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62 SMT007 MAGAZINE I JUNE 2024 In recent years, there has been a notable shi in the electronics manufacturing sup- ply chain landscape. However, the global sup- ply chain for the domestic PCB industry has been steadily shiing since the 1980s, when the United States began offshoring PCB man- ufacturing to other countries. But because of the quality control issues, rising international tariffs, and unclear intellectual property pro- tection involved in offshoring, reshoring has become a particularly hot topic. Reshoring refers to the process of bringing manufacturing operations back to one's home country. In addition to higher quality control and IP protection, reshoring also reduces reli- ance on foreign entities for production. Diversifying PCB Manufacturing Through Nearshoring For the U.S. PCB industry, there are now several government incentives to reshore PCB manufacturing. In May 2023, Congress- man Blake Moore introduced the Protect- ing Printed Circuit Boards and Substrates Act to the U.S. Congress, which would provide a 25% tax credit for the purchase or acquisition of American-made PCBs. If passed, the PCBS Act would also establish a financial assistance program and appropriate $3 billion toward American facilities manufacturing or research- ing PCBs. Other recent initiatives include "Onshor- ing Advanced Packaging and Assembly," a joint workshop held April 29–May 1, 2024, by IMAPS and IPC. e purpose of this workshop Material Insight Feature Column by Preeya Kuray, Ph.D.