Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1501483
66 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JUNE 2023 American Made Advocacy PCBAA As a supplier, what stands out in your many years in the industry? Besides all the technological advancements I have observed in my 40+ years of being in the business, I saw for the second time what hap- pens when government and industry don't work well together. I am originally from the Youngstown, Ohio area, which used to be steel country. Watch- ing what happened to the PCB industry in the U.S. in the mid- to late-1990s and into the early 2000s was a repeat of what happened to the steel industry. It was frustrating because we didn't get the support and cooperation of the government to preserve manufacturing as the backbone of our country. Our government began to enforce regulations that hampered our industry; many American companies just couldn't compete and went out of business. Work moved overseas, chasing low wages and the big government subsidies offered mostly in the Asian countries. What has changed in the past year? Geopolitical concerns have driven this issue into the halls of Congress. With the supply chain risks generated by COVID and politi- cal uncertainty in other countries, lawmak- ers finally saw the danger presented by over- reliance on other nations. e CHIPS Act addressed chips at the top of the technology stack and now the Protecting Circuit Boards and Substrates Act is calling attention to the rest: PCBs and substrates. We can't afford to waste any more time debating whether our industry needs govern- ment support. PCBs are everywhere, from the devices we use in everyday life to critical infrastructure. To maintain our economic and national security, we need reliable domestic sources to protect that infrastructure. PCBAA Member Profile: Frank Medina President and CEO, Technica USA Frank Medina