Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/424967
December 2014 • SMT Magazine 29 long-term plans that would include re-invest- ment, training, and technology/capability de- velopment. The lack of long-term visibility is the number one reason for the insufficient lev- els of reinvestment the PCB fabrication indus- try has had over the past 15 years. Giving them long-term visibility is the single most important gift a customer can give. Sustain We all know what happened when we pulled out of Iraq and Afghanistan too early: The mis- sion failed. The same logic applies to supplier development. This is a multiyear effort that requires many more years of monitoring and plan tweaking. Quarterly business reviews are effective tools for helping achieving this. Met- rics such as defect levels, delivery performance, and technology/capability achievements can be reviewed along with interim goals. Also, early warning systems can be developed to catch potential issues before they cause the train to come off the tracks. conclusion Given the record corporate profits, potential political instability, and constant opportunities for supply chain disruption, now is the ideal and critical time for OEMs and Tier 1 suppli- ers to resurrect their strategic supplier develop- ment programs. These can be structured to uti- lize existing resources at the customer level to minimize cost, while maximizing the long-term benefit. You just have to focus on the long-term benefits rather than dwell on short-term cost impacts. SmT references 1. IPC report on foreign PCBs used in US military electronics. FEATurE OUTLOOK FOr 2015 ANd beYONd: A SUPPLY cHAIN PerSPecTIve continues realtimewith.com CliCk To View Video Interview Mirtec president Brian D'Amico sits down with guest Editor ryan Flaherty to discuss cur- rent trends in the electronics assembly industry, and how oeMs can remain competitive as components continue to shrink. new Mirtec inspection tools can help address issues with these petite parts. Industry Trends and Staying competitive as an Oem by Real Time with... SMTAI 2014 Yash Sutariya is president of Alpha Circuit Corporation. For more information, or to contact Sutariya, click here: ysutariya@alphacircuit.com.