Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1199133
JANUARY 2020 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 33 had with IPC TAEC Global as a place to start looking at what we can do to bring the design commu- nity together in today's industry. Shaughnessy: Tell us a little about IPC TAEC Global. Rowe: IPC TAEC Global is a group of seven individuals that repre- sents all corners of the world. The group comes together to look at the top activities in our standards development efforts. Shaughnessy: It would be great if we could get the chapters more connected and involved, including people in areas where there are no chapters. Crawford: Absolutely, and that's part of what we want to do with having this new structure. If you have a group of designers, but the clos- est chapter is a five-hour drive away, now, you have a line to IPC through a regional advisor and could develop a chapter. That's not going to be an issue anymore because it will be more empowering for smaller groups to organize. Shaughnessy: I think there needs to be some better guidelines on how to set up a chapter. Crawford: One of our inspirations in going for- ward with this is the IPC Education Founda- tion, which has a great policy and procedure for starting a student chapter at universities. There's a great infrastructure built in there, and we're looking to do something similar so that it's a matter of filling out the right forms and calling the right people at IPC. We want to help the designer not waste time playing phone tag. We want to advance PCB design and help PCB designers better themselves. Shaughnessy: Shifting gears a little, tell us about the CID and CID+ programs. Rowe: The CID program is changing. If you've received a CID in the past, it's good forever. But going forward, the CID pro- gram will fall under the poli- cies and procedures of our train- ing and certification programs, and as part of that, there will be a program unveiled that will require designers to re-certify on an ongoing basis to remain current. Again, the same as our CIT and CIS courses now, so someone can take the training and receive their certification; it will be good for two years, and it ex- pires at the end of two years. It doesn't mean the knowledge goes away, but the certification ends in two years. Shaughnessy: It can be difficult to get designers to take the CID exam one time. Do you think they're going to come back every two years? Rowe: It depends. I can't make up their minds for them, and our other programs are set up this way, so it's about staying relevant in the industry. Shaughnessy: How is this going to affect EP- TAC's classes on CID and CID+? Rowe: The way it works for our other programs (i.e., assembly, board fabrication, and rework and repair) is that we have master training sites in the U.S. that are licensed to teach these courses. Right now, the plan is for the CID pro- gram to fall underneath the policies and proce- dures of those same requirements. And we're not saying it won't change in the future, but that's where we are today. Shaughnessy: Are the members of the Design Community Leadership Team going to be de- signers and EEs? Crawford: Yes. And we are consciously se- lecting professionals who are forward-think- ing, open to those changes we talked about with the certification, and have been active members in leadership positions in IPC com- mittees. Teresa Rowe