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IPC APEX EXPO Retrospective: The Founders Look Back
May 30, 2024 | Marcy LaRont, PCB007 MagazineEstimated reading time: 1 minute

IPC APEX EXPO 2024 will soon feel like a distant memory, and by all accounts, it was a good show with an impressive display of technical knowledge. During the show, I visited with industry icons and IPC Hall of Fame recipients Dan Feinberg and Gene Weiner, who were among the original visionaries and founders of what became APEX EXPO. These individuals took me on a funny and engaging historic journey and a glimpse into how we arrived today. I witnessed their tremendous pride in being a part of an industry they helped to build—one that is still grounded in vision and optimism.
Marcy LaRont: I am here with two original stakeholders in what became IPC APEX EXPO. How and why did all of this begin?
Dan Feinberg: In the 1990s, the United States was still the most important location for printed circuit board manufacturing. We were the leaders. The most important and largest industry trade show at that time was NEPCON; there was NEPCON West and NEPCON East. The shows became prohibitively expensive, especially when it came to hosting hospitality. The two companies that did the biggest hospitality suites were my good friend Jim Hickman, who was running DuPont's Riston division, and myself, who was running Dynachem. Our costs on those hospitality suites were outrageous, literally hundreds of dollars a minute.
Gene Weiner: You are skipping an important part. In about 1993, if you were a voting member of IPC, you had to be a fabricator. Suppliers could be members, but they couldn’t vote. Suppliers were getting tired of having no voice. There was a lot of discussion.
To read this entire conversation, which appeared in the May 2024 issue of PCB007 Magazine, click here.
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Building Electronics Excellence in India
09/08/2025 | Nolan Johnson, SMT007 MagazineOver two decades, Dave Bergman has helped steer the Global Electronics Association’s work in India, from a single training course to a thriving regional operation with deep government and industry ties. In this interview, Dave explains how the group went from partnering with IPCA to opening its own office in 2010, creating India’s first domestic electronics manufacturing standard, and securing funding for dozens of Indian companies to attend U.S. trade shows.
Walt Custer: Making Data Interesting
09/03/2025 | Andy Shaughnessy, I-Connect007I just learned that IPC Hall of Famer Walt Custer has passed away at 81. I first met Walt about 20 years ago when I started covering the fabrication industry. Right away, he started telling me which companies to watch and which trends to follow. This was in the years following 9/11, and things were still pretty fluid.
The Chemical Connection: Experience and Wisdom Gained by Doing Business
09/03/2025 | Don Ball -- Column: The Chemical ConnectionA well-managed company learns to adjust its strategies and processes based on what it learns during challenging times. The experience gained from making (or losing) a difficult sale is invaluable in adapting new sales and manufacturing processes necessary to make that sale the next time, no matter how painful those new processes might be.
Labor Day: U.S. Federal Holiday
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Target Condition: Floor Planning Without a Floor
08/27/2025 | Kelly Dack -- Column: Target ConditionBy a show of hands, how many PCB designers have been asked to start a layout without a board outline, keep-out zones, or even height constraints? How many have had to work within a specific enclosure before the schematic was finalized? If this sounds familiar, you're not alone. Starting a PCB layout without critical constraints is like hiring an interior designer to buy furniture and carpet for a house you haven’t even purchased yet, or, even worse, trying to fit four bedrooms' worth of furniture in a one-room cabin.