Last week, I attended my first IPC Designers Council Cascade (Seattle) chapter meeting, where I was greeted by a welcoming group of designers and long-time industry experts, including the featured speaker, Dock Brown, co-chair of the IPC DFX committee, and Tim Mullins, the chapter’s president.

Prototron Circuits hosted lunch in a small lecture hall on the beautiful campus of the Lake Washington Institute of Technology in Kirkland, WA.

 Attendees knew each other well, a professional support group that felt more like a friendly family reunion. Plus, Brown’s presentation was enlightening. (Read about it here.)

There was ample time before and after the presentation to network. More than one attendee invited me to visit their facilities, and they invited me to the next meeting, which is on Dec. 7. They also suggested we stay in contact to figure out ways to provide mutual value outside the meetings in the future.

According to IPC’s website, there are 16 local chapters around the globe that meet a minimum of four times annually. For designers, this is an excellent way to stay connected between conferences and trade shows, to cultivate friendships and provide and elicit support from other designers who live nearby, and to learn from design veterans, so professionals can stay abreast of new technology in a rapidly changing industry.

In our 25-year retrospective of the organization last year, we noted the IPC Designers Council has always been “for designers, by designers.” Now, as ever, would be a terrific time to get involved. 

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