Associations in Agreement

Taiwan’s Vice President Wu (tallest man, center of photo) welcomed visitors and took part in the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the TPCA Show held in conjunction with the IMPACT 2012 event in Taipei. Second from the right is IPC CEO and president John Mitchell.

The TPCA and the JPCA signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center on Oct. 25 to highlight industrial cooperation in a practical and efficient way. The TPCA organized an Alliance Seminar held in conjunction with the endorsement. This followed the Advance Technology Forum alliance event of this past July. The activity is supported by Taiwan’s Economic Department. Approval of funding was announced after the signing.

IMPACT 2012 was jointly organized by IEEE CPMT-Taipei, iMAPS-Taiwan, ITRI and the TPCA, and co-organized by IDB-Ministry of Economic Affairs, I-Shou University, NanKang IC Design Incubation Center. SMTA, and TTMA. IMPACT (International Microsystems, Packagiing, Assembly and Circuits Technology Conference) attracted 190 papers from 14 countries.

The TPCA held a special breakfast presentation in which an update on the industry in Japan (PCB domestic production down 45+% from its peak in 2007 as offshore manufacturing increased) by Dr. Hayao Nakahara of NTI and the industry status in Thailand presented by Bancha Ongkosit, chairman and managing director of KCE Electronics. The latter stated that Thailand lacks supply chain infrastructure and that he no longer buys from the US. He pointed out the growth of automotive electronics, stating that virtually every major car company as set up there, and that Thailand exports about 3.5 million vehicles per year. He also stated that the growth of organic substrate replacement for ceramic based electronic circuits for vehicles will continue to increase rapidly.

America’s Interdyne Systems, a new fabrication equipment entry debuted its revolutionary new concept for the mechanical drilling of 75 micron holes. Taiwan Kong King (TKK) celebrated its 35th Anniversary at the show.

It’s a Collaborative World After All
Rumors persist that an announcement of a new collaborative activity between the IPC and iNEMI is imminent.

Lenovo, the world’s second largest PC producer, will start production of its Think brand notebooks in the US next year at its fulfillment center in North Carolina. Lenovo acquired IBM’s PC division (original producer of the Think PC) in 2005. Last month Lenovo announced the acquisition of Brazil’s PC maker Comercio de Component Electronicos.

Taiwan’s intelligence chief warned that one in every three Taiwanese companies based on the mainland are facing closure due to rapidly falling profits, according to Agence France-Presse in Taipei. Another 30% are also reported to be struggling on the mainland. Last year the island’s authorities approved 575 mainland investments totaling $13.1 billion.

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About Gene

Gene Weiner has spent his entire career -- spanning more than 50 years -- in the printed circuit and semiconductor industries. He spent the early part of his career in R&D as a student technician at MIT Lincoln Laboratories, then became employee no. 4 at Shipley, and later vice president of sales and marketing at Dynachem and president of New England Laminates. He has been a consultant to leading materials, circuit board and semiconductor companies for several years, and sits on the board of Wong’s Kong King International and the MBA advisory board of the Malcolm Baldridge School of Business at Post University. He was inducted to the IPC Hall of Fame in 2006.