The Nominating and Governance Committee of the IPC Board of Directors presented officer and member candidates for election at the 63rd IPC Annual Meeting on February 4, held in conjunction with IPC APEX EXPO 2020 at the San Diego Convention Center. Officers serve a two-year term, while members serve a four-year term.

The newly elected Board officers are:

Board Chair – Shane Whiteside, president and CEO Summit Interconnect
Board Vice Chair – Bob Neves, chairman and chief technology officer, Microtek Laboratories China
Secretary/Treasurer – Tom Edman, president and CEO, TTM Technologies

The newly elected Board members are:

Marc Peo, president, Heller Industries
Hiroyuki Watanabe, executive vice president, NEC Platforms, Ltd.
Robert Feuerstein, director, head of manufacturing technology, Continental Automotive GmbH
Steve Pudles, president and CEO, Zentech Manufacturing
Jeanie Wade, sector vice president, operations and sector quality executive, Northrop Grumman Corporation

"IPC is privileged to have these officer and directors added to our current slate of Board members. All are active contributors to IPC initiatives and we look forward to their continued contributions to advancing IPC and the electronics industry," said John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO.

In addition to holding Board elections, IPC honored outgoing Board chair, Mikel Williams, Targus; and outgoing members, Mike Carano, RBP Chemical Technology and Joe O’Neil, Green Circuits. All three were honored for many years of service on the IPC Board of Directors.

For additional information on IPC's Board of Directors including bios on newly elected Board members, contact Sandy Gentry, IPC communications director, at SandyGentry@ipc.org.

IPC announced today the December 2019 findings from its North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program. The book-to-bill ratio stands at 1.09.

IPC announces the addition of Matt Kelly as the association’s chief technologist.In this new leadership role, Kelly will help IPC’s members to engage in latest technology trends and supply chain transformation that continues to evolve across the electronics industry. He will work to define the scope of what future products and services the association should develop in the areas of standards, education and advocacy. Kelly’s primary areas of focus will be leading the following initiatives: “factory of the future” standards and technical research; industry intelligence funding; and creation and launch of an Industry CTO Council.

IPC announces the winners of the IPC APEX EXPO 2020 Innovation Awards, a celebration of the innovators who are changing the technological landscape of the electronics industry.A panel of industry experts reviewed each product’s submission and chose winners in each category based on the following criteria: How is this product innovative? How is this product changing the manufacturing industry? What value will customers experience with this new product?

The IPC APEX EXPO 2020 best technical conference papers in the domestic and international categories have been selected; the paper authors will receive their awards during the opening keynote session on Tuesday, February 4, 2020.

Exhibitor booth space at the 2020 WHMA 27th Annual Wire Harness Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada is sold out. The Wiring Harness Manufacturer’s Association (WHMA) and IPC exceeded expectations by selling out the exhibit space a month before the event. This year’s annual conference broke a 26-year record with 40 booths sold, making it the largest exhibit floor in WHMA’s history.

The following statement can be attributed to John Mitchell, President and CEO of IPC, the global association representing the electronics manufacturing industry:“The electronics manufacturing industry applauds the U.S. Senate for approving the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) with broad bipartisan support. As soon as President Trump signs the legislation, which is expected within days, it will enter into force.

The following statement can be attributed to Chris Mitchell, vice president of global government relations at IPC, the global association representing the electronics manufacturing industry:“The electronics manufacturing industry welcomes the U.S.-China "phase one" trade deal being signed today in Washington, and the pathway it offers to resolution of broader issues. The deal leaves many issues unaddressed including cyber security, structural economic reforms, and the high level of tariffs that are still in place on many products that are traded in our industry.

IPC's Validation Services Program has awarded an IPC J-STD-001 and IPC-A-610 Qualified Manufacturers Listing (QML) to Sartorius Lab Instruments GmbH & Co. KG. Sartorius is a leading international provider to the biopharmaceutical research and medical industry. Sartorius Electronics, a manufacturing arm of Sartorius Lab Instruments GmbH & KG (SLI), provides high-quality electronic subassemblies that are produced for end products used worldwide throughout the Sartorius Group.

Letter from John Mitchell re: COVID-19 and its effects on the manufacturing industry.