-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- smt007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueBox Build
One trend is to add box build and final assembly to your product offering. In this issue, we explore the opportunities and risks of adding system assembly to your service portfolio.
IPC APEX EXPO 2024 Pre-show
This month’s issue devotes its pages to a comprehensive preview of the IPC APEX EXPO 2024 event. Whether your role is technical or business, if you're new-to-the-industry or seasoned veteran, you'll find value throughout this program.
Boost Your Sales
Every part of your business can be evaluated as a process, including your sales funnel. Optimizing your selling process requires a coordinated effort between marketing and sales. In this issue, industry experts in marketing and sales offer their best advice on how to boost your sales efforts.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - smt007 Magazine
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
April 28, 2023 | Andy Shaughnessy, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Trade show season continues apace—when you think about it, does show season ever really stop? There are a variety of tabletop events in our industry each month, especially the SMTA Expo & Tech Forums. PCB East and IPC SummerCom take place next month, and the International Microwave Symposium is set for San Diego in June. If you can’t make it to IPC APEX EXPO or SMTA International, chances are good there’s a regional show taking place nearby.
In this week’s must-reads, we have coverage of NAMM 2023 and SMTA Atlanta, plus some tips for traditional PCB designers who are entering the RF design space, where designers have to master ideas like antenna tuning. We also have some news about March PCB sales, as well as a great conversation with Ventec’s Frank Lorentz, who explains how to set up an onboarding process that converts new hires into happy, long-term employees.
NAMM 2023: It’s All About That Bass
Published April 24
Technical editor and bassist Dan Feinberg covered the recent National Association of Music Merchants show in Anaheim, and artificial intelligence was one of the event’s highlights—or lowlights, depending upon your viewpoint, I suppose. We shouldn’t be surprised to see AI making its way into music software. Maybe AI will help composers think of new styles and rhythms that they never would have thought of otherwise. Also, check out the Ibanez e-Bass that Dan almost snagged off the show floor.
SMTA Atlanta: No Rain Delay For This Event
Published April 27
I covered the SMTA Atlanta Expo & Tech Forum this week, and despite intermittent rain, the show had pretty good attendance. Organizers said the number of pre-registered attendees was up from last year, and there was steady floor traffic throughout the day. Moving the show to the Atlanta Tech Park was great idea; it’s nice to hold a show in a small business incubator that allows you to bring in catered food.
RF Antenna Design and Layout Tips for Your PCB
Published April 26
Recent Design007 surveys ranked RF as one of the more problematic issues among our readers. We’re seeing more and more PCB designers entering the RF domain—often without much training or education on this discipline. As Cadence’s Cody Wetzel points out in this article, RF design has its own set of rules. He compares and contrasts RF design with traditional board design, and he outlines the best practices for RF design.
North American PCB Industry Sales Up 11.6 Percent in March
Published April 27
PCB sales were up 11.6 percent in March over the same period last year, and up 30.1 percent over the previous month. But bookings fell 10.5 percent YOY. Overall, the recent GDP is looking good, but the CPI has seen better days. We can’t rule out a recession in 2023, but so far, so good.
Successful Onboarding Takes Training, Technique, and Trust
Published April 26
We know that finding, hiring, and onboarding a new employee can be an expensive endeavor, so it’s in our best interest to turn new hires into long-term staffers. In this interview, Ventec’s Frank Lorentz shares his proven onboarding techniques. He’s a logistics guy, but numbers don’t tell the whole story. When Frank onboards someone, he makes them feel like they’re part of a family. Does your company feel like a family?
Suggested Items
Cadence, TSMC Collaborate on Wide-Ranging Innovations to Transform System and Semiconductor Design
04/25/2024 | Cadence Design SystemsCadence Design Systems, Inc. and TSMC have extended their longstanding collaboration by announcing a broad range of innovative technology advancements to accelerate design, including developments ranging from 3D-IC and advanced process nodes to design IP and photonics.
Ansys, TSMC Enable a Multiphysics Platform for Optics and Photonics, Addressing Needs of AI, HPC Silicon Systems
04/25/2024 | PRNewswireAnsys announced a collaboration with TSMC on multiphysics software for TSMC's Compact Universal Photonic Engines (COUPE). COUPE is a cutting-edge Silicon Photonics (SiPh) integration system and Co-Packaged Optics platform that mitigates coupling loss while significantly accelerating chip-to-chip and machine-to-machine communication.
Siemens’ Breakthrough Veloce CS Transforms Emulation and Prototyping with Three Novel Products
04/24/2024 | Siemens Digital Industries SoftwareSiemens Digital Industries Software launched the Veloce™ CS hardware-assisted verification and validation system. In a first for the EDA (Electronic Design Automation) industry, Veloce CS incorporates hardware emulation, enterprise prototyping and software prototyping and is built on two highly advanced integrated circuits (ICs) – Siemens’ new, purpose-built Crystal accelerator chip for emulation and the AMD Versal™ Premium VP1902 FPGA adaptive SoC (System-on-a-chip) for enterprise and software prototyping.
Elevating PCB Design Engineering With IPC Programs
04/24/2024 | Cory Blaylock, IPCIn a monumental stride for the electronics manufacturing industry, IPC has successfully championed the recognition of the PCB Design Engineer as an official occupation by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). This pivotal achievement not only underscores the critical role of PCB design engineers within the technology landscape, but also marks the beginning of a transformative journey toward nurturing a robust, skilled workforce ready to propel our industry into the future.
IPC Design Competition Champion Crowned at IPC APEX EXPO 2024
04/24/2024 | IPCAt IPC APEX EXPO 2024 in Anaheim, California, five competitors squared off to determine who was the best of the best at PCB design.