Driving Innovation: Mechanical and Optical Processes During Rigid-flex Production
It’s Only Common Sense: Your Biggest Competitor Is Complacency
The Chemical Connection: Onshoring PCB Production—Daunting but Certainly Possible
IPC APEX EXPO 2020: Day 1 Review
February 5, 2020 | Pete Starkey, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Once more at the San Diego Convention Center, although a little disorientating because the geography of the foyer and the locations of the meeting and conference rooms were different as a consequence of the show moving a hundred yards further up the street. But an opportunity to discover the other half of the Convention Center complex and we soon got accustomed to the new layout.
A special anniversary year for IPC APEX EXPO: “Celebrating 20 years of excellence in electronics” was the tagline.
Ahead of the exhibition, IPC's program of meetings and courses was already in full swing: management, professional development, standards and certification, and the technical conference agenda was all prepared and ready to begin, including the Fundamentals Program as a new option.
A standing-room-only keynote session, prefaced by IPC President and CEO Dr. John Mitchell's introduction and vision of the future of the electronics manufacturing industry, featured aerospace legend Burt Rutan reviewing the history of aviation and space travel before contemplating a new era in commercial space travel and the new race for space. Look for our interview with Burt in the next few weeks. He’s quite a character!
Heralded by a session of loud and enthusiastic drumming, John Mitchell introduced the distinguished members of the ribbon-cutting party, the ribbon was snipped into several pieces, the doors were opened and the crowds flooded in.
Bright and spotless after the controlled chaos of buildup during the previous couple of days, the spectacular display of immaculately presented exhibits was breathtaking to behold, and the creativity of the booth designers was as impressive as ever.
A busy show "elevating the excellence of electronics," with a positive air of optimism evident amongst exhibitors, who numbered at least 500, and the horde of visitors, many of whom had serious money to spend. "Recession, what recession?"
I didn't get sufficient opportunity to spend time looking in detail around the exhibits, so there may be things I missed, but quite honestly I didn't see anything spectacularly revolutionary—lots of incremental improvements in equipment and a few new developments in materials, particularly to support the requirements of the growth of 5G and automotive radar systems. A nice CFX demo line, and around the exhibition plenty of booths marked with CFX signage, indicating encouraging progress toward the Smart factory and digital manufacturing.
A positive first day, a good start to what should be a successful three-day show. More news tomorrow.
Our team published 22 interviews and hundreds of photos from Day 1 of the show on our Real Time with... IPC APEX EXPO 2020 site. Check it out here.
Share on:
Testimonial
"Our marketing partnership with I-Connect007 is already delivering. Just a day after our press release went live, we received a direct inquiry about our updated products!"
Rachael Temple - AlltematedSuggested Items
Henger Microelectronics Expands Global Footprint with Major Equipment Shipment to Southeast Asia
10/31/2025 |Henger Microelectronics has reached a major milestone in its global expansion strategy with the successful shipment of advanced plasma etching and cleaning systems, along with automation equipment, to multiple countries and regions across Southeast Asia. This achievement marks a significant step forward in the company’s international growth and reinforces its position as a leading force in the global plasma equipment industry.
TTCI Brings Hands-On Test Engineering and IPC Training Expertise to PCB Carolina 2025
10/31/2025 | The Test Connection Inc.The Test Connection Inc. (TTCI), a trusted provider of electronic test and manufacturing solutions, and The Training Connection LLC (TTC-LLC) will exhibit at PCB Carolina on Wednesday, November 12, 2025, at the McKimmon Center at NC State University in Raleigh, North Carolina. Attendees can visit Table 4 to say hello to Bert Horner and Bill Graver, and learn more about their test engineering services and technical training programs.
Cephia Secures $4M Seed Funding to Revolutionize Multimodal Sensing with Metasurface Technology
10/31/2025 | PRNewswireCephia, a startup building products using advanced AI computational imaging technologies and silicon sensors made from advanced metamaterials, formally launched with several pilot customers and $4 million in seed venture capital funding.
I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
10/31/2025 | Nolan Johnson, I-Connect007Last week, the IMPACT conference took place in Taipei, bringing together advanced packaging experts from around the globe to share their knowledge. We’ll be bringing you post-conference coverage over the next few weeks, so look for that in our newsletters, and in the Advanced Electronic Packaging Digest. Other news seemed to have the U.S. at the center of the global discussions. My picks start in Phoenix, where TSMC, NVIDIA, and Amkor are all scrambling to establish new capabilities. There’s nothing like a strong demand signal to cause build-out, and AI chips are doing exactly that.
NEDME 2025 Draws Strong Northwest Crowd, Builds on Tradition of Regional Collaboration
10/31/2025 | NEDMEThe NW Electronics Design & Manufacturing Expo (NEDME) 2025 once again brought together the Pacific Northwest community for a full day of learning, networking, and industry connections.