Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1185676
20 PCB007 MAGAZINE I NOVEMBER 2019 Thurston: We are pretty isolated up here, which is a big reason I am such a proponent of we- binars. Johnson: When it comes to your continuing professional education and growing into be- ing an experienced engineer in this industry, what's your biggest concern for accessing re- sources? Thurston: My biggest concern is the gray tsu- nami and that a lot of tribal knowledge is with people who are at or nearing retirement age; it seems like those people aren't bringing appren- tices with them. I worry too many people will leave the industry, and we won't have filled that knowledge gap by the time they leave. Michi- gan Tech has about 7,000 students, but I am almost certain that I am the only person who chose to enter the PCB industry. There are not enough young people going into it to absorb that knowledge. You can't have a handful of young engineers absorbing all of the informa- tion from people who have been in the industry for 50–60 years; you need an equal number of people entering the industry as there are leav- ing. Eventually, I won't have access to tribal knowledge because those people will be gone, and it won't have been passed down. And due to where we're located in Michigan, it is hard to access information. You can't meet other companies very easily for dinner to dis- cuss PCBs because the nearest one is 500 miles away, which Happy pointed out. We're so spread out now that it can be hard to share in- formation and strengthen the industry. Again, one solution could be webinars and attending conferences whenever you can for those face- to-face interactions. Shaughnessy: Even your suppliers and supply chain are graying out. Thurston: And we rely on our suppliers to be experts with their chemistry and have a fair amount of knowledge about PCB manufactur- ing. Across the electronics industry, we need to share knowledge from your base material and chemistry to the OEM designing the boards. printed circuit shops. The California Circuits Association was also in the area, where we met every month with a different speaker, which helped enormously. Even after the meetings, I would talk with these people, and I learned a lot. It would be great if we could have a vir- tual circuit board association that met every month, even if it was done electronically, be- cause we're so spread out. Thurston: That would be great, and then those established conferences would be a chance to meet in person. Andy Shaughnessy: What surprised you most when you entered the industry? Thurston: I was surprised by how much there is to learn and the rate of change, which is why I love this industry, but it can be overwhelming at times. For example, imagine you are plating copper onto a board, but then for your sur- face finish, you're plating ENIG onto a board. When you first get into the industry, you think, "I'm plating two metals, so it should be simi- lar, and the problems I encounter should be similar too." But it turns out they are not simi- lar at all. You might learn everything there is to know about plating, and then you try to learn ENIG, and you start from scratch. The same is true with the imaging of dry film compared to solder masks. The basis is the same—you're imaging something—and you have the same equipment, but when you troubleshoot one dry film, it's very different from troubleshoot- ing solder masks. Holden: I started out in process engineering for plating, so I joined the American Electroplat- er's Society, which had monthly meetings in the Bay Area. They had such valuable articles in their monthly magazine about electroplat- ing that I would rip them out and put them in my binders, and I still use some of their model- ing on electroplating distribution that nobody in printed circuits has ever seen. I also became a member of the IEEE. Unfortunately, where you are, it's not an easy place to reach, and if it's winter, we all stay away!