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Publishers Executive Council Interview
December 31, 1969 |Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
SMT Magazine`s Publisher`s Executive Council consists of 38 electronic industry executives hand-picked by our publisher. They share their expertise and insights with our editorial staff and act as a sounding board for new ideas and concepts. These individuals also contribute much to the industry in general, working as leaders within their companies. This month`s Publisher`s Executive Council Interview features one of the industry`s leading innovators Surface Mount Equipment Manufacturers, Association (SMEMA) president Steve Hall.
Hall has spent the past 13 years working in SMT manufacturing, marketing and corporate business strategy development. He began his surface mount career at Motorola where he spent five years in SMT manufacturing and engineering. His initial efforts were focused on screen printing and reflow soldering. Later, his focus shifted to SMT process development. The next seven years were spent at MPM where he started out as an applications engineer and later jumped into engineering management. From there, he was promoted to the corporate sales staff where, as director of marketing, he helped set new product direction and the company`s business policies. Today, Steve is employed at EKRA America as general manager.
Q Please recap your personal involvement with SMEMA.
HALL: I have been personally involved with SMEMA since 1991. I have served in a number of different roles over the years, including printing committee chairman, mechanical interface standard chairman, dual-lane standard chairman, board member, secretary, vice president and president.
QHow has your company benefited from its SMEMA membership?
HALL: Throughout the years, the organizations that I have been a part of have seen great benefits by being a part of SMEMA. The largest benefit is being able to have input into standards and initiatives that have a wide range of effects on the market. The needs of the customer base have been met quicker and being involved has provided a competitive advantage over companies that have not participated in SMEMA activities.
QWhat has your company contributed to SMEMA?
HALL: All the organizations that I have been involved with have contributed large amounts of resources to furthering the success of SMEMA. Up until the recent merger of SMEMA and IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries, all resources involved with SMEMA were on a volunteer basis. Therefore, assigning resources to SMEMA initiatives was the most important contribution a company could make.
QWhy has SMEMA been so successful?
HALL: SMEMA has been successful because the core of the organization has consistently been made up of the movers and shakers of the industry - people who have been sincerely interested in pushing agenda items that have really benefited the entire industry.
QHow has SMEMA`s mandate changed since its union with IPC?
HALL: The SMEMA mandate has not changed since the merger with IPC. Its primary focus is to maximize the profitability of its members and the efficiency of the interface between customers and members.
QWhy APEX? Will this new trade show/conference benefit the surface mount industry?
HALL: APEX is a prime example of a major SMEMA initiative that benefits the industry as a whole. Over the last year, we gained the necessary horsepower to do it in a trade show setting. The primary purpose is to interface with equipment vendors` customers in the most effective and efficient manner. The customers win because they can view the equipment, services and materials of the surface mount industry without market hype or lavish hospitality receptions. Large vendors win because they are spared the enormous costs of traditional trade show extravaganzas. And small- and medium-sized vendors win because they can compete based solely on their equipment, services and materials offerings.
The electronics assembly market had a need to have a focused, fair and cost-effective trade show. The benefit to the surface mount industry is that there is now a trade show that is 100 percent focused on electronics assembly. The show will allow customers to see the real technology that they are interested in without having to wade through unending marketing hype. And it will provide real benefit to the SMEMA members by being fair and cost-effective.
QHow has the Internet affected surface mount technology business strategies?
HALL: With the recent explosion of Internet use and technology that makes Internet use faster and easier, manufacturers must have a presence on the Web. This includes using the Internet as an information source as well as for its e-commerce capability. Customers are looking to get information electronically, as well as making other areas of business interface without paper. The move to electronic communication can also be of great cost benefit to equipment manufacturers. For example, expensive direct mail programs can be replaced by electronic push technology over the Web. This allows for the most current information to reach the people that want to get it in the form that they want to get it in, in the most cost-effective manner for the manufacturer.
QWhat are the primary issues confronting SMT manufacturers today?
HALL: The primary issues are not a lot different from the ones that were confronting manufacturers yesterday. Smaller, faster, cheaper, maximum efficiency and return on investment drive today`s market. These factors, as well as high personnel turnover and the fast order turn environment of the contract manufacturing market, are requiring SMT manufacturers to streamline and simplify processes. This drives equipment manufacturers to provide easier-to-use technology that truly benefits the customer and is not just a bell or whistle.
QWhat is foremost on SMEMA`s agenda for 2000?
HALL: Continuing the momentum that was developed during the past year is foremost on SMEMA`s agenda for 2000. As an organization, SMEMA made huge strides during 1999 toward providing real benefit to the industry across a wide range of issues. In particular, there is currently a large amount of activity in the area of standards development that involves customers as well as equipment manufacturers. This type of activity directly correlates with SMEMA`s charter to maximize the efficiency of the interface between customers and members.
Essentially, SMEMA`s charter is to serve equipment purchasers and drive standards development. In anticipating market drivers, the lead-free committee, the dual-lane committee, mechanical interface committee and the placement machine characterization committee should see major involvement in 2000. For example, customers need to compare placement machines on a level field using common criteria. SMEMA wants to assure those customers that they are comparing apples to apples when purchasing big-ticket items such as placement machines.
QWhat surface mount industry trends are directly impacting new equipment designs?
HALL: Equipment manufactures are being driven to provide useful technology that has real - not just perceived - benefit to the customer`s process. Increased reliability, ease of maintenance, ease of use and increased overall efficiency are drivers of technology development efforts.
Traditionally, equipment manufacturers oversell - they include bells and whistles they think customers want. Today, customers will only buy "useful technology"; they dictate what they want. Among contract manufacturers (CM), there is a lot of personnel turnover; they are competing with McDonald`s for employees, so ease of use, intuitive interface, reliability and maintenance-free machines with no downtime are vital.
QHow have equipment users` expectations changed over the past five years?
HALL: SMEMA seeks to develop strong relationships with all international organizations. Some major joint objectives include sharing market information, working together to maximize trade show experiences for equipment suppliers and users, and of course, developing standards for technology integration. Presently, we are working closely with Japan and Europe on all of these issues.
Of course, customers always expect more. For the reasons that I explained earlier, users are experiencing more pressure and that puts more pressure on equipment manufacturers. Technology that increases efficiency and reliability as well as broad support solutions and programs are typical examples of this.
QHow has globalization of surface mount technology impacted equipment manufacturers?
HALL: Globalization of surface mount technology has impacted equipment manufacturers mainly in the areas of required support capability and local safety standard compliance. It is a requirement in today`s market that manufacturers have global support capability and that they provide solutions that comply with local safety and regulatory standards. UL, CSA and CE are examples of standards that are commonly required.
QWhat is the state of outsourcing in the surface mount market? How does this impact equipment manufacturers?
HALL: Everyone knows that contract manufacturing is the fastest growing segment in the electronics assembly market. This is not just a trend; it is the way business is being done. One relatively new trend within the contract manufacturing market itself is consolidation. The big global CMs that have capabilities on the same level as global OEMs are getting the bulk of the business. In addition, they are purchasing smaller providers as well as OEM facilities, which is further widening the gap between large and small CMs. With contract manufacturing becoming a bigger piece of the overall market, the high-pressure way of doing business within contract manufacturing directly transfers to increased pressure on equipment manufacturers. Shorter lead times, reduced costs, increased reliability and ease of use are major focus points.
QHow would you characterize business today?
HALL: Exciting. We are part of one of the biggest markets in the world and are definitely part of the most dynamic. In terms of current business conditions, the 1999 market was a very good one with virtually all areas of the world back on track with solid growth. At this time, 2000 looks positive. With renewed growth in Southeast Asia, a possible recovery in Japan, as well as growth in a united European market, business should be strong.