Printed Circuit Design & Fab Online Magazine - Current Issue

Current Issue

Exploring new hobbies and earning new certifications can stimulate the mind – and your career.

I like to think that my hobby is learning new things, or maybe it’s just an instinct for engineers. If you ask my wife, maybe that is just a mask for the adage that my hobby is collecting hobbies, which frequently necessitates learning new things. Some hobbies have significant barriers to entry, such as the financial obligations for equestrian activities, while others have more intellectual requirements, like amateur radio, also known as ham radio.

Recently I jumped into ham radio, getting my technician license – also called a ticket – and a handheld radio. For years friends in the PCB industry asked me if I was into amateur radio before I finally looked at it seriously. A few months ago, a friend and coworker got really excited about it, and he assured me that given my electrical engineering background and understanding of signal integrity, the test would be a breeze. In short, it was.

Read more: For the Love of Learning

Much like a bespoke suit, PCBs require individual tailoring to meet a customer’s needs.

A printed circuit board is not a commodity and many in the electronics supply chain do not understand that. Buyers wanting “champagne at beer prices” leads them to press fabricators to devalue their efforts and work. Additionally, I have spoken with designers who have no idea how boards are made, but then turn around and speak with an air of authority that the fabricator should just “dial in the fabrication process” to etch a narrower trace on their board.

I am not sure what most buyers and designers have in mind of how printed circuit boards are manufactured, but a good analogy helps many to understand that boards are custom tailored, like a fine bespoke suit, and not a garment off the rack.

Read more: Custom Tailored or Off the Rack?

PCEA chapter meetings can be a great source of education and collaboration.

I am excited that my local PCEA chapter has gotten some traction and we are having regular meetings! After a couple years of false starts and hiccups, the Oregon/Pacific Northwest chapter got the spark and the ball rolling with members coming to connect and learn from each other. Which is exciting! I was able to reconnect with someone with whom I worked almost 20 years ago. He was attending from another country, but still views Portland as his "home area."

As our meeting progressed, we had a good educational segment and then an active discussion about topics to discuss next time. A question came up about a mechanical exchange format, and we just happened to have someone in the meeting who works for the company that manages that format! And if we didn't, I am sure we could have reached out to our separate networks of contacts to find an expert to talk with us about it. Meanwhile, additional topics of interest were shared, along with requests for recommendations on specific types of quality fabricators and assemblers. So add that to our list of people to invite and reach out to.