IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
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IPC COMMUNITY 38 FALL 2023 says Brandy, director of education at IPC. "It was something I grew up with. Everybody kind of fell into some facet of the field." When she started college, Brandy also worked for a telecommunications equipment manufacturer doing hand insertion manual assembly, then learning how to run a wave sol- der machine because she could work a week- end shift. "But I'm not the kind of person who can sit still," she says. "I like to know a little bit about everything." Because the company was short on operators, Brandy learned how to program and run more lines and equipment, working her way through each department. That led to a position in the training department and launched a career in training and certification. Instead of becoming the high school math teacher she had orig- inally planned, Brandy has spent her career either training others or developing training programs in the electronics industry. For one job, she became a master IPC trainer and did quite a bit of traveling. "I loved that job," she says. "I loved training and seeing all the different facilities. We would go all over the country, meet new people, and learn different processes, whether it was cable wire harness manufacturing, PCB fab, or military classes." Later, she became a lead trainer for Carl- isle Interconnect Technologies, a certifi- cation company near Seattle, Washington, which became a private IPC master training center so that it could maintain its own CITs. "We were really invested in our people and we didn't necessarily like going out of house," Brandy says. "We wanted our trainers not only to be familiar with IPC specifications and have those certifications, but we wanted Brandy's thoughts on Training • "Training is probably so near and dear to my heart because it really makes a huge impact on somebody's life." • "The more skills you can attain leads to a higher skill level job, and that means you can grow throughout your career and become more successful." • "While certification is fantastic, it's not intended to teach you a skill. The training materials will allow you to develop a core base of knowledge and help you grow in your career path. You don't have to be an operator forever if you don't want to be." Brandy (second from left) at a Carlisle Summer Employee Appreciation Event a few years back.