Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1193979
76 PCB007 MAGAZINE I DECEMBER 2019 processes, so it didn't have an impact on all of our expansion plans and investments. All of those things were already well into play for 2019. Johnson: What are your ideal customer pro- files? Minard: In Europe, and especially in Germany, the automotive space is where it's at; it's still where all of the major automotive projects are being both designed and purchased. For us, moving into the U.S., there is a significant tier of up-and-coming networking and storage cus- tomers in Silicon Valley that we'd love to en- gage with. We have aligned ourselves with a couple of supplier partners that are perfectly positioned to support that sector of the mar- ket. I know that market well. Beyond that, on the commercial side, having dealt with a few IoT home automation customers and all of the big consumer players, we have three or four factories that are perfectly aligned with those technologies. What CML's model allows me to do for my customers is to find them the best technology and commercial fit. If the two-layer board goes to one factory, rigid-flex to another, and HDI goes to a third factory, we can get them the best factory technology fit and the best price, and the boards come out with the CML proud- ly displayed on the boards. Shaughnessy: It sounds like a lot of what you do involves educating the customer. Minard: Correct. And I've had an opportuni- ty to chat with a few of my good contacts in the EMS world, especially onshore in the U.S., where their commodity managers manage not only PCBs but perhaps enclosures and maybe some mechanical stuff. Their time is extreme- ly valuable to them. When you get a company like CML that can come in with eight different factories at their disposal that can do anything from a single layer IMS for LED lighting all the way up to the 24-layer board in a high-tech space, the customer doesn't have to send it out to six companies to get quotes back anymore; CML can handle it all. That is a great time saver for them and helps streamline the supply base. Beyond that, we can offer a common engineer- ing resource that can support all our factories. Shaughnessy: That's cool. Is Jurgen Kaulich a big part of this? Minard: Yes. Juergen is our engineering director and, while he's based in Germany, he spends a lot of time in Asia. He manages his teams in Germany and Shenzhen and has made their role more proactive; their goal is to be engaged as early as possible with our customers. For example, I was talking to a customer out of Canada that said, " I don't need another PCB