SMT, PCB Electronics Industry News
  • SMTnet
  • »
  • Industry News
  • »
  • Department of State Draft Rulemakings Explicitly List Printed Boards in Category XI — Military Electronics IPC Views as a Preliminary but Significant Achievement

Department of State Draft Rulemakings Explicitly List Printed Boards in Category XI — Military Electronics IPC Views as a Preliminary but Significant Achievement

Nov 30, 2012

The explicit listing of printed boards in the U.S. State Department’s proposed revisions to the Category XI (electronics) U.S. Munitions List (USML) published yesterday in the Federal Register is, “an important step in the right direction,” said IPC President & CEO John Mitchell. For more than a year, IPC has strongly urged the government to clarify International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) controls on printed boards through explicit enumeration on the USML. IPC has previously identified Category XI as the most appropriate place to regulate printed boards for USML-listed items.

IPC appreciates that the State Department shares our view that ITAR’s regulation of printed boards should be clearer,” stated Mitchell. “The electronics manufacturing industry, in turn, supports the State Department’s decision to control printed boards for ITAR covered defense articles in Category XI.”

While the draft rule represents real progress for IPC and its member companies, Mitchell adds that IPC will be submitting formal comments to the State Department on ways the rule could be made clearer. The draft rule identifies printed boards “specially designed” for defense articles, but in fact, all printed boards are “specially designed.” The inclusion of the term “specially designed” in reference to printed boards mistakenly implies the existence of commercial off the shelf (COTS) printed boards.

We are concerned that this language could perpetuate the erroneous belief among some in the defense industry of the existence of non-specially designed PCBs for ITAR items that would not be controlled by ITAR,” says Fern Abrams, IPC director of government relations and environmental policy.

Before the Federal Register deadline of January 28, 2013, IPC will submit comments to the State Department on the proposed revisions. After which, IPC will post a link to its comments at www.ipc.org/export-controls as well as in an upcoming issue of IPC Outlook.

Information on IPC’s advocacy efforts in the area of export controls is available at www.ipc.org/export-controls. This includes details on an IPC educational initiative, Follow the Law, Protect the Board, which launched in 2012 to clarify the importance of controlling printed boards designed for ITAR controlled items.

IPC will also host a free BUZZ session “Export Controls: Understanding ITAR and its Reform,” at IPC APEX EXPO 2013 on February 20. To register, visit www.IPCAPEXEXPO.org/register.


IPC (www.IPC.org) is a global industry association based in Bannockburn, Ill., dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its 3,300 member companies which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $2.02 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Taos, N.M.; Arlington, Va.; Stockholm, Sweden; Moscow, Russia; Bangalore, India; and Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing, China.

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American PCB Industry Sales Down 11.6 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

iNEMI/IPC White Paper on Complex Integrated Systems Highlights Future Technology and Manufacturing Ecosystem Needs

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American EMS Industry Up 4.1 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

Devan Iyer, Industry Leader on Chips Packaging Technology, Joins IPC

Mar 18, 2024 -

Foreign Object Debris for Electronics Manufacturing Course Available in Spanish, French and German

Mar 11, 2024 -

FTG Circuits Earns IPC-1791 Trusted Electronic Designer, Fabricator and Assembler QML Requalification

Mar 11, 2024 -

Best Technical Conference Papers at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 Selected

Mar 11, 2024 -

Top of the Class: IPC APEX EXPO Named One of Trade Show Executive's Fastest 50, Class of 2023

Mar 04, 2024 -

Electronics Industry Praises U.S. Government Notice of Funding Opportunity for "Advanced Packaging" Technologies

Mar 04, 2024 -

Registration Open for Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo (EWPTE) 2024

1465 more news from Association Connecting Electronics Industries (IPC) »

Mar 27, 2024 -

Red Glue SMT Solutions: A Cost-Effective Approach for Double-Sided PCBs

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American PCB Industry Sales Down 11.6 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

iNEMI/IPC White Paper on Complex Integrated Systems Highlights Future Technology and Manufacturing Ecosystem Needs

Mar 26, 2024 -

Don Dennison Appointed to Roll Out KIC's Latest Thermal Analysis System Software in the Northeast

Mar 26, 2024 -

Altus Group Achieves Record Sales Milestone with Koh Young Europe

Mar 26, 2024 -

STI Welcomes Edrick Young as the Newest Mechanical Assembly Technician

Mar 26, 2024 -

Anda Technologies Receives 2024 NPI Award for Setting a New Standard in Smart Manufacturing

Mar 26, 2024 -

ZESTRON's Olaf Schoenfeld, Ph.D. to Participate in EV Special Session at IPC APEX Expo

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American EMS Industry Up 4.1 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

SMTA Europe Announces 2024 Spring Conferences

See electronics manufacturing industry news »

Department of State Draft Rulemakings Explicitly List Printed Boards in Category XI — Military Electronics IPC Views as a Preliminary but Significant Achievement news release has been viewed 678 times

  • SMTnet
  • »
  • Industry News
  • »
  • Department of State Draft Rulemakings Explicitly List Printed Boards in Category XI — Military Electronics IPC Views as a Preliminary but Significant Achievement
ICT Total SMT line Provider

See Your 2024 IPC Certification Training Schedule for Eptac