Show & Tell Magazine

Show-and-Tell-2019

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122 I-CONNECT007 I REAL TIME WITH... IPC APEX EXPO 2019 SHOW & TELL MAGAZINE tions. Colette Buscemi, IPC's senior director of education programs, provided a quick update on IPC workforce development initiatives as a lead-in to a roundtable discussion on experi- ences, ideas, and strategies to address work- force and talent shortages. As the day progressed, topics turned global once again. For example, IPC's Director of Mar- ket Research, Sharon Starr presented some recent EMS survey findings. North American EMS sales growth remained solid through the third quarter of 2018 for companies with less than $100 million in annual sales. Profit margins declined slightly in the third quarter, averaging 4.3%. Starr also announced that the IPC survey program will expand globally this year and be open to new participating companies for 2019. Interested members can sign up until February 15 by contacting marketresearch@ipc.org. In the realm of strategic planning, Jack Calderon, Chaim Lubin, and Patrick McGrath from Lincoln International described an elec- tronics super cycle they believe is beginning now. This super cycle is driven by exceptional growth in new technologies such as cloud ser- vices, IoT, integrated circuits, 5G networks, and the smart grid. Lincoln International is forming a smart technology consortium to study these developments. The speakers also shared that while mergers and acquisitions decreased in 2015 through 2017, they were up in 2018 with lots of private-equity investment. Also, EMS companies are borrowing again and investing in growth. Chris Mitchell, IPC vice president of global government relations, provided attendees with a global trade update including information on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, China 301 tariffs, trade policy pipeline, private sec- tor response, and IPC's advocacy efforts to address these issues. The day ended with a dinner and reception, allowing the participants to recap the day's events and network with peers on a variety of industry issues. The EMS Steering Committee is already planning next year's agenda and is interested in hearing from fellow EMS lead- ers on growing areas of interest. To share your ideas, contact me at TracyRiggan@ipc.org.

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