Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1496178
48 SMT007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2023 the opportunity to write a children's book five years ago, which was fun. It combined illustration with very basic storytelling; I enjoy writing. When the time comes to tell an interesting story about the industry, what will you choose to tell? Wettermann: I will tell stories about design, manufacturing, and repair worldwide. Probably the most fun I've had was with Research In Motion, in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, that used to be a large client for BEST. They hired staff from all over the world who were integral in increasing the manufacturing volumes. It's probably the most fun we had with a project. When we would finish with our business, we went across town and socialized with them. I have met so many really interesting people from all over the world because I was fortunate to work in the electronics industry. Motorola was 80% of the business early on in BEST's history. Those engineers loved to come over at 3 or 3:30 p.m. Fridays, drop off a board, and tell us what they needed done. After we got through with our technical discussion, they would sit in the office telling stories; we would crack open a beer from our mini-fridge and talk. Suddenly, it's 5:30 p.m., and my wife is calling to see where I am at. I'd tell her, "I'm working with a customer," which really was the truth. I can imagine your phone call home, "Honey, those Motorola boys are here again." Wettermann: Some of them came with motor- c ycle s in the s ummer, s o we de velo p ed specialty motorcycle packaging. It had extra foam around the box. We would use a bungee cord to hook it onto the back of their carrier and it didn't damage the board. Wettermann: Is it a job anybody really wants to do? It's tedious work. There are people who have the skills, patience, and acumen to do that, but it's a rarity. What has changed? The workforce and electronics are just very different; it's become a more international workforce. Does that multilingual aspect add some complexity to your onsite training? Wettermann: In some cases, interpreters are required to facilitate the training, and there is a lot more over-the-shoulder instruction, which makes it more complex. You have been a long-time columnist with I-Connect007 and a great technical resource on how to do rework. What was your experience as a columnist like? Wettermann: We repair circuit boards. Our customers never come to us for the easy projects that they can do themselves. So, we come up with novel techniques to facilitate the rework and repair to solve customers' problems. In doing so, we see things that are not necessarily covered in any specification. Typically, IPC- 7711/21 (Rework, Modification, and Repair of Electronic Assemblies) is five to seven years behind the times. That means BEST has to be a creative problem-solver. Part of business is making sure your name is known and when you're a small specialty shop like ours, that's just part of the mix. I've presented a number of papers for IPC APEX EXPO and SMTA International along with our trainers. While I'm the spokesperson, the trainer is doing the soldering work. We've done technical seminars and webinars. You're seen as a resource. I get article ideas from our clients, and from the feedback on my column. It's fun to write these articles. I also had Bob Wettermann