Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/780804
28 SMT Magazine • February 2017 n Robotics The emphasis will be on assembly labor con- tent reduction as upward pressure on labor rates will continue along with re-shoring initiatives. Robotics will play a key role in this effort. Back end box assembly will need to de designed for this automation. Skilled personnel will be re- quired to develop and manage this assembly au- tomation. n Wearable Electronics Mr. Electron, meet Mr. Dacron. Weaving electronics in fabric is happening now and will continue to grow in application. How- ever, wearable electronics means more than joining electronics to fabric. Medically, it means carrying the electronics that will con- tinually measure blood glucose level and au- tomatically deliver insulin without the need for human interaction. Drug delivery with- out human intervention is analogous to me- ta-process control (see above). In addition, us- ing telemetry, your doctor can receive a con- stant flow of data reporting medical metrics and drugs delivered. n Cloud-based Computing and Data Security Although not directly tied to hardware and assembly technology, these are areas that will have much attention paid to them. More and more data processing will be done in cloud serv- ers, requiring less hardware and software to be owned by the individual user. Protection from hackers will be a major initiative for IT and data managers. So, Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore. SMT Tom Borkes is the founder of The Jefferson Project and the forthcom- ing Jefferson Institute of Technology. To reach Borkes, click here. THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME One thing that is long overdue in our industry is a series of guidebooks focused on helping compa- nies with all their needs, from qualifi- cations like AS9100 and Mil-P-31032 to various technologies, heavy copper, rigid- flex and microvias. I- Connect007 is now providing our industry with an entire series of these guidebooks called "The Printed Circuit Buyers Guide to…", "The Printed Circuits Designers Guide to…", and several others. The aim is to educate the buyers to help them lower their costs, buy better boards, make better deals, and establish better processes. The interesting thing about this new project is that the books will be authored by com- panies that are ex- perts in their chosen topic. For example, a quality assurance company can write a book about electrical test, or a company that provides coat- ings can write a book about solder mask. Thus, this is a win not only for the readers but for the compa- nies involved as well. Emmy Ross, who recently joined the I-Con- nect007 team to head up this book division, dis- cusses with Dan Beaulieu what these new guide- books are and the benefits they will offer compa- nies in our industry. To read the interview click here. Emmy Ross Discusses the New I-Connect007 E-Book Series