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74 SMT Magazine • April 2017 doing, which ITAR absolutely is, it is worth doing right. Las Marias: Developing trust with OEM customers has never been easy for EMS companies. Typically, OEMs don't fully trust EMS providers with their complete product roadmaps for fear portions of the roadmap or strat- egy might be shared with compet- ing OEMs that the EMS provider also serves. How do you see the EMS indus- try moving past this? Singh: There's a saying, that the proof is in the pudding. At VirTex, we have been servicing the needs of our OEM customers for over 30 years. If you look at our customer base, we have customers who started with us in the early 80's or early 90's and as they have grown, we have grown with them. Relationships and partnerships are a two- way street. At VirTex we want our customers to grow and we want to be the driving force be- hind them to sustain their competitive advan- tage. The longevity of our customer base and the relationships we have, allow us to confi- dently state that we are our customers trusted technology partner. Las Marias: Counterfeit components are a grow- ing problem in aerospace/defense electronics sup- ply chains. What are some of the things VirTex is doing to help mitigate the risk of re- ceiving or installing a counterfeit part? Heath: We avoid non-franchise dis- tribution and if we do have to go outside the normal franchise chan- nels, there has to be traceability and a chain of custody. We involve both the customer and an independent testing lab to make sure that the components are genuine. Las Marias: What demands are your mil/aero cus- tomers placing on you? Singh: All customers need a perfect product, on time, every time. That is a requirement, not a demand or a challenge. Challenges exist with lead times and aggres- sive time-to-market, a new design, a change in design, or a product upgrade. The lead times are shorter, so we need to perfectly execute opera- tions and the supply chain, as speed to market matters. Las Marias: What are the top criteria OEMs should consider when evaluating an EMS partner? Singh: Firstly, like in any relationship, look at the history. For example, how long has the or- ganization been serving in this type of environ- ment, what is their reputation for quality, on- time delivery? What certification do they hold to validate their quality standards or creden- tials? What metrics and key performance in- dicators (KPI's) do they use to measure success and what do their customers say within their quarterly business reviews (QBRs)? Secondly, VirTex has a high-reliability cus- tomer base. The application of our customer's products can be life critical, therefore we an- ticipate their requirements to meet and exceed their expectations. We understand the nature of their environment, so we nurture an internal culture to ensure demands are met. So, history and culture to ensure that de- mand is met, combined with experience, certi- fication, financial stability and technical know- how is how we at VirTex have become our cus- tomers manufacturing partner of choice. SMT Brad Heath VIRTEX ON MILITARY AND AEROSPACE ELECTRONICS REQUIREMENTS