Oct 28, 2013 SMTA International Conference and Exhibition, which took place October 13-17, 2013 at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Fort Worth, TX, experienced a 30% increase in registration coming in at over 1,300 and a 45% increase in on-site attendance compared to 2012. The increase in on-site attendance can be attributed to the new co-location of SMTA International with IPC’s Fall Standards Development Committee Meetings. Several onsite attendees echoed the sentiment that the partnership of IPC and SMTA has been a good move for the electronics assembly industry and the numbers certainly confirm that.
International attendance was also at a record high, an increase of 17% from 2012, with attendees representing 27 different countries.
The technical conference continued the tradition of being the strongest in the electronics assembly industry. The Evolving Technologies Summit at the beginning of the week received much praise as it covered key technologies such as Embedded Actives/Passives, 3D/TSV, Printed Electronics, Nanotechnology, Advanced Packaging, and the Status of Lead-Free. A crowd filled the Opening Keynote Session until it was standing-room-only on Tuesday morning to hear Lockheed Martin spokesperson and retired US Air Force Major General Bob D. DuLaney give an impressive overview of the F-35 Lightning II Program. DuLaney detailed the importance of the aircraft, current progress on the program, and its economic impact. The Lead-Free Soldering Technology Symposium kept the meeting room packed until the very end of the event.
Over 170 exhibiting companies filled the sold-out exhibit hall, a 10% increase over last year. The show welcomed more equipment than any past SMTA show. The FIRST Tech Challenge, a youth robotics competition, delivered an exciting display of knowledge from some students who will likely become the next generation of engineers. Nihon Superior sponsored the event.
William Beair, Sr Tech Support Engineer at Raytheon Company commented, "There was a great selection of vendors and local technical subject matter experts at the show. It felt more like one-stop-shopping to me. I liked the mix of consumables, small purchase items and capital equipment. It was a very productive day meeting with all the vendors."
Attendees got a true taste of southern hospitality this year during the Party at Billy Bob’s, organized by the SMTA Dallas Chapter. The party featured tasty Texas barbecue, line dancing, mechanical bull riding, a quick-draw contest, and tons of unforgettable moments.
Next year the SMTA International Conference and Exhibition will be held September 28 - October 2, 2014 at the Donald Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. The IPC Fall Standards Development Committee Meetings will again be co-located.
For more information on SMTA International please contact SMTA administrator JoAnn Stromberg: joann@smta.org or 952-920-7682 or visit http://www.smta.org/smtai/.
The SMTA membership is an international network of professionals who build skills, share practical experience and develop solutions in electronic assembly technologies, including microsystems, emerging technologies, and related business operations.
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