Supply Chain Reaction

The majority of the people who read this blog are components distributors or other members of the electronics supply chain, so I won't go into a whole repetitive blathering here about how huge the opportunity is for the electronics supply chain when it comes to LEDs or why it’s a long-term opportunity for the overall electronics industry with tremendous growth potential. Why tell you what you already know. (And if you don't know, read this Q&A with Avnet's LED guru Cary Eskow.)

Those at the top of this field understand that LEDs are an evolving technology segment that offers as many design and distribution challenges as it does prospects. They know that the LED itself is only part of high-efficiency semiconductor lighting, that significant power, thermal, and packaging challenges are hurdles to creating eff...Read More

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has published proposals to identify chemicals as "Substances of Very High Concern" (SVHC) and is welcoming your comments on these 15 substances by October 15.

Anyone can comment on the 15 substances --including lead chromate and diisobutyl phthalate -- proposed by EU/EEA Member States and by the European Commission. The comments will be taken into account when deciding whether the substances will be added to the so-called "Candidate List" from which substances are selected for required authorization of use.

The ECHA has advised that comments should particularly focus on the hazardous properties that qualify the chemicals as SVHCs. Parties can also provide comments and further information on the uses, exposures, and availability of safer alternative substances or techniques, although these aspects will mainly...Read More

Solar-panel glut or no glut, the IPC—Association Connecting Electronics Industries has formed and has begun work on standards for the polysilicon photovoltaic industry, specifically the assembly of solar panels.

The move makes some sense. The industry group has a history of facilitating standards for both the PCB (printed circuit board) and electronics assembly industries. And, as Thomas Cipielewski, Jabil's clean technologies technical director, said in a statement supporting the IPC move, “It’s interesting how many of the solar assembly processes, from tabbing and stringing to lamination, have some commonality with the manufacture and assembly of PCBs."

IPC’s current acceptability and performance standards, such as IP...Read More

To all those who have called me in the last few months, asking when EDN's Top North American electronic components distributors list would be out: It's here and it is something to brag about!

There's no way around the fact that 2008 was a hard year on sales, much thanks to Q4. But among the top 25 distributors on our list, 11 reported double-digit 5-year CAGRs (compound annual growth rates) in the 2008 survey and 21 reported year-over-year revenue growth.

Avnet is number one in the 2008 list ranked by revenue, followed by Arrow and Future. Worth special note is also number five Digi-Key, which showed a 20% five-year CAGR for revenue as of 2008, and number 15 Mouser, which showed a 33% CAGR and a stellar 30% gain in 2008 revenue year over year.

You can access the list via the "Weathering the storm" PDF located in "...Read More

Although their businesses here in North America are solid, Mouser and Digi-Key have announced customer support actions that should broaden their respective global reaches.

To better assist European-based customers and suppliers, Mouser opened a UK customer support center to match its UK Web site. According to this Electronics Weekly story (EDN's UK-based sister publication), the distributor has seen sales in Europe more than double in the last 12 months.

This is the second European office Mouser, a subsidiary of TTI, has set up after opening its Munich...Read More

Looking for a competition win to add to your resume? Maybe you just want some bragging rights?

This blog has featured distributor design contests before and now I have the pleasure of showcasing one of our own.

EDN recently launched  its "Iron Circuit Designer Contest" and has invited engineers and techies alike to show off their circuit design skills. The winning designer claims the title of EDN's first-ever Iron Circuit Designer, will have their circuit featured in EDN magazine and on EDN.com, and will receive a $500 American Express gift card.

Here's the challenge: Design a low-power wireless circuit that employs at least three sensors of your choice, including at least three components from an approved parts list. The design should focus on the analog portion of the circuit.

EDN sister publication Electronics Weekly has a short article live today on how to avoid counterfeit components.

The article highlights a new booklet from UK-based COG (Component Obsolescence Group) titled The Counterfeit Electronic Components Minefield. I'm familiar with COG but haven't seen the booklet, although I am considering purchasing it, as I'm taken in by description and title.

"Minefield" is a great way to describe the counterfeit situation. After all, counterfeit components are scattered throughout the electronics supply chain, ready to trigger ...Read More

The EC (European Commission) last week released its proposed changes to ROHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) and WEEE (Waste in Electrical and Electronic Equipment), aiming to improve and simplify the environmental regulations.

Specific to recycling, the proposed revised WEEE directive sets a new binding target for the collection of electrical and electronic equipment. The current collection target of 4 kg per person per year does not properly reflect the situation in individual EU Member States, the EC believes, explaining that some Member States where the consumption of electrical and electronic equipment is widespread would have more ambitious targets under the proposed new directive while others with smaller markets will have less ambitious targets.

Specifically, the EC has proposed setting mandatory collection targets equal to 65% of the average weight o...Read More

Fairchild Semiconductor reduced its Q4 guidance today and made specific note of the electronics supply chain's distribution link in doing so.

“We entered the fourth quarter needing slightly more than 10% fill orders to meet our guidance,” said Mark Frey, Fairchild’s executive VP and CFO, in a statement. “Unfortunately, in the weeks since our Q3 earnings release we have booked virtually no net fill and demand visibility remains very limited. While we still expect more turns orders to be booked this quarter, the lower guidance we are issuing today requires no additional net order fill to meet the low end of the range.”

Fairchild lowered revenue expectations for Q4 to between $338 million and $360 million, a sequential decline of 16% to 21%, compared to previous expectations for revenue down 6% to 12%. Gross margin is expected to be down...Read More

London-based Premier Farnell and its US-based company Newark have opened registration for their "Live EDGE–Electronic Design for the Global Environment" international design competition and are taking an extra student-friendly approach to the contest this year. 

In short, the competition invites electronic design engineers, students, and hobbyists to use electronic components in the design of products that will positively impact the environment. (See our earlier coverage, "Green design could win you some greenbacks from Premier Farnell" for more on that.)

Unlike last year's Live EDGE competition, the distributor will separated entrants into two categories -- student and open/general competitions -- which, I think, will give student...Read More

The EU (European Union) environmental NGOs (non-governmental organizations) through the International Chemical Secretariat has released its "Substitute It Now" (or aptly acronymed "SIN") list of 220 chemical substances considered to be possible Substances of Very High Concern under REACH (Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of Chemicals).

As a reminder, REACH began on June 1, 2007, and aims to streamline and improve the former legislative framework for chemicals in the EU. Under REACH, manufacturers and importers must register substances they produce or import in quantities of one ton or more per year per company by end of 2008. These companies may not use any substance that REACH determines to be a Subst...Read More

Arrow Electronics has announced its Arrowfest schedule, kicking off next week in Philadelphia.

The annual coast-to-coast technology exhibition for customers and suppliers in part of Melville, NY-based Arrow’s North American components business and is now in its 20th consecutive year. After Philadelphia, Arrowfest travel to a six other US locations and makes one stop in Canada this fall.

Each exhibition includes technical supplier seminars, hands-on demonstrations, and information on the latest products from manufacturers like ADI, TI, and NXP. Arrow estimated that more than 2,500 engineers, suppliers, OEMs, and other industry professionals attend Arrowfest each year.

The schedule is below. For more information on the events, visit www.arrowfest.com. Note, each city has a theme (Santa Clara attende...Read More

Speak of the devil. Just a few days after we blog about the need for more REACH awareness, SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International), SESHA (Semiconductor Environmental, Health and Safety Association), ESIA (European Semiconductor Industry Association), and ISMI (International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative) announce a Webcast on the environmental regulation.

The 90-minute free Webcast, "Logistics of REACH Pre-Registration," will be run from the newly created ECHA (European Chemicals Agency) headquarters in Helsinki, Finland, on Monday, August 11 at 8am pacific time. SEMI describes the Webcast’s target audience as “semiconductor industry members and suppliers concerned with regulatory compliance for substances produced in, or imported directly or indirectly, into...Read More

The IPC released some startling numbers this week, suggesting that the electronics supply chain is not ready for the REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals) regulation, despite the fact that it took effect on June 1, 2007.

The industry group conducted a survey on REACH preparedness in the North American and European interconnect industry and found that more than 40% of manufacturing and purchasing personnel have no understanding of the REACH regulation as it affects their companies. On top of that, the survey found that the same holds true for nearly one-third of senior management, 29% of engineering personnel, and 28% of environment, health and safety personnel.

Numbers as drastic as these are always shocking. How do you ignore REACH – an EU regulation that puts responsibility on the electronics supply chain to manage th...Read More

There’s a newly implemented system in China to thwart counterfeit components. Blessed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and jointly supported by the China Quality Management Association for the Electronics Industry (CQAE) and the China Electronic Purchasing Association (CEPA), the Reliable Electronic Component Suppliers (RECS) system certifies and authenticates electronic component manufacturers and authorized distributors that provide products from legal and reliable sources.

Numbers concerning counterfeiting vary from source to source, as do the suggested ways to defend the electronics supply chain against these fake components. In late 2007, the US Patent and Trademark Office estimated that counterfeiting and piracy drain about $250 billion out of the US economy each year along wit...Read More