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Steve Williams: A Strong Career Built on PCBs

With more than 40 years in electronics manufacturing, The Right Approach columnist Steve Williams shares the story of a life built on hard work, learning, and leadership. From family business roots to global sourcing strategies, Steve reflects on his proudest milestones and reminds us that success in this industry starts with continuous learning.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 8: Improve Communication and You Improve Everything

Your communication is either your greatest advantage or your greatest challenge. There is no middle ground. After 35+ years working with PCB shops, I can tell you with absolute certainty that the shops that communicate well win, while those that communicate poorly struggle. It’s not because they lack capability, technology, or talent. They struggle because people are not talking to each other at the right time, about the right things, with the right clarity.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 7: Strengthen Your Team Before You Strengthen Your Sales

Every shop has core roles that determine whether the company succeeds or struggles. These include engineering, CAM, quality, program management, operations leadership, customer service, and sales execution. If these roles are slow, overwhelmed, or under-trained, nothing else matters.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 6: Clean Up Your Customer List—Not All Business Is Good Business

There’s a truth that almost every PCB shop knows deep down but refuses to speak out loud: Some customers are bad for business. Not because they’re challenging, too technical, or demanding in a good way. But because they’re bad for your margins, people, schedule, culture, and your blood pressure. They send you orders, so you tolerate them, and because they’ve been around a long time, you handle them with kid gloves.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 5: Actions and Measurements—The 2026 Scoreboard That Drives Behavior

As we head into 2026—a year that will demand discipline, focus, customer obsession, and speed—you need a scoreboard that drives performance across your entire organization. You need a handful of critical, high-impact metrics that guide your actions every single week, so, let’s talk about the scoreboard that will make 2026 a breakout year.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 4: 2025 Operations and Quality Review: Fix What Slowed You Down

Let’s have a grown-up conversation: You can build the best strategy in the world, pick brilliant target accounts, and forecast with precision. But if your operations and quality don’t back it up, none of it matters. Eventually, every PCB shop learns that you can’t sell your way out of operational chaos, 

Hall of Fame Spotlight Series: Highlighting Larry Velie

Many who have contributed significantly to the Global Electronics Association (formerly IPC)  and our industry have been awarded the Association’s Raymond E. Pritchard Hall of Fame (HOF) Award. Though many early HOF members have passed away and are unknown to today’s membership, their contributions still resonate. This special series on 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.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: Jiva's Product Progress Update

Jiva’s Jack Herring provides an update on products, scalability, and lifecycle assessments. He answers questions about material properties, compliance, and sustainability. Jack also highlights the importance of being a market option and discusses plans for scaling production in the UK and Asia to meet demands and reduce carbon footprints.

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

Before diving into this week’s must-reads, I want to spotlight the incredible batch of interviews our team captured at productronica. They go beyond the quick booth chitchat and dig into the most pressing topics in electronics manufacturing. We spoke with companies and leaders who are shaping what happens next, and the conversations touch on the challenges and innovations that matter most to the industry today.

Tom Kastner: Navigating the Complex World of M&A

With a background spanning Silicon Valley, Japan, and Chicago, Punching Out columnist Tom Kastner has helped countless PCB and EMS business owners achieve their goals. In this interview, Tom reflects on his path from anthropology student to M&A expert, his love of nature and restoration work, and the satisfaction of guiding entrepreneurs through one of the most complex—and rewarding—transitions in business.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 3: Forecasting: Stop Guessing and Start Knowing

Most forecasts in our industry are not forecasts. They’re just guesses dressed up as numbers. Some other truths about forecasts: A forecast based on hope is fiction; a forecast based on memory is unreliable; a forecast based on “what we did last year plus 10%” is lazy; a forecast based on no customer contact at all? That’s malpractice.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 2: Target Accounts: Stop Chasing Everyone and Start Pursuing Someone

Most PCB companies believe they have a sales problem, but the real issue is their focus, as they are chasing too many customers and industries, with too many “maybes,” “could be’s,” and “if only” accounts. Their sales strategy is basically, “If they buy PCBs, we want them.” That’s only wishful thinking masquerading as ambition. If you want to grow, achieve stability, and have customers who value what you do (and are willing to pay for it), don’t waste another year on random pursuits and accidental wins.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: MKS' Atotech's Innovations in Sustainable Practices for the Chemical Industry

MKS' Atotech's Dr. Christian Ohde discusses environmental issues in the chemical industry. This interview explores sustainable materials, while emphasizing the reduction of harmful substances. With the shift toward eco-friendly practices, new technologies are needed to meet market demands and enhance efficiency in chip packaging.

The Next Five Years of Thermal Substrates, Ceramics, and Thick-film PCBs

If you want a clean view of where thermal substrates and ceramic/thick-film electronics are headed, follow the heat. Power density is moving up and to the right across industries: EV traction inverters, fast chargers, AI data centers, radar, satellite payloads, medical imaging, and high-brightness LEDs. The next five years will be defined by designs that treat thermal performance as a first-order constraint, not an afterthought. Here’s what that means in practice.

I-Connect007 Announces the December Issue of Advanced Electronics Packaging Digest

Landing in inboxes Monday, Dec. 15, the next issue of Advanced Electronics Packaging Digest (AEPD) explores some of the most pressing questions shaping U.S. advanced electronics capability, from defense readiness to power constraints and the fast-moving world of printed electronics. This month, we spotlight the technologies, strategies, and industry perspectives driving next-generation manufacturing forward.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: Navigating Changes in the EMEA Market—Insights from Ventec Experts

Ventec's Mark Goodwin and Pesh Patel explore the EMEA market's structural changes, including Panasonic's factory closure and its effects on laminators. They discuss the transition to low DK glass and the influence of the AI boom. Mark highlights the need for effective inventory management, while Pesh presents the glass-free revolution, showcasing new materials and resin technologies that improve performance and expand applications beyond traditional circuit boards.

Your 2026 Business Playbook: Step 1: Strategy Isn’t a Document, It’s a Commitment

Let’s start with a tough truth most companies don’t want to hear: Strategy is not a binder, a spreadsheet, or a deck of slides. It is a commitment to what you will do every day. Yet every December and January, companies all over this industry gather the troops at a conference table, eat a few muffins, and create what can only be described as an annual work of fiction, otherwise known as the “strategic plan.”

The 2026 Business Success Playbook

For the next 10 days, I will take you through a step-by-step plan to prepare your company for 2026. It’s an opportunity to make 2026 a year of discipline, focus, and intentional growth. The new year will not reward companies that "hope" their way to success. It will reward companies that prepare, focus, communicate, innovate, strengthen their teams, and build the kind of culture that customers never want to leave.

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

It’s been another big week in global business news with positive projections on global economic growth, primarily driven by AI. U.S. labor markets are showing some strain after copious layoff activity, and there’s possibly a slight “correction” in the stock market, with investors apparently concerned about corporate overvaluation. My must-reads are interesting, informative, and important for industry members, particularly in the U.S. These selections range from onshoring high-tech thermal control to the value of training, recognizing interconnect defects, and an important statement from the Global Electronics Association regarding the USMCA.

Summit Interconnect’s Leadership in the ‘Silicon Prairie’

Summit Interconnect is one of the two largest PCB fabricators in the United States. I visited with Deepak Makwana, general manager of Summit’s Chicago plant, Business Development Manager Tom Veitch, and Vice President of Technology Gerry Partida at their Schaumberg, Illinois (Summit Chicago) facility to learn more about the evolution of PCB manufacturing in the Midwest.

Understanding Agentic AI

For those of us who design, build, and use computers, AI is our most frequent topic of conversation. Next to that is agentic AI, a form of artificial intelligence designed to function autonomously. But how is it different from traditional and generative AI? Simply said, agentic AI can execute complex tasks autonomously with little or no human intervention.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: Energy Security and Nuclear Fusion Innovations

Pete Starkey meets with Alun Morgan to discuss significant upcoming EIPC events, including a conference at a nuclear fusion reactor site in France and a summer conference in Lithuania. He emphasizes the importance of energy security and advancements in nuclear fusion technology, particularly the role of AI in reactor design. Additionally, Alun highlights a new PCB plant in Lithuania, marking a major investment in the region.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: Polar on Understanding Material Libraries in Design

Pete Starkey and Martyn Gaudion discuss the rapid updates in material libraries and the critical need for designers to grasp material properties. They highlight the role of suppliers and the importance of communication between designers and fabricators. Martyn focuses on the educational aspect of their services, aiming to connect design and manufacturing. The conversation underscores the significance of material knowledge in enhancing the design process through collaboration.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: Exploring MGI Group's Innovations in Digital Printing

Pete Starkey introduces Alexis Guilbert from Altix and Frédéric Soulier from MGI Group at the Altix booth. MGI, established in 1992, focuses on graphic arts and digital printing technology. Their collaboration with Altix boosts capabilities in printed circuit board imaging and inkjet technology. MGI Group's recent acquisition of Altix enhances their market position, promising sustainability and improved production rates. This partnership fosters advanced solutions for customers.

Real Time with... productronica 2025: Advancements in Inkjet Technology with Electra Polymers

Ashley Steers of Electra Polymers discusses the advancements in inkjet technology and its increasing market acceptance. Investments in production capabilities and the commitment to traditional solder mask inks are also touched on. The conversation addresses sustainability challenges and compliance issues, while emphasizing the importance of new technologies and personnel in maintaining market share.
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