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52 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I MARCH 2023 by Happy Holden We were back in San Diego, maybe for a "long vacation," as IPC APEX EXPO is in Anaheim next year. Before we get to Anaheim, though, let's talk about the show: It was a great week. I spent Sunday and Monday visiting some excel- lent Professional Development courses. As you know, this is a fast-changing industry, and we have to keep learning to stay ahead. On Monday, I attended the Microvia Weak Interface/Reliability subcommittee, and on Tuesday, the Ultra-HDI Tech- nology Committee. These turned out to be popular, as over 90 people showed up to the Microvia Reli- ability meeting and around 85 at the UHDI meeting. Those committees may have many new members soon. On Wednesday, I attended the "DoD Executive Agent for PCB and Interconnect Technology" (PrCB EA) Programs Update. This was very informative, with speakers updating everyone on the various activities of PrCB EA, the Defense Production Act Title III, the Defense Microelectronics Cross-Func- tional Team, and Marc Carter's EMTE education outreach. IPC's Chris Mitchell and Chris Peters of USPAE provided updates on how both organiza- tions are facilitating government/industry coopera- tion and projects. The IPC standard A-610 is just the start, and EVs have different specs and components than cars with internal combustion engines. The techni- cal challenges for EVS are temperature variation, heavy copper PCBs, density requirements, thermal dissipation, electromagnetics, and vibration/shak- ing requirements. This article originally appeared in Real Time with… IPC APEX EXPO 2023 Show & Tell Magazine. A Week-long Industry Extravaganza Practice, Practice, Practice I recently spoke to an engineering profes- sor in the Midwest, and he mentioned that there are plenty of training resources, particu- larly with video. Still, at some point, you need to turn off the video and practice. Practical learning is a must with PCB design. You must understand the steps from concept to finished design. It's something you only understand in the abstract until you do it. Make It Relatable Whatever mentoring program you develop, make it practical and relatable to the industry. is is something we practice in the PCB class at Palomar College, just as the students are fin- ishing their designs, we throw the proverbial monkey wrench into the mix. It might look like this: e sales department issues an ECO notice that we must cut $100 out of the final cost of our design. What do we do? at is not just book knowledge, but critical thinking and problem-solving. As we know, that is precisely how it happens in a company environment. We can sum this entire discussion up with a single word: obligation. No matter what level you're at, you have something to give back to the industry. Some feel it is someone else's responsibility, but I would argue that it falls on all PCB designers to step up and fill the gap; give back to the industry that has given so much to us. It's time for our ma alaga moment, and we must care for our own. If not you, then who? DESIGN007 John Watson, CID, is a customer success manager at Altium. Download The Printed Circuit Designer's Guide to… Design for Manufacturing by David Marrakchi. You can also view other titles in our full I-007eBooks library.