Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1456062
MARCH 2022 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 9 across an ocean to be placed into packaging. Should diplomatic relations turn sour with any of the countries who have chip packag- ing capability, and U.S. tech is stuck, unable to make product. e state of printed circuit manufacturing is not quite as dire as chip packaging, but the sit- uation is quite serious. In a recent IPC analy- sis, Joe O'Neil points out that North Amer- ica's total PCB manufacturing capacity is not enough to manufacture the number of iPhones imported to the continent. ink about that: Apple's circuit board appetite alone could bury the U.S. manufacturing infrastructure. Depending upon what the U.S. government wishes to accomplish with strategic invest- ment, a massive buildout of PCB fabrication capacity may not be the intended goal. If the goal were, for example, to ensure that the U.S. could manufacture all defense-related elec- tronics within U.S. borders, then iPhone vol- umes are probably not necessary. Still, the last two or three years have taught us all that the supply chain can become too optimized, too single-sourced. Added capacity of all types will benefit the ability of the U.S. to maintain a resilient supply chain. ere's also a skills gap when a country's sci- entists and engineers can design something but cannot build it themselves because they don't have that expertise. I-Connect007 has covered this topic in the past, and it has been an ongoing topic of out- reach to the U.S. government as well. But here's a point to ponder: It's not just a North American issue, as other regions face many of the same chokepoints in their manufacturing chain as well. To that end, our March issue expands beyond just the U.S. strategic investment legislation by including some perspective on the European Union's approach to similar legislation. We also bring you an M&A perspective from Tom Kast- ner, and an article on how to minimize quot- ing time from Mark Laing. ICAPE's Stanley Bentley posts a piece answering the question, "Where Have All the Board Shops Gone?" Columnists this month include Michael Ford, Bob Wettermann, and Dr. Ron Lasky, as well as a new column from Hannah Nelson and Paige Fiet. We've taken care to sprinkle some theme- appropriate video interviews from IPC APEX EXPO in this issue; to see all the interviews, be sure to pop over to www.realtimewith.com. In addition, the 2022 edition of the Real Time with… IPC APEX EXPO Show & Tell Maga- zine is now available for download. is spe- cial edition provides comprehensive coverage of the industry's biggest show, and is not to be missed. SMT007 Nolan Johnson is managing editor of SMT007 Magazine. Nolan brings 30 years of career experience focused almost entirely on electronics design and manufacturing. To contact Johnson, click here.