Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1491409
FEBRUARY 2023 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 9 It wasn't enough to simply come home safe with a bag of gravel; now the science commu- nity demanded that the astronauts slake their thirst for knowledge about the moon's origins. Not just any rock could do that, aer all. is is where we circle back to Schmitt. Jack Schmitt started as a trained geologist who followed test pilots into the astronaut program. He was scheduled to fly the Apollo 18 mission but was moved up to the Apollo 17 crew instead. ere were a variety of reasons that shied Schmitt to the earlier mission. One of them, ostensibly, was as a response to the call for more expertise in science. In HBO's 1998 mini-series, "From the Earth to the Moon," Schmitt plays a prominent role in the episode titled, "Galileo Was Right." e story follows Schmitt's role influencing Lee Silver, a Caltech geology professor, to train the astronauts in how to spot scientifically inter- esting rock samples. anks to this training, the Apollo 15 crew was able to identify and return with a rock more than four billion years old. is rock has been dubbed the "Genesis Rock" and has contributed immensely to our understanding of the moon's geology. Can you imagine the pressure that was put on Schmitt to train and prepare the astronauts to get the right kind of rocks? is wasn't just a trip across town. It was a trip to the moon and all that entails. Now that's pressure to get it right. Pressure comes in many different forms. Pressure to meet expectations is immense. Your new role may even feel as pressure-filled as attending a trade show for the first time, especially when you have to report back to your team, department, or company. What are the expectations you've been tasked with? How will your company take what you've brought back and advance your knowl- edge and technical knowhow? How can you be like Jack Schmitt, and mentor other teams based on what you learned? We took that idea to heart while planning this issue. We wondered, "I've gone to the show (or conference), so now what? Where do I go from here?" In this issue, you'll find a roadmap of key steps to take aer the show. We offer some practical tips to effect real change armed with conference information. Some highlights: Barry Matties discusses how to make the most of your post-show activities; Dan Beaulieu offers 10 key tips for what to do while you're at the show to ensure you have what you need. We also look a lit- tle deeper into an equipment manufacturer's perspective in our interview with Koh Young. In another interview with Alpha Circuit, we investigate what goes into building out a green- field facility. Even if your post-show shopping endeavor is for a single piece of equipment, it's the greenfield buildouts like Alpha's and Rocket EMS's that have figured out what to do. Finally, Kris Moyer provides guidance on how best to share the knowledge you picked up with others. And, as a supplemental idea, I suggest down- loading Happy Holden's book, 24 Essential Skills for Engineers. Happy shares so skills to help you be effective in communicating and/or persuading once you're back in the office. On our cover, we showcase a mass of Lego™ blocks because it represents the pieces of sepa- rate bits of information gleaned from network- ing with other industry professionals that we must then assemble into a cohesive strategy aerward. For us engineer types, the compul- sion to make order out of those blocks is very real. Turning your conference and trade show knowledge into action in the factory should feel just the same. I'm sure Harrison Schmitt would understand. 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.