Global PCB Connections: Rigid-flex and Flexible PCBs—The Backbone of Modern Electronics
Flexible Thinking: The Key to a Successful Flex Circuit Design Transfer
Happy’s Tech Talk #29: Bend-to-Install Semi-flex FR-4
IPC APEX EXPO 2025 Learning Lounge: Education on the Show Floor
April 16, 2025 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007Estimated reading time: 1 minute
The conference portion of IPC APEX EXPO has been providing educational opportunities for attendees since the first show. But recently, show managers decided to expand education onto the show floor.
So, for the 25th IPC APEX EXPO, IPC launched a new idea: the Learning Lounge, a two-day series of educational presentations on the show floor. The Learning Lounge drew a good crowd of attendees and exhibitors alike. Topics focused primarily on industry training, education, and workforce challenges and solutions.
I attended the first presentation, “Designing Effective Training for the Electronics Manufacturing Industry,” which was led by Carlos Plaza, senior director of education at IPC, on the morning of March 18. Carlos started off by walking us through how our brains grasp new information, and which styles of teaching are the most effective at conveying this info.
One point that jumped out at me: Data shows that a one-time data dump of information, also known as “drinking out of a firehose,” isn’t as effective as we think. After a data dump, our brains struggle to synthesize this new information, trying to link it up with our prior knowledge of that topic. As I learned years ago when I was a substitute teacher, it’s tough to teach a student without prior knowledge, but even if we have some knowledge of the subject, the data dump isn’t the best teaching format. Slow and steady wins the race when it comes to education.
Other Learning Lounge presentations included “Building Regional Workforce Ecosystems in Electronics Manufacturing: Integrating Education, Industry, and Workforce Development”; “Maximizing Returns: The ROI of Training in Electronics Manufacturing”; and “Implementing and Funding Regional Workforce Ecosystems in Electronics Manufacturing.”
With so many young technologists entering the profession as the “cottontops” retire, there’s a premium on training and education. Learning Lounge offers a great chance to get a little education on the fly, on your way to your next exhibitor appointment.
Share on:
Suggested Items
Advint Delivers Advanced Electroplating Training to Triangle Labs
06/02/2025 | Advint IncorporatedDuring the last week of April, Advint Incorporated conducted a comprehensive two-day on-site electroplating training session for the technical team at Triangle Labs, Inc., a key innovator in the printed circuit board space. The training was structured to align with the demands of high-reliability plating processes suitable for RF and high-frequency substrates.
Incap Helps Develop Future Talent in Robotics and Engineering in Finland
05/21/2025 | IncapIncap Corporation continues to invest in the next generation of technology professionals in Finland through its involvement in two national initiatives focused on technical and vocational education.
$1 Million Awarded to Galvanize Workforce with Electronics Education
05/05/2025 | University of ArkansasThe Arkansas Department of Higher Education awarded the University of Arkansas $1 million to expand electronics education through development of credit and non-credit courses related to workforce needs in the semiconductor industry.
SEL Receives Purdue Senior Design Partner of the Year Award
05/01/2025 | Schweitzer Engineering LaboratoriesSchweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) has been awarded the Senior Design Partner of the Year Award from the Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering at Purdue University.
Incap Empowers the Next Generation of Skilled Professionals at Taitaja 2025
04/21/2025 | IncapIncap Corporation is proud to support the Taitaja 2025 Championship of vocational skills, Finland’s largest annual event dedicated to vocational education and training.