I-Connect007 Editor's Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

Ah, January! The season of new beginnings, new goals, and the annual company meeting, where all the initiatives and objectives that survived the end-of-year planning and budgeting process are launched. Such as the case for our IPC team this week as we gathered in Chicago for some games, some inspiration, and, most definitely, some goal setting.

We’re even more committed to being your best source for industry news and tips and tricks of the trade. To that end, I’m sharing my favorite news items of the week. They range from reports on quarterly earnings to Dan Feinberg’s coverage of CES and some harsh reality from marketing expert Dan Beaulieu. If you missed it on Monday, be sure to read it again here. It’s well worth your time.

Electronic System Design Industry Posts $5.1 Billion in Revenue in Q3 2024
January 15

System design continues to move to the forefront of all the design methodologies. No longer can we design in “silos of discipline,” but human collaboration and design data sharing continue to integrate. The ESD Alliance, a SEMI Technology Community tracking this space, announced in its latest Electronic Design Market Data (EDMD) report that, among the data included, the four-quarter moving average, which compares the most recent four quarters to the prior four, rose 13.7%. This is a good read for those who follow the design tools market.

Fein-Lines: CES 2025—Highlighting the Future With Sony and NVIDIA
January 14

Dan Feinberg, our resident expert on CES, reports in with his review of the show’s most significant announcements. In these announcements, the industry’s biggest players showcase their key strategic objectives for 2025, inevitably with a trickle-down effect on PCB manufacturing. Dan’s coverage of CES is not to be missed.

Global PCB Connections: The Future of HDI PCBs
January 16

In this column this month, Jerome Larez takes a long look at high density interconnect (HDI). While HDI techniques have been available for quite some time, HDI is steadily moving down the adoption curve from “bleeding edge” to “early and late majority” status. HDI is increasingly a requirement for our customers.  Whatever your role in electronics manufacturing, you can benefit from understanding what HDI entails. Give Jerome’s column a read; he does a good job making it clear.

TI Launches New Edge AI-enabled Radar Sensor and Automotive Audio Processors
January 10

Responding to the combination of factors of increased vehicle safety and more immersive rider experiences, Texas Instruments have developed a new line of sensors and electronics components for the automotive market. As stated in the press release, the demand for added capability and value is up and down the vehicle portfolio, from luxury to economy models. Read more here.

It’s Only Common Sense It’s Not the Market’s Fault—Take Responsibility for Your Business
January 13

Long-time columnist Dan Beaulieu pulls no punches in this column, launching with this: “Stop blaming the market and start looking in the mirror. Success doesn’t happen by chance; failure isn’t simply bad luck. It’s about owning your decisions, adapting to change, and focusing on what you can control. If you want to survive and thrive, it’s time to take responsibility for your business.”

Now that we’ve all had our planning sessions and our annual kickoff meetings, check your progress against the points Dan makes in his column.