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American Made Advocacy: Let’s Finish the Fight to Build and Buy American

It’s hard to believe, but there was a time when words like “reshoring,” “industrial policy,” and “semiconductors” were not part of our national policy discussion. This month, as we mark the two-year anniversary of the CHIPS and Science Act, it’s worth reflecting on what has been accomplished and what remains to be done. In the past 24 months, America has seen a flurry of industrial activity, with billions of dollars flowing into new factories, cutting-edge research, and the promise of high-paying jobs.

The promised resurgence in American manufacturing has not been without difficulty. Here are a few lessons learned that business leaders should understand.

1. Private money follows public action
Government action drives private investment, and that is exactly what we’ve seen with the CHIPS Act. The $52 billion committed by the government was matched by over $400 billion in private commitments. No signal is stronger than the support of Uncle Sam, and when Wall Street sees the U.S. go all-in, they follow with the funds we need to sustain these industries. This is exactly why we are pursuing legislative and policy actions to do for PCBs and substrates what was done for semiconductors.

2. Supply chain challenges are not a thing of the past
The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that global supply chains can be risky and brittle when challenged. We may have emerged from global COVID lockdowns, but collapsed bridges, maritime shipping attacks, and other disruptions continue to dominate the headlines. If the goods you rely on are always an ocean away, uncertainty and fluctuation are now your business reality. In 2024, mitigating this risk and making contingency plans are the responsibility of every executive. The lessons learned from the past few years also point to the need for more American production of microelectronics like PCBs and substrates.

3. National security and industrial policy are inextricably linked
Bringing high-tech manufacturing back to America is about more than jobs and dollars. Our leaders in Washington are beginning to understand that our military systems and critical infrastructure are powered by microelectronics, and they are asking important questions about where that technology comes from. We find that we need to educate legislators on this point. Many of them were under the mistaken impression that the CHIPS Act took care of our reliance on Asia. What they learn is that chips are only one part of a long and vulnerable supply chain and that we also cannot produce the PCBs and substrates American industry needs after decades of offshoring.

So, where do we go from here? How do we apply these lessons to the challenges that remain? Congress needs to support the rest of the technology stack.

Simply put, chips don’t float, and that’s why an American ecosystem that includes PCBs and integrated circuit substrates is so important. Just building an industrial base for semiconductors won’t solve our dependency on foreign sourcing or create a sustainable ecosystem.

This is why every one of you should write to their elected representatives and tell them how important it is to support policies and legislation that do for PCBs and substrates what was done for chips. We need more co-sponsors for H.R. 3249, and your communication with legislators can make a difference.

The CHIPS Act proved that policymakers can act and industry is ready to respond. Let’s build on what America has already accomplished by investing in a truly secure and resilient supply chain.

This column originally appeared in the September 2024 issue of PCB007 Magazine.