Electronics Industry Welcomes Pentagon’s New National Defense Industrial Strategy

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The following is a statement by Richard Cappetto, Senior Director, North American Government Relations at IPC, on the release of the National Defense Industrial Strategy (NDIS) yesterday by the U.S. Department of Defense. A fuller statement is in this IPC Blog.

“IPC is encouraged to see that the NDIS highlights several key priorities which we have been urging in recent years on behalf of the electronics industry. For example, the first pillar of the strategy sets forth eight actions to build resilient supply chains, including “continue and expand support for domestic production.” IPC believes all nations must ensure trusted, secure supply chains for essential electronics products.

“The second pillar of the strategy correctly identifies building a skilled workforce as a priority for a strong industrial base. Consistent with IPC’s policy agenda, the strategy calls for investments in upskilling and reskilling programs, better workforce pipelines into advanced manufacturing, and expansions of apprenticeship programs.”   

IPC will continue to make the case for the U.S. government to take a “silicon to systems” approach to building up the electronics supply chain and the workforce. A healthy electronics ecosystem includes advanced packaging, IC substrates, printed circuit boards (PCBs), and electronics assembly, not just semiconductor chips.