SMT Salutes the Visionaries
December 31, 1969 |Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
During APEX on February 22, 2005, in the Pulse Room of the Anaheim, Hilton, SMT magazine announced the winners of the 2004 VISION Awards. For the past 13 years we have been awarding the finest examples of creative advancements in technology in 15 critical areas: adhesives/coatings/encapsulants; assembly tools; cleaning; components; contract services; dispensing equipment; environmentally friendly products/services; inspection; pick-and-place; printing; rework & repair; software; soldering equipment; soldering materials; and testing.
This year was a special year for us, as we also saluted 20 years of SMT magazine. Surface mount technology dates back to the 1960s, driven by the need to build smaller, more intelligent products with components loaded on both sides of a multilayer board. As soon as we recognized a need for automated assembly, and the industry’s thirst for knowledge, we created a magazine that concentrates on ways to use SMT efficiently and create a better-quality product.
In our walk down memory lane, we reviewed what the magazine looked like in the first issue compared to the current one - from cover to cover. We looked at the advisory board members, how they looked then and now. We looked at the first SMT conferences in Las Vegas, followed by the event in Marlborough, Mass., in September 1988; and compared these shows to present APEX and SMTAI shows. The last photos were a bit nostalgic - recalling how the editorial staff looked 20 years ago.
Advisory board member Rob Rowland served as the keynote speaker for a salute to the magazine, as well as the creative VISION Awards winners. “Twenty-plus years ago, visionaries in our industry saw the potential of surface mount technology. Through their efforts, surface mount technology has enabled our industry to create products that benefit all of us, such as PCs, cell phones, games, medical devices and many others,” Rowland said.
We invite all those involved in our industry to submit a product or service for SMT’s 2005 VISION Awards. Simply fill out a registration form and follow the step-by-step instructions listed on the Website: www.smtmag.com. A distinguished panel of industry experts will evaluate each submission based the following criteria:
- Ability to meet a significant industry challenge;
- Creative application of a new or existing technology;
- Overall quality;
- Economic merits;
- Throughput characteristics.
The visionaries of the SMT industry deserve recognition, and this is one way that we can salute them. SMT magazine recognized pioneers and visionaries involved in the technology early. SMT’s VISION Awards are a celebration of these visionaries. Every year the list of award attendees and participants grows. We would like to extend our congratulations to this year’s winners. We hope to see even more participants in another record-winning turnout next year.
Gail FlowerEditor-in-Chief