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Electronics Manufacturing & Assembly Collaborative (EMAC) Announces Innovative Student Competition
July 15, 2025 | EMACEstimated reading time: 1 minute
The Electronics Manufacturing & Assembly Collaborative (EMAC) recently announced the launch of the Bright Manufacturing Challenge 2025, a revolutionary hands-on competition that transforms how students experience electronics manufacturing and robotics engineering. The first round of the competition began on July 1 and culminates in a grand finale on October 23, 2025 during the SMTA International Conference and Expo in Rosemont, Illinois, USA.
A Competition That Bridges Education and Industry
The Bright Manufacturing Challenge represents a paradigm shift in engineering education, offering students an immersive journey through the complete product development lifecycle. The competition involves teams of 2-5 students designing, fabricating, and testing custom printed circuit boards that serve as the control center for competition robots – bringing classroom theory into real-world application.
"This isn't just another academic exercise," said Tara Dunn, SMTA Director of Training & Education and Project Lead for EMAC. "We're empowering the next generation of electronics professionals with real industry experience while they're still students. The challenge mirrors exactly what they'll face in their careers – tight deadlines, technical constraints, and the need for seamless teamwork."
Four Rounds of Escalating Innovation
The competition unfolds across four intensive rounds:
Round 1: PCB Design Challenge (July 1-31, 2025 - online) Teams design sophisticated PCBs with custom features, competing for a $1,000 cash prize. Participants receive professional-grade tools including a one-year Altium Designer license and access to official Altium training curriculum.
Round 2: Design for Manufacturing Review (August 1 - September 30, 2025 - online) The top five teams advance to rigorous DFM evaluation by industry experts, preparing their designs for real-world fabrication with professional-grade standards and processes.
Round 3: Assembly Excellence (October 21, 2025 – Rosemont, IL, USA) Onsite at SMTA International, teams execute hands-on assembly of their PCBs and complete robot systems. This round emphasizes soldering quality, workmanship, and debugging capability – skills that directly translate to manufacturing careers.
Round 4: The Ultimate Robot Challenge (October 22, 2025 – Rosemont, IL, USA) The climactic finale features student-designed robots competing in autonomous missions on a custom arena floor. Teams compete for the $2,500 grand prize while demonstrating the seamless integration of electronics, firmware, and mechanical design.
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I-Connect007 Welcomes New Columnist: Leo Lambert, EPTAC
10/30/2025 | I-Connect007I-Connect007 is excited to announce a column by Leo Lambert, an industry veteran with 40 years of experience, an award winner, and technical director at EPTAC. This column, Learning With Leo, will explore the evolution and related challenges of electronics product assembly, especially as it relates to training.
ITW EAE to Showcase Latest Electronic Assembly Equipment Developments at productronica
10/21/2025 | ITWITW EAE will be showcasing its latest developments at productronica, November 18-21 in Munich, Germany. The ITW EAE booth A4–554 will have MPM, Camalot, Electrovert, Vitronics Soltec and Despatch applications experts on hand as well as sales and management to answer questions and offer solutions.
FCT Leverages Flex Design and Total Build Solutions to Drive Innovation
10/22/2025 | Marcy LaRont, PCB007 MagazineWhat’s hot in flexible circuits right now? At PCB West, I spoke with Ben Savage, business development manager at Flexible Circuit Technologies (FCT), about their flex design services and end-markets where FCT sees the most flex activity. We also discussed the company’s focus on providing supply chain resiliency, as well as the constant search for new flex engineers. If you’re looking for a new opportunity in flexible circuits, FCT is hiring.
PCBA Market Poised to Reach $147.5 Billion by 2035
10/20/2025 | Globe NewswireGlobal printed circuit board assembly market is projected to reach $147.5 billion by 2035, at a CAGR of 4.7% during the forecast period 2025-2035
Precision PCB Acquires Assets of Microplace
10/13/2025 | Precision Technologies Inc.Precision Technologies Inc., doing business as Precision PCB, a One-Stop PCB Fabrication and Assembly services company with 27 years of experience providing Quality, Reliability and Excellence in customer service, has acquired the assets of Microplace, Inc.