Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1520956
46 PCB007 MAGAZINE I MAY 2024 Gary, what advice do you have for other companies looking to work in the additive space? It is a significant capital investment, even though there are poten- tially high returns. Abel: Make sure you have a solid, full-circle plan that includes cap- ital, people, and process, or you will get into trouble. It must be a closed-loop system. You need the proper amount of equipment and funding because there will be some R&D. You also need the right people. You can have all the pretty equipment you want, but if you don't have the right people for proper implementa- tion, it will never grow to fruition. People are the cornerstone of this business. Thank you all. It was a pleasure speaking with you. Brown: ank you, Marcy. PCB007 What are the most significant barriers to the broader adoption of additive manufacturing in vari- ous industries? Abel: ere's a movement now to push it forward. is technol- ogy and its implications are huge. At IPC APEX EXPO this year, there was a lot of talk about writ- ing specs and adopting them into the technology. One barrier is that it's not spec'd out. It doesn't have its own acceptability or fabrication spec- ification. A lot of folks are excited about this technology, and they're requesting it, but we all have the same question: What do we build this to? IPC standards committees are working to address this need. IPC-6019 is one example. To get traction using this technology as quickly as possible, we need to get something out there so we can start guiding designers, board shops, and customers. Gary Abel