IPC and the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) will host a conference series on “Critical and Emerging Environmental Product Requirements” this June.The conference series, to be held in the Boston, Chicago and Silicon Valley areas on June 4, 6, and 8, respectively, will feature well-known United Kingdom (UK) regulators Steve Andrews, deputy head of the resources and waste division at the UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra); Chris Smith, senior technical advisor for the office of product safety and standards at the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Mil-aero and automotive engineers who want to increase their knowledge of electronics subjected to harsh use environments should attend IPC’s High Reliability Forum in Linthicum (Baltimore), Md., May 15-17, 2018.

IPC, in conjunction with Global Industrie/Midest, Snese and IFTEC, conducted an IPC Hand Soldering Competition in Paris on March 27-30, 2018. The competition was fierce as 48 competitors went soldering iron to soldering iron to compete for the coveted hand soldering competition crown. For the first time in the IPC hand soldering competition history, the top three winners came from the same company, Matra Electronique in France. Taking first place with a cash prize of €300 and winning a JBC soldering station was Nathalie Kaladgwe, who earned 440 points out of a possible 445. Kaladgwe will be invited to compete at the IPC World Championship Hand Soldering Competition at IPC APEX EXPO 2019, San Diego, in January 2019

IPC® presented Committee Leadership, Distinguished Committee Service and Special Recognition Awards at IPC APEX EXPO 2018 at the San Diego Convention Center. The awards were presented to individuals who made significant contributions to IPC and the industry by lending their time and expertise through IPC committee service.

IPC invites engineers, researchers, academics, technical experts and industry leaders to submit technical conference abstracts and course proposals for IPC APEX EXPO 2019 to be held at the San Diego Convention Center. Professional development courses will take place January 27, 28 and 31, 2019 and the technical conference will take place January 29–31, 2019.

In recognition of their leadership and contributions to IPC and the electronics industry within the past five years, IPC® presented an IPC Rising Star award to Yusaku Kono, Japan Unix, and Pierre-Emmauel Gourtorbe, Airbus, at IPC APEX EXPO 2018.

It was all business at IPC APEX EXPO 2018 as 9,169 electronics manufacturing professionals from 43 countries converged at the San Diego Convention Center. In addition to experiencing a 22 percent increase in first-day show floor attendance, IPC APEX EXPO hosted a sold-out exhibition: 479 exhibitors showcased cutting-edge products and services on 149,700 net square feet, making it the largest exhibition in a decade. And with more than 80 percent of the 4,574 attendees identifying themselves as key buyers or influencers, the exhibitors at North America's largest electronics assembly event enjoyed three days of qualified leads, business development and brisk sales.

In recognition of their ongoing leadership in developing and promoting IPC standards on a global basis, IPC bestowed an Dieter Bergman IPC Fellowship Award upon Linda Woody, LWC Consulting, and Stephen Tisdale, Tisdale Environmental Consulting LLC at IPC APEX EXPO® 2018.

In recognition of his significant contributions of time, talent and ongoing leadership in IPC and the electronics industry, long-time IPC volunteer, Robert Cooke, NASA Johnson Space Center, was presented with an IPC President’s Award at IPC APEX EXPO 2018.

IPC bestowed its highest corporate honors on two, member companies, Rockwell Collins and Northrop Grumman Corporation. During a luncheon at IPC APEX EXPO 2018, the Peter Sarmanian Corporate Recognition Award was presented to Northrop Grumman and the Stan Plzak Corporate Recognition Award was presented to Rockwell Collins.