IPC scholarship established in Larry Velie's honor

Fein-Line Associates

CD ROM: How to Produce, Specify, Design and Buy PCBs

Robust Today But a Few Warning Signs (Nov 2000)

November 1st, 2000

IPC releases U.S. book-to-bill ratios for September 2000

IPC releases U.S. book-to-bill ratios for September 2000 Northbrook, Ill.-IPC Association Connecting Electronics Industries has announced that the U.S. Printed Wiring Board Industry Book-to-Bill Ratio for September was 1.18. Sales billed (shipments) in September 2000 increased 25.2% over September 1999, and orders booked increased 25.4% over September 1999. Compared to 1999, bookings of PWBs are up 28.9% year-to-date, while shipments of PWBs are up 17.8% year-to-date. The ratio is calculated by…

Comparison of halogen-free base materials (Oct 2000)

Figure 1: Schematic TMA-plot of FR-4 and FR-4-180

Mexitronica attracts estimated 9,000 attendees 'hungry for latest technologies'

Mexitronica attracts an estimated 9000 attendees 'hungry for the latest technologies'

Normalized trade relations with China: good for the U.S.?

Normalized Trade Relations with ChinaGood for the U.S., but still . . . an uneasy feeling by Dan Feinberg of Fein-Line Associates & Quantum Performance Group Last spring I was asked by CircuiTree and the IPC to research and comment on a letter to the editor regarding free trade, which lead to a more lengthy commentary on Free vs. Fair Trade. My conclusion was that they are two sides of the same coin. (See Fein-Lines past articles at http://www.feinline.com; look at the articles page). Now t…

Integrating product technologies sets Parlex apart from the rest

Integrating product technologies sets Parlex apart from the rest Eric Zanin of Parlex Corp. talks to PCB007 Parlex Corp., a leading provider of flexible interconnect solutions, announced the election of Eric Zanin to Corporate Vice President, Marketing and Sales, at the end of August. In the position he's held for approximately two months, Zanin is responsible for the global oversight of the corporation's sales and marketing. He continues as a member of the corporation's strategic planning team…

Oil pricing's effect on electronic equipment orders seen as minimal

Oil pricing's effect on electronic equipment orders seen as minimal Walt Custer With the current Mideast situation, Walt Custer took a look at the relationship between oil pricing and electronic equipment orders. While he expected that oil pricing would be a strong leading indicator (causing industry slowdowns), he noted that the historical data do not support this hypothesis. Below are the historical (1969-present) 12-month growth rates (12/12 rate of change) for electronic equipment orders (c…

Creating Better Sales Targets (Oct 2000)

October 1st, 2000

North American PCB orders outpacing electronic equipment orders (Walt Custer)

November 23rd - 25th (Taipei - Taiwan)

General Information

General Timetable

Conferences

Registration & information for exhibitors

Registration & information for visitors

List of exhbitors

November 21st - 24th (Munich)

Registration & Information for visitors

Registration & Information for exhibitors

Find an exhibitor

IPC releases book-to-bill ratios for August 2000

Northbrook, Ill.--IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries announced that the US Printed Wiring Board Industry Book-to-Bill Ratio for August was 1.20.

The Myths of E-Commerce: An IPC White Paper - Executive Overview (Sept '00)

Electronics association IPC's E-Business and Supply Chain Committee has produced a White Paper titled, "The Myths of E-Commerce." The paper addresses five prevailing myths about e-commerce, countering them with statistics and examples of revolutionary business developments over the years.

Mapping the Future PCB Industry Landscape: An Interview with Phil Plonski

Mapping the Future PCB Industry Landscape J. Philip Plonski will deliver an address on market trends on Wednesday, October 4th, at EPC 2000 in Maastricht, The Netherlands. Plonski is Senior Consultant at Prismark USA, a consulting service to the electronics industry.   In recent years, Asian PCB fabricators have more than doubled their market share of the global PCB industry. Plonski will address such issues as pricing, profitability, technology transfer, product variations, increased local Asia…

Boom, boom, boom (Sept 2000)

September 1st, 2000

Maastricht
(October 4th-6th)

U.S. DOC invites business reps on China pollution prevention trade mission

U.S. DOC invites business reps on China pollution prevention trade mission The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) International Trade Commission recently sent out an invitation to selected business executives, whose "company's accomplishments put the U.S. on the cutting edge of pollution prevention technologies," to join a pollution prevention trade mission to China in November. The "Green Chemistry/Pollution Prevention Trade Mission" is scheduled to visit Beijing and Shanghai, China, from Novemb…

BPA's new PCB Information Service

JPCA Show 2000 Japan is keeping the pace

JPCA Show 2000: Japan is keeping the pace Japanese electronic equipment manufacturers are directing their innovations toward Build-Up PCBs and chip carriers. As for testing, currently a bridge is being built between optical inspection and electrical testing. In the field of advanced imaging, we note the announcement of a positive dry film for LDI. The Japanese PCB industry is keeping pace in the field of HDI PCB manufacturing, and, in particular, Build-Up PCBs and chip carriers. Miniaturization…

Business Conditions: Following the High, Bumpy Road (August)

Business Conditions: Following the High, Bumpy Road Everything that I have written in recent months still holds true: robust global economic conditions, strong end-market demand, overzealous PCB ordering, extended lead times, volatile month-to-month component bookings, and widespread shortages throughout the supply chain. Nothing has changed! At the June IPC TMRC meeting in Washington, D.C., full order books, long lead times and "firmer" prices were common discussion topics. During this well-at…

World production of PWBs and flex circuits rose in 1999

Japan ranks first in PCB production in 1999

Riding the production tiger in Thailand

Riding the production tiger in Thailand A look at the record of factory acquisitions and openings in Thailand over the past eight months tells a story of robust growth and optimism in the electronics industry. For a country that's ridden out hard economic times-and for the investors and owners putting up factories in the fabled Kingdom of Thailand-this is one story that may have a happy ending. After years of rapid economic growth, the Thai economy shrank in 1997-98. The Thai baht depreciated, …

Leiterplatten (Germany)

Fujitsu will finish shift to lead-free soldering in October 2000

Fujitsu will finish shift to lead-free soldering in October 2000 The electronic device division of printed circuit board maker Fujitsu will completely stop using solders containing lead in October of this year, according to a story in Japan Chemical Week. Mass production of one of the company's four new lead-free solders is set to begin shortly. All devices manufactured by the company will use lead-free solders, which will meet the requirements of manufacturers of electronic equipment, such as p…

Double Bookings & Component Shortages...
but the End Markets Remains Strong (July)

April 2000 ($ Billions)

BPA Consulting

EPC Show 2000.
The European PCB Convention
October 4th to 6th, 2000
Maastricht (The Netherlands)

India Express

IPC

California Circuits

UL (Underwriters Laboratories)

Environmental Protection Agency (USA)

EECA

GFIE (France)

Gixel (France)

Vdl (Germany)

PCIF (United Kingdom)

FEI (United Kingdom)

Pcb.it (Italy)

JPCA (Japan)

TPCA (Taiwan)

Asia Circuit News

PC Europe

Shades of 1995: Booming orders, Longer Lead Times & a PCB/Equipment Order Imbalance (June 2000)

Shades of 1995: Booming orders, Longer Lead Times & a PCB/Equipment Order Imbalance by Walt Custer June 1st, 2000 Business is good - perhaps too good. The March North American rigid PCB book/bill ratio reached 1.34 on a 1-month basis - the highest it has been since 1987 (Chart 1). March rigid PCB orders were up 44% and flex up 47% versus March 1999 (Charts 2 and 3). Unfortunately some of this massive PCB order growth may be "false" - the result of double ordering due to long lead times. In m…

The question is not why Sanmina is buying Hadco, but what they'll keep (April 2000)

April 25, 2000

Competitive PWB manufacturing...What is needed to maintain a viable PCB industry in Europe? (April 2000)

Competitive PWB manufacturing... What is needed to maintain a viable industry in Europe ? by Philip Britton   Philip L.BRITTON   (Dip. I.M.; F.Inst. C.T.)   Marketing & Technology Manager   DuPont International S.A.   Geneva, Switzerland Phil Britton has worked in the Printed Circuit Industry for over 26 years. Initially involved in process development in the military/avionics fields, he joined the Electrionic Materials Division of DuPont in 1978. He is currently European Marketing & Te…

PCBs and Semiconductors Continue to Surge (April 2000)

April 02, 2000

Interview: W. Doerflinger (AT&S): "AT&S has become the largest European PCB manufacturer" (April)

Willibald DörflingerChairman of the board of directors of Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik "AT&S has become the largest European PCB manufacturer" In terms of growth and technology, AT&S is perhaps one of the most brilliant printed circuit board manufacturers in Europe today. And that could be good news for the future improvement of the European PCB industry. But then, telecom helps, says Willibald Dörflinger, chairman of the board of directors of Austria Technologie & System…

PCB Expansion Continues (March 2000)

Mar. 07, 2000

Durable goods orders: large drop in electronics - what does it mean?!

by Walt Custer

1999: Not a bad finish

Feb. 07, 2000

Good Business (and some useful data sources)

Jan. 10, 2000

Continued Optimism - but Some Concerns about the End Market Data

Dec. 07, 1999

Component Shortages + Strong Demand = Price Increase Mentality?

Nov. 09, 1999

Schweizer, 150 anniversary

Timothy Conlon, President and COO of Viasystems Group, Inc. (Nov 1999)

Self portrait

Rumbling and Rambling - Taiwan Earthquake Repercussions and Thoughts on China

Oct. 08, 1999