Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

The summer is heating up, and our news this week is on fire, literally. Eltek has resumed making deliveries after a fire at their facility in Petach-Tikva, Israel. There’s never a dull moment in this industry.

And we have some good news: EIPC’s conferences are now live events again, and Editor Pete Starkey is back in the saddle, bringing us a review of the two-day conference. I know Pete was getting tired of sitting around his house and watching these events on video.

We have a Siemens column that offers an update on some of the CMMC and NIST cybersecurity documents published this year, and their effect on assembly and fabrication providers. (It’s a nice tie-in to our July issue of SMT007 Magazine, which publishes today.) Cadence columnists Jorge Gonzalez and Luke Roberto also discuss the developments in machine learning and artificial intelligence. 

And Dan Beaulieu has a great primer for us “mature” adults who aren’t sure what to make of the millennials and younger folks in general. As Dan explains, it may just be a matter of misperception. 

Stay cool, everyone! 

Eltek Resumes Deliveries to Customers
Published July 1

Eltek Ltd. Is taking care of business on the heels of a fire at an Eltek facility in Petach-Tikva, Israel, and has resumed making deliveries. The company is using an alternative production line while work is under way to repair of the damaged line. Eltek is communicating with customers and its insurance company. That’s good news.

All Systems Go: Accelerate Your PCB Designs with Machine Learning
Published June 30 

Though artificial intelligence and machine learning seem to be new concepts, they’ve actually been in development for decades. In this column, Cadence’s Jorge Gonzalez and Luke Roberto trace the lineage of AI and ML, and their path into today’s PCB design software tools. Did you know that we’re in the second modern era of AI? Read on! 

EIPC Summer Conference 2022: Day 1 Review
Published June 28 

Technology Editor Pete Starkey has been going stir-crazy for the past few years. Up until COVID, this English gentleman attended almost every industry conference in Europe, writing fantastic reviews that often went viral. After years of watching videoconferences of these events, Pete was ready for the road again, and he recently attend this live EIPC conference in Örebro, Sweden. Check out Pete’s coverage, which, as usual, makes you feel like you’re sitting in the audience with him, sipping Earl Gray.

It’s Only Common Sense: Misconceptions About Millennials and How to Embrace Their Truth
Published June 27

My grandmother didn’t think much of the scrappy young Frank Sinatra that my mother was swooning over. It seems that every generation thinks the next one isn’t cut from the best cloth, and the reaction of people my age to Generation Z and the millennials is a case in point. But as Dan Beaulieu points out in this column, many of our beliefs about younger people may be built upon misconceptions. Check it out.

Lean Digital Thread: The Secure Digital Thread
Published June 29

Intellectual property security is a big challenge for manufacturers, and a variety of cybersecurity documents have been published recently. In this column, Zac Elliott of Siemens discusses the U.S. Department of Defense Cybersecurity Maturity Model (CMMC) program, a recent draft released by NIST, and how they affect PCB fabricators and assemblers.