EMSNOW

EMSNOW talks to Vivek Khanna, Managing Director of INDIC EMS Electronics, an EMS company with manufacturing facilities in Bengaluru India, and Barcelona Spain. In Part 1 of this interview, Vivek summarizes his fascinating personal story working in the tech industry as it evolved in Bangalore; he started in the chip design world, and then shifted to software and now has come back around to hardware manufacturing, riding several global industry trends. He has worked for both start-ups and global corporations and applies that experience to INDIC to drive solid growth, while honoring his personal determination to give back to the community. He discusses the advantages of building electronics in India; the demographics, the workforce, the government support and more. Part 2 of this thoughtful interview covers Vivek’s views about industry trends.

David Schild, Executive Director of the Printed Circuit Board Association of America (PCBAA) discusses the latest on Congress’ intent to rebuild a strong industrial defense manufacturing base, and how critical PCBs are to that capability. He updates EMSNOW on what passing the Omnibus Funding Bill means for the industry and where the money is going. PCBAA members represent the entire PCB value chain, and the Association drives the effort to promote the entire industry, because a healthy commercial base is critical to defense. He paints a picture of what the future of the PCB industry in the U.S. will look like — not the same for every vertical, but a more resilient supply chain for critical electronics like defense, infrastructure, medical equipment and so on. It’s a must-view for those following the consequences of this ever-changing development.

EMSNOW discusses APEX with Jason Spera, CEO Aegis Software in this information-packed interview about the exciting developments at this dynamic company. Jason reflects on the past 27 years since he founded the CAD/CAM tool focusing transforming design data into a useful shop floor MES. He explains their next generation solution which will enable an even more robust cycle-counting capability to ensure accuracy in materials management, an area that has gotten a lot of attention lately. He also talks about Aegis’ SaaS solution, which will be demonstrated at APEX; the benefits of the new partnership with Arch Systems, and much more. The conversation ends with a tribute to industry icon Michael Ford, who passed away earlier this year.

EMSNOW speaks with Heriberto Cuevas, Sales Manager Leader for Mexico and South America, and Hector Hernandez, Regional Sales Manager, Koh Young America. The two discuss their backgrounds, trends in the business environment in Mexico, including the advent of semiconductor manufacturing; challenges to managing the rapid growth, the end markets moving manufacturing to Mexico, the real story about re-shoring from countries like Taiwan and the implications for workforce development, and much more. They discuss the advantages Mexico has over other geographies, which are only getting more pronounced as geopolitical uncertainties unfold. It’s a thoughtful conversation with knowledgeable regional insiders.

EMSNOW speaks with Andy Hyatt, Chief Customer Officer, Plexus Corporation to get an update on this Tier 1 EMS company based in Wisconsin, USA. Andy summarizes their current strategy and comments that being on the customer-facing side of the business puts him on the front lines of the trends. The three market segments Plexus serves have very different requirements and Plexus intentionally focuses on these three, making complex products on a global scale, with perfect quality, and on time delivery at a fair price. He covers how Plexus is managing workforce challenges, including their strategy for automation in a high mix/low volume environment; what they learned from the material shortage crisis, his insights from 35 years in the EMS industry, and much more.

EMSNOW learns about North American EMS company ACDi, with this conversation with ACDi's VP of Operations, Garret Maxson. The discussion covers the background and business strategy for this 40-year old low volume, high mix company mainly focused on defense electronics. Garret explains am equipment acquisition process recently completed with Koh Young, acquiring multiple machines, with an extensive and comprehensive training and implementation program. He discusses the upgrade of training, the benefits the business obtained by working with Koh Young, celebrating the 23,000th Koh Young installation, and much more.

Zachary Feuerstein, Founder and CEO, developed Breadboard to address what he identified as systemic problems with the semiconductor supply chain that became painfully obvious during post-Covid disruptions. This solution transforms quoting, sourcing, and monitoring the semiconductor supply chain for EMS and OEMs building electronic products. Breadboard's solution can be integrated into customers' existing systems. Zachary shares insights into the digitalization of this function - where the roadblocks have been historically and how we get everyone to get on board. It's a very timely conversation and well worth a listen.

Mike Buetow, President of the Printed Circuit Engineering Association (PCEA), speaks to EMSNOW about the Service Excellence Awards. This customer feedback evaluation program is celebrating 32 years of service to the industry; initially designed for EMS companies, it now has expanded to the entire SMT line, including the critical software providers enabling Industry 4.0. Mike explains the substantial value that ALL participating companies receive from the customer survey data compiled into a detailed report. These reports, based on seven important service categories, are used internally to drive continuous quality improvement programs, as well as marketing and sales. This is an informative conversation between two industry colleagues that should not be missed.

EMSNOW Mexico speaks with Jose Ignacio Lopez Arroyo, CEO of Repstronics about this remarkable solutions provider that has been operating in Mexico for 21 years. When the electronics manufacturing industry in Mexico began to grow, companies bought their equipment from US-based suppliers who did not provide local support. Repstronics was a local team that provided sales and after-sales support to these customers after the equipment was installed. The company started with wire harness machines, and then expanded to SMT equipment and beyond. Now they have locations all over Mexico, and 88 employees providing solutions and helping customers succeed. They host training centers, and proactively visit their customers to help them achieve their goals.

This in-depth, insider conversation covers Jose’s experiences, his analysis of the strengths and challenges of doing business in Mexico, and much more.

EMSNOW spoke with David Faliskie, CEO of EIT (Electronic Instrumentation and Technology) and Xaver Feiner, VP Marketing & Sales, Zollner Elektronik AG to learn more about the EMS company’s business.   EIT was acquired by Zollner in 2022, and recently announced an expansion of its facility in Salem, New Hampshire.  Both companies are family-owned which means they share many synergies including markets served, and a common customer centric culture. It’s an interesting conversation about a unique EMS strategy with insights into what the future might hold.

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Jennifer Read

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