IPC Hand Soldering Competition Winner Crowned at Global Industrie/Midest 2019

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In conjunction with Global Industrie/Midest and SNESE, IFTEC and IPC conducted the first regional European qualification for the IPC Hand Soldering Competition in Lyon, France March 5-8, 2019. The competition was fierce as 32 competitors went soldering iron to soldering iron to compete for the coveted hand soldering competition crown.

This year, the first and second place winners scored the same points and judges had to use the completion time to determine the winner. The third through fifth place competitors had the exact same scores so judges had to use the completion time to determine the third place winner. The judges noted the competitors’ skills were quite high this year, making it more difficult to determine a winner.

Participants in the hand soldering competition were tasked with building a functional Class 3 electronics assembly within a 60-minute time limit. This year’s innovative design included many tiny components which added to the complexity of the competition.

Taking first place with a cash prize of €300 and a JBC soldering station was Nathalie Foubert (Safran, Fougères), who earned 438 points (out of a possible 445) with a completion time of 48 minutes and 19 seconds. Foubert will be invited to compete at the IPC Hand Soldering World Championship in November 2019 at productronica, in Munich, Germany.

Second place and a cash prize of €200 went to Catherine Simon-Cardinal (Thalès DMS, Etrelles) who earned 438 points within the 60-minute time limit. Simon-Cardinal was the 2018 European champion and represented Europe at the IPC Hand Soldering World Championship in San Diego this past January. Manuella Anani (Dassault Aviation, Saint-Cloud) took third place and a cash prize of €100 finishing in 54 minutes and 19 seconds and a score of 436 points.

Master Instructor Trainers from IFTEC served as judges and evaluated each assembly based on workmanship, overall functionality, compliance with IPC-A-610G Class 3 criteria and speed to complete the printed circuit board.

“The best of the best hand soldering talent in France came to compete at Global Industrie/Midest,” said David Bergman, IPC vice president of standards and technology. “The competition was tough, but each competitor rose to the challenge. We look forward to hosting more hand soldering competitions across the globe.”

Bergman added, “IPC would like to thank hand soldering competition gold sponsors: JBC, HAKKO, and Thales; silver sponsors: IFTEC, Optilia, The Daylight Company, Almit, Zestron and NCAB Group; and local supporters: SNESE, MIDEST and the magazine Les Cahiers de L’électronique for their support.”