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Current IssueShowing Some Constraint
A strong design constraint strategy carefully balances a wide range of electrical and manufacturing trade-offs. This month, we explore the key requirements, common challenges, and best practices behind building an effective constraint strategy.
All About That Route
Most designers favor manual routing, but today's interactive autorouters may be changing designers' minds by allowing users more direct control. In this issue, our expert contributors discuss a variety of manual and autorouting strategies.
Creating the Ideal Data Package
Why is it so difficult to create the ideal data package? Many of these simple errors can be alleviated by paying attention to detail—and knowing what issues to look out for. So, this month, our experts weigh in on the best practices for creating the ideal design data package for your design.
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I-Connect007 Editor’s Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
March 11, 2022 | Andy Shaughnessy, Design007Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

It’s Friday, and I’ve spent the last few days breaking in my new laptop. It’s a Mac, and it’s been a while since I used one of these.
It occurred to me that the last time I used a Mac, there was no email and no internet. I was editor of my college newspaper. I had just voted for Clinton, because that’s what you did in your 20s. We had Apple Classic II monitors with screens the size of a postcard, and we were on the cutting edge of desktop publishing.
Students submitted articles on 3.5” loppy disks or on notebook paper, sometimes written in pencil. That’s where I learned to edit, and to do it quickly. We won awards every year. Good times.
Now I’m on a new MacBook Air, and it’s slamming fast. It just feels tight, like nothing was left to chance. After 30 years of Microsoft equipment, I’m accustomed to computers that just freeze up for no reason. But this Mac just works the way it should. What a concept!
So, it’s been a good week, and a busy week in our industry as well. As we head into the weekend, enjoy a variety of recently published articles and columns. See you next time.
Institute of Circuit Technology: A Novel Approach to Recycling PCBs
Published March 10
We all love our cool electronic devices, but we can’t keep tossing them into landfills when they wear out. Editor Pete Starkey brings us a great review of an ICT webinar that focused on the technical and regulatory problems associated with recycling electronics. Presented during the organization’s annual meeting on March 2, this webinar featured speakers Emma Hudson, Jack Herring, and Colin Martin.
Planning Your Design Education Strategy
Published March 9
Once you land a job as a PCB designer, you realize that you need to continue your education and training throughout your career. But where do you start? We asked Eric Bogatin to share his thoughts on setting up your lifelong design education strategy. As a college professor and a signal integrity instructor, Eric has a pretty circumspect viewpoint on this topic.
IPC APEX EXPO From a College Student’s Perspective
Published March 8
One of the highlights of IPC APEX EXPO 2022 was seeing all the young people who have recently joined our industry. One of these is Hannah Nelson, an electrical engineering major at Valparaiso University. In this article, Hannah discusses her role as the new student director on the IPC Board of Directors, and some of her takeaways from IPC APEX EXPO 2022.
Smart Factory Insights: CFX IIoT Open-Source Hardware
Published March 9
IPC’s Connected Factory Exchange standard (CFX) is taking manufacturing to the next level, but much of the industry is still using old, “dumb” equipment. If a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, can CFX become fully optimized with these older machines? In this column, Michael Ford explains how CFX can actually bring out the best in your not-so-new equipment and provide visibility across the shop floor.
It’s Only Common Sense: A Frictionless Future
Published March 7
Is impatience a good thing? It can certainly lead to some positive outcomes. In this column, Dan Beaulieu addresses our need to have everything right now, and how this impatience is driving companies in our industry to do better each day. And don’t say it can’t be done. As Dan points out, “Every time someone says that something is impossible, a damn fool goes out and does it.”
Suggested Items
The Government Circuit: Three Inescapable Conclusions About Global Trade Policies
07/17/2025 | Chris Mitchell -- Column: The Government CircuitAmid a series of recent moves by U.S. President Donald Trump to escalate trade policy pressure on key U.S. partners, including Europe, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and Malaysia, the Global Electronics Association’s recent report on global trade flows in the electronics industry is overflowing with relevant insights. The main message is that electronics supply chains are more globally integrated than any other industry, surpassing even the automotive sector in cross-border complexity.
The Wire Association International’s Wire Expo to Co-Locate with the Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo (EWPTE)
07/16/2025 | Global Electronics AssociationThe Wire Association International Inc. (WAI) announces plans to co-locate its biennial Wire Expo with the Wiring Harness Manufacturer’s Association (WHMA)/Global Electronics Association’s Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo (EWPTE) May 6-7, 2026. The two shows will co-locate at the Baird Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
The Pulse: Design Constraints for the Next Generation
07/17/2025 | Martyn Gaudion -- Column: The PulseIn Europe, where engineering careers were once seen as unpopular and lacking street credibility, we have been witnessing a turnaround in the past few years. The industry is now welcoming a new cohort of designers and engineers as people are showing a newfound interest in the profession.
Flexible Circuit Technologies Welcomes Regional Business Development Manager Derek Rossberg
07/15/2025 | Flexible Circuit TechnologiesFlexible Circuit Technologies a Minnesota-based flexible circuit and advanced electronics contract manufacturer, welcomes Derek Rossberg as Regional Business Development Manager.
IPC Hall of Fame Spotlight Series: Highlighting Lionel Fullwood
07/15/2025 | Dan Feinberg, I-Connect007Many 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.