HILLSBORO, OR – OCTOBER 30, 2025 – The NW Electronics Design & Manufacturing Expo (NEDME) 2025 once again brought together the Pacific Northwest community for a full day of learning, networking, and industry connections.

Hosted at the Wingspan Event and Conference Center on October 22, the expo welcomed hundreds of attendees from across Oregon and Washington, including engineers, purchasing teams, and business leaders representing a wide variety of local manufacturers—not only in electronics, but also in materials, equipment, and related industries. The show floor featured over 50 exhibitors, with manufacturers demonstrating capabilities that spanned the full ecosystem of design, production, advanced materials, assembly, testing, and integrated solutions.

Adding to the energy of the event were special participants from education and research: the Portland State University Rocket Team, the Beaverton School District Robotics Program, and Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI). Their presence highlighted NEDME’s commitment to connecting industry with education and inspiring the next generation of innovators.

“For more than two decades, NEDME has served as a cornerstone event for our region,” said Mike Foresee, NEDME Steering Committee member. “It’s not just about technology—it’s about creating a space where manufacturers, innovators, educators, and students can come together to share knowledge, build partnerships, and strengthen the Northwest ecosystem.”

The technical program featured sessions on topics ranging from advanced PCB design practices to supply chain resilience and AI-driven engineering tools. Speakers emphasized practical takeaways for companies of all sizes, while exhibitors highlighted innovations tailored to the unique needs of Northwest manufacturers.
Exhibitors and attendees alike praised the show for its approachable format and community focus:

“The seminars were not only helpful, but what stood out was the balance of topics—they didn’t just focus on manufacturing, but also included valuable management insights. That broader perspective made them especially worthwhile, and I look forward to seeing more of this approach in the future.” Tom Hauge, President, Fusion EMS.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors

The success of NEDME 2025 would not have been possible without the support of its sponsors: ASC Sunstone, Screaming Circuits, Citizens Bank, Polar Instruments, QTexAI, Westco Group, MCX, Inc., EPB&B Insurance, Stoel Rives LLP, and Opsahl Dawson. sponsors. Lunch was generously provided by the Electronics Representatives Association (ERA).

BROOKLYN, NY -- Cofactr, the electronics procurement execution platform, today announced the launch of its free to start, complete procure-to-ship service that eliminates procurement busywork for agile hardware manufacturers. Simplifying procurement for complex manufacturers with a free-to-use full-service procurement solution. Hardware teams can now upload a bill of materials (BOM) and let Cofactr's AI agents and warehouses handle sourcing, optimizing for best price and lead times, ordering, traceability, storage, kitting, and delivery to their manufacturer.

The new service addresses a critical bottleneck for hardware companies: engineering teams spending valuable time on procurement tasks instead of product development. With Cofactr's end-to-end execution model, manufacturers get authenticated components delivered production-ready while their teams remain focused on innovation.

“Looking over the last few months, we realized the most accurate representation of our mission is to make Cofactr's solution as accessible as possible," said Phillip Gulley, CSO & Co-Founder at Cofactr. “We believe that at this moment it is imperative that hardware manufacturers be able to move fast. There were two ways we could do that; offering our core electronics solution with no friction to adoption, and by making search access to the core Supplier Discovery database free. At this moment, more so than any in our lives, Cofactr believes that hardware deserves to thrive with as little obstacles as possible.”

Complete Procurement Execution

Cofactr's service combines AI-powered procurement agents with physical warehouse infrastructure to deliver:

• Intelligent Sourcing: AI agents analyze BOMs, source components across verified supplier networks, and negotiate pricing automatically
• Supplier Discovery: Search over 450,000+ verified suppliers to eliminate single-source supplier bottlenecks and find custom components
• Smart Warehousing: Components arrive at Cofactr facilities for authentication, inspection, and storage with complete chain-of-custody traceability
• Custom Kitting: Exact quantities split, spliced, and kitted for each build—eliminating excess inventory and partial reels
• Direct Delivery: Production-ready components delivered to contract manufacturers on schedule
• Real-Time Visibility: Complete tracking from quote to delivery in a unified dashboard
• TAR Compliance: Compliant storage and handling for defense and aerospace contractors

The service requires no upfront investment or platform fees. Customers pay only for components and services used, removing traditional barriers to procurement modernization.

Cofactr’s value to manufacturers has always been at the point of connection - selecting, buying from, and tracking parts from different suppliers. As OEMs and suppliers react to tariff hikes and market volatility we’ve seen surges in demand for this connectivity. Enabling trusted, verifiable connections between OEMs and suppliers as part of the entry level Cofactr offering will not only help manufacturers deal with short term shocks, but will build more robust US and regional supply networks in the long run.

"Hardware teams shouldn't need procurement expertise to build great products," said Phillip Gulley, CSO & Co-Founder at Cofactr. “We've developed a platform that lets manufacturers focus on design and final assembly. Procurement and management of electronics should be a turnkey solution, and that's what we provided. Onboard easily and quickly, upload your BOM, and with a few pieces of information, Cofactr handles everything from sourcing through a kit of materials showing up for PCBA with no upfront costs."

Built for High-Mix, Low-Volume Manufacturing

Cofactr's approach is purpose-built for the complexity of modern electronics manufacturing, particularly high-mix, low-volume (HMLV) production environments in aerospace, defense, medical devices, and robotics. The platform handles multi-variant BOMs, obsolescence management, and compliance requirements that typically consume engineering resources.

About Cofactr

Cofactr is a procurement execution platform that handles the complete procure-to-ship process for hardware manufacturers. By combining AI agents with warehouse infrastructure, Cofactr executes sourcing, negotiations, storage, kitting, and delivery—allowing engineering teams to focus on building products instead of managing supply chains. The company’s platform is in use by organizations that build everything from rocket ships, satellites, and drones to robotics, autonomous vehicles, and wearables. These companies not only need to produce and source fast while navigating stringent corporate processes and policies, but those in regulated industries additionally need to comply with governmental requirements. Within Cofactr’s single unified platform, they can now automate and manage the complexities of everything from parts sourcing, supplier procurement, payments, and shipping to cross-vendor logistics, stock availability, and government regulations. Cofactr is ITAR and SOC 2 compliant and runs entirely on AWS’s Government Cloud to meet the requirements of high-compliance industries.

Cofactr is backed by Bain Capital, Y Combinator, Floating Point Ventures, Broom and DNX.

NEWBURYPORT, MA – As the semiconductor industry navigates evolving supply dynamics, Rochester Electronics continues to provide immediate access to in-stock, authorized Nexperia products—ensuring uninterrupted support for manufacturers worldwide.

With Nexperia components playing a critical role in automotive, industrial, and consumer electronics, many OEMs are proactively seeking stable, authorized supply channels to maintain production schedules and avoid costly redesigns.

“Our mission is to support continuity and confidence in the supply chain,” said Nick Rabbitt, VP of Global Supplier Development. “We offer a robust inventory of 2.9 billion active and end-of-life (EOL) Nexperia devices. This ensures customers have access to risk-free, traceable inventory when and where they need it.”

Rochester’s global logistics infrastructure and commitment to long-term product availability make it a trusted resource for manufacturers facing time-sensitive demands. All products are certified and guaranteed, helping customers avoid disruptions and maintain compliance.

About Rochester Electronics

Rochester Electronics is the world’s largest continuous source of semiconductors–100% Authorized by over 70 leading semiconductor manufacturers.

As an original manufacturer stocking distributor, Rochester has over 15 billion devices in stock, encompassing more than 200,000 part numbers, providing the world’s most extensive range of end-of-life (EOL) semiconductors and the broadest range of active semiconductors.

As a licensed semiconductor manufacturer, Rochester has manufactured over 20,000 device types. With over 12 billion die in stock, Rochester has the capability to manufacture over 70,000 device types. Rochester offers a full range of manufacturing services, including Design, Wafer Processing, Assembly, Test, Reliability, and IP Archiving, providing single solutions through to full turnkey manufacturing, enabling faster time-to-market.

Rochester is the Semiconductor Lifecycle Solution.™ No other company compares to the breadth of Rochester’s product selection, value-added services, and manufacturing solutions.

With direct sales and support staff in all major markets, we aim to meet your needs over the phone or via our e-commerce platforms anytime, anywhere.

For more information, visit: www.rocelec.com

Freudenstadt, Germany - Oct. 22nd, 2025 – SCHMID Group, a global equipment maker and solution provider for Printed Circuit Boards (PCB) and IC-Substrate manufacturing – today announced the successful acquisition of two significant orders in the fast-growing field of PCB for artificial intelligence (AI) server applications. So called AI-Server-Boards.

In one project, SCHMID will deliver a complete wet-process equipment setup featuring its advanced V+ and H+ systems. The second project involves the supply of technically critical horizontal H+ machines, marking a breakthrough outside the typical PCB and IC-substrate business.
Equally significant, one of the customers has awarded SCHMID full responsibility for an entire production line, demonstrating strong confidence in SCHMID’s technology and services, and paving the way for future investment opportunities.

Market Context: AI and Semiconductor Growth

The orders underscore SCHMID Group’s growing role in enabling advanced electronics manufacturing at a time of unprecedented AI-driven demand.

According to IDC, the semiconductor industry will reach $785.5 billion in revenue in 2025, with an accelerated trajectory toward $1.1 trillion by 2029, fueled by AI adoption. TrendForce reports that global AI server shipments will grow 24.3% year-over-year in 2025, with major North American cloud service providers leading the surge, supported by sovereign cloud projects in Europe and the Middle East.
This AI-driven growth is directly impacting IC-substrate and PCB technologies. TechSearch International highlights that demand for large-body substrates is rising due to the increasing number of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) stacks and the requirements of co-packaged optics (CPO) for AI applications. These technology trends reinforce the strategic importance of SCHMID’s process equipment portfolio.

Executive Statement

“These orders mark a pivotal milestone for SCHMID Group. They demonstrate that our technology is needed and trusted not only in IC-substrates, but also in full PCB production lines for AI-Server-Board – one of the fastest growing and most demanding markets worldwide.
The AI server segment is characterized by rapid innovation cycles and frequent hardware refreshes. Typical AI server boards have an estimated lifecycle of only 18 to 24 months before new architectures drive demand for next-generation designs. This dynamic creates a recurring need for advanced PCB manufacturing solutions, where reliability, precision, and scalability are critical.

By winning these projects, SCHMID positions itself at the center of this cycle. Each generation of AI server boards requires more layers, smaller features, tighter process windows, and new materials – exactly where our V+ and H+ systems as well as our C+ system for future geometries deliver a unique advantage.

For us, this is not only about the orders at hand, but about establishing SCHMID Group as a long term partner in an industry projected to maintain double-digit growth. The confidence placed in us by these customers is a strong signal that SCHMID will play a significant role in shaping the future of AI hardware”, said Roland Rettenmeier, Chief Sales Officer, SCHMID Group.