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100 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2018 From the Americas to Europe to Asia and be- yond, the future of the electronics manufactur- ing industry is shaped in many ways by gov- ernment policies. This will be true like never before in 2018, as legislators and regulators the world over are eyeing policy decisions on issues such as technology research and development, taxes, workforce skills, and the environment. In the United States and Europe, heightened politi- cal turmoil is creating the possibility of unex- pected policy shifts. Any one of these policy shifts could have multi-million dollar impacts on electronics companies. An old saying in polit- ical circles is, "If you're not at the table, you're on the menu." So indeed, our industry deserves a seat at the table, given that IPC represents more than 4,300 member-com- panies across the electronics industry—from design, to printed circuit board manufacturing, electronics assembly, and testing. Roughly 60% of our member facilities are in the United States, 20% are in Asia, and 15% are in Europe. Our members provide electron- ics products and services for a wide range of important industries including defense, aero- space, automotive, IT and telecoms, industrial equipment, and healthcare. The estimated an- nual revenues of this industry are $2 trillion worldwide. For all these reasons, as Electronics Industry Advocacy is More Important in 2018 than Ever One World, One Industry, a column by John Mitchell IPC—ASSOCIATION CONNECTING ELECTRONICS INDUSTRIES 100 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2018