Dan’s Biz Bookshelf: ‘Growth Hacker Marketing’
Happy’s Tech Talk #38: Novel Metallization for UHDI
It’s Only Common Sense Mastering the Follow-Up—The Key to Closing More Deals
IPC Hall of Fame Spotlight Series: Highlighting Denny Fritz
March 13, 2025 | Dan Feinberg, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Editor’s note: Dan Feinberg continues his series on the IPC Hall of Fame, spotlighting the achievements of past Hall of Fame members.
Many IPC members who have contributed significantly to IPC and our industry have been awarded the IPC Raymond E. Pritchard Hall of Fame (HOF) Award. Though many early HOF members have passed away and are unknown to today’s IPC membership, their contributions still resonate. This special series on IPC Hall of Fame members provides a reminder of who was honored and why. As a bonus, for those who are still around, we get to find out what these talented individuals are up to today.
This month, the Hall of Fame spotlight features Denny Fritz, a long-time friend and associate of mine.
Denny first got involved with IPC in 1978 while working with MacDermid. His first efforts were with the various board fabrication committees, something he believes helped lead to his eventual Hall of Fame award. He considers his patron saint, Dieter Bergman, to be the one who got Denny so involved, encouraged him when he did, and also supported his nomination for the Hall of Fame award.
As with so many HOF recipients, their involvement in IPC endeavors is difficult to fully convey, but I will try here to list out many of Denny’s innumerable IPC accomplishments.
Fabrication Standards Activities
SM-840 standard, 1978–1987
IPC Process Effects: IPC-740, chair 2005–2014
IPC Microvias: IPC D-33D, 1995–2004
IPC Buried Components (Resistors): D-55, 1997–2005
Surface finishes: IPC 455x, 1995-2012
Assembly Standards
IPC Component solderability J-002: Vice Chair, 1997–2020
Councils
October Project: Cooperative PCB Research, 1995-2003
Assembly and Joining Committee, 1997-2020
Roadmaps
IPC Technology Roadmap, Fabrication Section Editor, 1996-2015
iNEMI Roadmap, Bare Board Chapter Participant, 1998-2012
Books
Printed Circuit Handbook: Editor of the chapter on Embedded Components, 6th edition, 2012
Toward the advancement of global manufacturing, Denny also chaired the North American group of the JISSO International Council from 2006–14. The JISSO International Council (JIC) was an independent nonprofit organization in Japan governed by a steering committee to facilitate a strategic partnership among organizations interested in the total solution for interconnecting, assembling, packaging, mounting, and integrating system design standardization. According to an IPC paper presented at ECWC 10 at the IPC Printed Circuit Expo, as it was called at the time, JISSO is a made-up word that Japanese technologists created to stand for total system integration, akin to the “silicon to systems” phrase that IPC uses today. The JIC and its members were committed to fostering open competition in the development of products and services based on industry needs. IPC was one of the initial JISSO organizers, along with Japan Printed Circuit Association (JPCA), Japan Exchange and Teaching Association (JETA), and Joint Electronic Device Engineering Council (JEDEC). Denny’s early work with these groups was foundational in where IPC finds itself today in developing global manufacturing standards.
Denny is still involved with IPC and remains interested in and follows the industry’s technological advancement. Denny was considered for the Hall of Fame Award due to his involvement in the Assembly and Joining Committee, as well as his interest and involvement in all aspects of printed circuit board manufacturing and assembly technology. Thank you, IPC Hall of Fame member Denny Fritz, for your contributions to IPC and the industry at large.
This article appeared in the February 2025 issue of PCB007 Magazine.
Share on:
Suggested Items
Hunting for Clues: Feng Xue Solving Circuit Board 'Crimes' With AOI Standard
05/08/2025 | Linda Stepanich, IPCWhen residents in sleepy English villages needed a top-tier detective to solve a murder, they called on Belgian super-sleuth Hercule Poirot, author Agatha Christie’s fictional detective famous for using his “little grey cells” to solve crimes. In the same way, IPC standards development committees, when creating a standard to detect defects in circuit boards using Automated Optical Inspection (AOI), call on IPC A-Team, Hercule.
IPC Strengthens Global Focus with Promotion of Sanjay Huprikar to Chief Global Officer
05/08/2025 | IPCIPC, the global electronics association, announces the promotion of Sanjay Huprikar to chief global officer. This newly created position reflects the association’s forward-looking strategy and industry needs to strengthen the electronics supply chain.
Navigating Global Manufacturing in an Era of Uncertainty
05/07/2025 | Philip Stoten, ScoopThe EMS industry faces unprecedented challenges as global trade tensions rise and tariff announcements create market uncertainty. In an overview of IPC Europe’s podcast, MADE IN EUROPE, industry experts from GPV and Zollner examine how these developments impact our businesses and customers, and what strategies will prevail in this new landscape.
Nick Koop Launches IPC Flex Design Class
05/06/2025 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007 MagazineNick Koop is director of flex technology for TTM Technologies, and he’s been a staple of IPC’s flex committees for decades. He’s also a longtime flex design instructor, and he’s about to debut a new IPC class, Flex and Rigid-Flex Design for Manufacturability, which will run May 12–21. In this interview, Nick tells us about this new class and what attendees can expect to learn.
The Government Circuit: Trump’s Trade War Disrupts the Electronics Ecosystem
05/06/2025 | Chris Mitchell -- Column: The Government CircuitThere is certainly no shortage of work to be done in the IPC Government Relations department, as the U.S. waged a tariff campaign on practically every industrial country in the world and several countries embarked on high-tech initiatives with a mix of approaches to the crucial foundations of electronics manufacturing. Indeed, the breadth and speed of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff campaign continues to be a serious challenge for our industry.