As a longtime journalist, I always find myself pulled in so many directions of curiosity. I’ve often felt like the saying, “A jack of all trades, master of none.” It seems to be the price I’ve paid as a writer and editor, delving into so many different corners of industry, community, and the human condition. But that’s also why I love this week’s collection of must-reads. From novel flexible circuits to modernizing IPC standards, a trade show in the burgeoning China Plus One region, Mexico’s manufacturing moment, and opportunities for workforce development, we’ve gone around the world and back again. We touch on so many aspects of the industry, and especially the opportunities and challenges of keeping up with change.

IPC-1751 Committee Chairs Nikki Johnson, VP of operations and regulatory at Source Intelligence, with over 20 years of experience in compliance standards, and Dr. N Nagaraj, a chemical engineer and former NASA contractor who helped develop early IPC compliance solutions, discuss IPC-1751, the newly adopted JSON-based standard that replaces the older XML format. In this roundtable-format conversation, Johnson and Nagaraj explain how IPC-1751 serves as a modular "envelope" that connects related standards (IPC 1752–1757, IPC-1782) for material composition, lab reports, and conflict minerals.

ITAR vs. EAR: When PCB Fabrication Can Move Outside the U.S.

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

Standard of Excellence: ‘Quality’ Is Your Company's Greatest Competitive Advantage