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94 The PCB Magazine • June 2016 This paper was originally presented at IPC APEX EXPO 2016 and published in the proceedings. Alex Stepinski, PCB FAB division manager for Whelen Engineering. Editor's note: To see more on the Whelen facility, refer to our October 2015 issue. THE 21ST CENTURY PCB FACTORY—DESIGNED TO ELIMINATE OFFSHORE COST ADVANTAGES A more fully utilized factory could achieve ROI even faster. The company had to assume substantial risk and invest 89% of the factory budget into new and emerging technologies in order to accomplish the PCB FAB project, however, future and existing factories in North America and Europe can now stand to benefit from this R&D effort. PCB On behalf of the elec- tronics industry and an es- timated 800,000 Americans employed in 2,200 U.S. member facilities, IPC is ap- plauding the U.S. Congress for taking the final steps to- ward passage of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemi- cal Safety for the 21st Century Act H.R. 2576/S. 697. After months of work, the U.S. House ap- proved the bipartisan compromise on a vote of 403-12, and the U.S. Senate is expected to follow suit within days, sending the measure to President Obama for his anticipated signature. With input from its members, IPC has long supported reform of the Toxic Substances Con- trol Act (TSCA) of 1976, which the Lautenberg Act would achieve. Most recently, IPC sent an en- dorsement letter to congressional leaders last Fri- day, and member-company executives communicated with their elected officials in recent weeks. "Our industry strongly supports the goal of improv- ing our nation's chemical management system, and this bill is a big step in the right direction," said Dr. John W. Mitchell, IPC president and CEO. "A cost-effective, science- based federal regulatory program is essential to our members who work with chemicals to manu- facture products for the global market. This bill is good for the U.S. economy and the environment. "IPC commends the senators and represen- tatives in both parties who worked together to achieve this landmark legislation," Mitchell added. "Together with our members, we look forward to celebrating its passage, and remaining engaged in the regulatory process." IPC Applauds Congressional Action on the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for 21 st Century Act Figure 19: Automated factory differentiating performance metrics.