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SMTA Conducts First UHDI Symposium
March 29, 2024 | Marcy LaRont, PCB007 MagazineEstimated reading time: 3 minutes
Finally, in his presentation “Design & Verification of UHDI Topologies,” Stephen Chavez of Siemens talked about automation and verification, highlighting that today’s design tools have the horsepower for collaborative working. He emphasized an absolute need for 3D simulation modeling, and reinforced the reality of machine automation and AI, saying that the day will come when AI will be able to design a board, and good designers will have job security because they will take advantage of all of the benefits that AI has to offer PCB design.
The meeting was held at the Peoria Sports Complex in Phoenix’s West Valley, the spring training base for both the San Diego Padres and the Seattle Mariners, who played the season’s very last spring training game later that day, just outside the meeting room doors. The unique and very Arizona ambiance turned out to be a perfect backdrop for the energy and enthusiasm of the conference. The day was end-capped by a hosted cocktail and networking hour, where lively discussions continued, and old friends caught up.
If there was one criticism of the day, it was that folks would have liked more time allocated to networking and casual discussion, but that speaks more to the success of the event and a deep need for this level of information and conversations to continue, something SMTA is looking to address in an ongoing and interactive way.
Congratulations to Tara Dunn and the SMTA team for this first and very successful UHDI Symposium. We have been assured that there will be a second one in March 2025, again in Peoria, so mark your calendars. All SMTA UHDI presentation slides will be available at smta.org.
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