on “Solving RoHS Related Problems for Small to Medium Enterprises,” led by Jim Dills of The GoodBye Chain Group. It will also feature a presentation by Ken Gilleo of ET-Trends LLC on “What’s Next for Emerging Technologies?” During the session, the 2005 Conference Award Winners will be recognized, including Best of Conference Presentation, Shatil Haque, LUMILEDS Lighting; Best Proceedings Paper, Julia Zhao, Analogic Corp.; and Best International Paper, Lars Boettcher, Fraunhofer Institute (Germany).
 
The Annual Meeting will feature Jan Vardaman, president and founder of TechSearch International. Her presentation, “What’s Driving Trends in IC Packaging for the Future?” will address pressing consumer demands and business challenges surrounding IC packaging, and how the requirements of more functionality in smaller packaging will drive the industry.
 
Vardaman is a columnist with Circuits Assembly magazine, and the author of numerous publications on emerging trends in semiconductor packaging and assembly. She served on the NSF-sponsored World Technology Evaluation Center (WTEC) study team involved in investigating electronics manufacturing in Asia and on the U.S. mission to study manufacturing in China. 
 
Also during the meeting, the SMTA will present its Association Awards and the Charles Hutchins Educational Grant.
 
The cost for the Annual Meeting is $30 for members/$35 for non-members. 
 
For details on SMTAI and event registration, visit smta.org/smtai.