-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- smt007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueThe Rise of Data
Analytics is a given in this industry, but the threshold is changing. If you think you're too small to invest in analytics, you may need to reconsider. So how do you do analytics better? What are the new tools, and how do you get started?
Counterfeit Concerns
The distribution of counterfeit parts has become much more sophisticated in the past decade, and there's no reason to believe that trend is going to be stopping any time soon. What might crop up in the near future?
Solder Printing
In this issue, we turn a discerning eye to solder paste printing. As apertures shrink, and the requirement for multiple thicknesses of paste on the same board becomes more commonplace, consistently and accurately applying paste becomes ever more challenging.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - smt007 Magazine
From Father to Son: A Story of Generational Volunteerism
August 16, 2023 | John Perry, IPCEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
As an IPC technical staff liaison to numerous IPC standards development committees, I’m sometimes asked to extoll the virtues of what it means to be a volunteer within one of them. The question mostly comes from someone interested in joining an IPC committee for the first time.
The answer usually includes phrases not uncommon to other kinds of volunteer efforts in our lives:
- You get out more than what you put in.
- You become part of a network of subject matter experts, and in so doing, grow to become a subject matter expert yourself.
- You get to represent your company’s interest in an IPC standard.
- It’s very rewarding to contribute to the publication of a standard that benefits not only your company but the electronics industry as a whole.
If you’ve ever attended one of the IPC Award Luncheons at IPC APEX EXPO, then you’ve probably heard the same from volunteers themselves, including the recipients of awards such as the IPC President’s Award or IPC’s highest honor, the Raymond E. Pritchard Hall of Fame Award. I really like that because you’re getting such good feedback “straight from the horse’s mouth,” and not just from IPC staff (even though I tell myself, “Answering that is part of my job”).
To share their story, I wanted to reach out to a long-term volunteer who has not only contributed to numerous IPC standards efforts over the years but has served as a leader within some of those committees. Then it hit me: I have a committee chair who has led and supported numerous IPC standards efforts for over 25 years, and now his son leads and supports IPC standards committees and other IPC initiatives of his own. So, how did he cajole, (or maybe coax) his son into following in his footsteps as an IPC volunteer?
This is where I introduce Scott Bowles and his son Steven, both of Lockheed Martin Corporation. Scott works as an electronics PMP materials engineer for senior staff. Steven is an LM Associate Fellow.
Obviously, one doesn’t need to be a parent of or a progeny of a standards committee volunteer or leader to get involved, though Scott and Steven are a great example of two generations in one family that see the value of getting out more than what they put in.
You don’t have to be someone who likes to stand out in a crowd or aspire to committee leadership. Many of IPC’s most influential committee supporters and leaders started by attending a few standards meetings, sitting quietly in the back, and taking it all in before they eventually became comfortable having a more vocal and active role. If my memory hasn’t gone haywire yet, I seem to recall Scott quietly hanging out in the back of the meeting rooms many years ago. After 24 years as a member of IPC’s Technical Department, most volunteers and leaders have told me it was worth making that jump into the water—for themselves, their company, and our industry.
To read John's interview with Scott and Stephen in the summer 20023 issue of IPC Community.
Suggested Items
Intervala Hosts Employee Car and Motorcycle Show, Benefit Nonprofits
08/27/2024 | IntervalaIntervala hosted an employee car and motorcycle show, aptly named the Vala-Cruise and it was a roaring success! Employees had the chance to show off their prized wheels, and it was incredible to see the variety and passion on display.
KIC Honored with IPC Recognition for 25 Years of Membership and Contributions to Electronics Manufacturing Industry
06/24/2024 | KICKIC, a renowned pioneer in thermal process and temperature measurement solutions for electronics manufacturing, is proud to announce that it has been recognized by IPC for 25 years of membership and significant contributions to electronics manufacturing.
Boeing Starliner Spacecraft Completes Successful Crewed Docking with International Space Station
06/07/2024 | BoeingNASA astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams successfully docked Boeing's Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS), about 26 hours after launching from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
KIC’s Miles Moreau to Present Profiling Basics and Best Practices at SMTA Wisconsin Chapter PCBA Profile Workshop
01/25/2024 | KICKIC, a renowned pioneer in thermal process and temperature measurement solutions for electronics manufacturing, announces that Miles Moreau, General Manager, will be a featured speaker at the SMTA Wisconsin Chapter In-Person PCBA Profile Workshop.
The Drive Toward UHDI and Substrates
09/20/2023 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamPanasonic’s Darren Hitchcock spoke with the I-Connect007 Editorial Team on the complexities of moving toward ultra HDI manufacturing. As we learn in this conversation, the number of shifting constraints relative to traditional PCB fabrication is quite large and can sometimes conflict with each other.