Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1406534
SEPTEMBER 2021 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 89 protocols in place, and production maintained under the "new normal" way of things, we con- tinued to move forward as before, and then now through 2021, we're doing very well. We assume there is a pent-up demand, and we are hoping that it's not a bubble, so we'll see how it plays out. Johnson: You're growing. Did you find new market opportunity in the COVID experience? Walker: We did not. And that kind of goes back to the small group of customers who we chose to work with. When COVID hit, we had a solid group of customers; we supported them, and they supported us through the whole process. We did not go out and engage in trying to re- invent ourselves. We understood who we are as a company, the engineering resources we have in place and everything else, so it wasn't right for us to go into another business, such as ventilators. Overall, 2020 was a solid year: Some accounts went up, others went down. e balance kept us reasonably consistent with the year before. But no, there were no new opportunities. We were not out actively soliciting new accounts. We hunkered down and supported the existing customers we had. Johnson: One of the new norms for the next couple of years, if the forecasters are to be believed, is that of disruptions in the supply chain, especially from the chip manufacturers. How is that affecting business? Walker: It wasn't affecting us at first, but we're definitely seeing component availability col- lapse and lead times stretch out. Increased cost and supplier de-commits are becom- ing more the norm, but we are managing our way through this and continue to meet all our customer needs. It goes back to your custom- ers, who they are, and where they fit into your overall picture. We have a small group of ac- counts, and we can give them 100% of our fo- cus, time, and energy. When these supply chain issues come up, we work together with 4 SM lines. High mix, high complexity, low to medium volume production.