Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1494936
18 PCB007 MAGAZINE I MARCH 2023 to exist. ere are some potential government incentives that sound like they're on the hori- zon and it sounds like we have the right peo- ple's ears now that may bring fresh energy and resources into our industry. e printed circuit board industry is more elevated in the public consciousness than it ever has been. Twenty-five years ago, I could meet legislators who had no concept of what we did or how we fit into the overall picture, but more recently, there's height- ened awareness about what we do and how important it is. I credit the organizations I men- tioned for raising that con- sciousness in the collective. Our supply chain, our sup- plier base, and our custom- ers, it is a big number when it comes to economic impact and importance to national security. I'm excited. ere are many opportunities to support our warfighters. To the extent that we recognize national security is dependent on more than just DoD platforms and systems, that there are risk levels across all our infrastructure, and we accept that it might cost a little more to build our strategic infrastructure domestically; our security level will certainly be much higher and that should be the goal in my view. The Way Forward Do you see a path forward for the 90% of the industry that is in the $50 million and below portion of the market? Those for whom DoD work is not a specialty, but it's still in their portfolio? Will this market consolidate? Yes, it is very likely in my view. To the extent that we get serious about broadening the trusted markets and creating more opportu- nities, however, the opportunity to not only exist, but to thrive, increases for the smaller operators. I think that a more robust Defense Industrial Base is desirable to support our nation's security. We currently build only 4% of the global printed circuit board market in the U.S., which previously was up to 26%. When I came into the industry in 1979, I believe there were 2,300 fabricators. ere are fewer than 150 today; that's a massive scale down. Kudos to all the survivors; it's been a long, tough road. But I think if the markets broaden and there are more opportunities, then the success sto- ries will continue. ere are some well-operated and prof itab le s mal l bu s ine s s e s where the ownership is at the point in their life where t h e y 'r e t h i n k i ng a b o u t what's next. ey're con- sidering how they will exit and what that looks like. For the high performers, being acquired is certainly on their minds. CMMC could be a decision point. e Summit organization is committed to CMMC; for three years, we've invested in all technol- ogy, licensing, and the IT manpower resources to be prepared. It's not easy, but with this plat- form we have created, we can scale up new acquisitions and bring those under our NIST 800-171 and CMMC infrastructure. It's cer- tainly simpler for us to leverage the invest- ments that we've already made in all that infra- structure to scale those locations up to create an even more viable entity for the DoD. In the beginning of CMMC, the DoD learned a lot relative to what they thought the cost of com- pliance would be. Projections from the indus- try side gave DoD pause. We'll see how it all shakes out; I think we're close. John, thank you. This has been very informative. Awesome. ank you so much, Nolan. PCB007 For the high performers, being acquired is certainly on their minds.