We asked columnist Michael Carano to discuss the latest innovations in plating equipment and chemicals, as well as some of the drivers in this segment, and the biggest challenges and opportunities he sees in plating today. As Michael points out, despite all of the technological advances in this industry, process engineers still need a solid understanding of Faraday’s Law and Ohm’s Law to successfully plate PCBs.

Patty Goldman spoke with Mike Carano about being awarded the Dieter Bergman IPC Fellowship Award, what that means to him as someone who was inspired by Dieter, and after 40 years in the industry, what keeps him excited going forward. Talking with Mike, one can feel his enthusiasm for IPC and the industry, which is contagious.

In this video clip from his presentation, Burt Rutan discusses some of his aircraft’s revolutionary flights that drew the most public attention, including SpaceShipOne, which flew three of the five manned space flights launched by man in 2004. He also explains the benefits of working with Microsoft’s Paul Allen, who agreed to fund SpaceShipOne based on a simple handshake.

During IPC APEX EXPO, Editor Nolan Johnson sat down with Chris Mitchell, VP of global government affairs, to discuss IPC’s latest initiative with industry intelligence programs. As Chris explains, some of these efforts are focused on improving the DoD’s supply chain. This includes moving the DoD from leaded to lead-free components to help avoid millions of dollars in rework. He also discusses the team’s drive to unite with partners around the world and create a truly global organization.

IPC APEX EXPO is here again. If you have followed our coverage in SMT007 and Design007, then you’re probably laser-focused on the upcoming show. We have been previewing IPC APEX EXPO all month, and we’re excited to pass that information along to you within these pages. Here’s what we learned.

In this short video, Brook Sandy-Smith, IPC’s technical conference program manager, explains how “the lntersection” will be a new meeting place In between this year's IPC APEX EXPO show floor and the technical conference available to attendees and the free sessions that are open to any registration type.

Two disruptive technologies that we have been covering for the last few years are 3D printing—especially as it pertains to PCB fab—and autonomous driving. 3D printing has been around for a few years, but it seems like 3D printers were introduced to CES very recently. This year there were almost 50 exhibitors showing their latest offerings. Most of them were in the LVCC in the north hall at the 3D Printing Marketplace.

Seven years ago, Joel Bruxvoort, a science teacher at Jefferson High School in Daly City, California, started a robotics club as an afterschool program. Now, his club has two teams competing in events for FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an international youth organization developed to advance STEM subjects around the world.