Electronic Business articles from September 2006

Electronic Business archives from September 2006

EB tech coverage blossoming.(Electronic Business)(Editorial)
September 1, 2006... By John Dodge, Editor-in-Chief Earlier this year, we queried readers in advance of our June magazine redesign about what they want most from ELECTRONIC BUSINESS. The resounding answer was more coverage of technology trends. It's little...

Medical electronics outsourcing.
September 1, 2006... Edited by Barbara Jorgensen, Senior Editor Market Overview The medical electronics segment is considered a significant opportunity for EMS providers and contract manufacturers (CMs) to increase both their revenues and profits over...

Defense regs equal supply chain headaches.(International Traffic in Arms Regulations)
September 1, 2006... By Sally Cole Johnson, Contributing Writer If you're operating an electronics company in the defense space and have never heard of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, known as ITAR, you could be in for a rude awakening. ...

Worker shortages emerge in China.
September 1, 2006... By Sally Cole Johnson, Contributing Writer Let's face it: Most of us have heard horror stories about less-than-desirable working conditions, cramped dorms, low pay and 80-plus-hour work weeks in China's manufacturing plants. This ugly...

Silicon, solar and savings.
September 1, 2006... By Bill Roberts, Contributing Writer Like love and marriage in the old pop tune, solar power and silicon go together like a horse and carriage. The problem is, without government subsidies in the form of tax incentives for end users,...

Stability pays off.(electronics an economic pillar)(Brief article)
September 1, 2006... By Drew Wilson, Contributing Writer Despite an Asian economic crisis, a devastating tsunami and bird flu scares, Thailand has remained an oasis of stability for high-tech. Thailand can be a safe haven from China's rising labor costs...

SoC firm finds fertile ground in China.(system-on-a-chip, Actions Semiconductor)(Company overview)
September 1, 2006... By Drew Wilson, Contributing Writer China manufactures 80 percent of the world's MP3 players. David Lee, chief financial officer of Actions Semiconductor , figures his company is in the right place. Based in Zhuhai, in China's...

Tech IPOs stall.
September 1, 2006... By Barbara Jorgensen, Senior Editor The IPO market continued at an underwhelming pace in the first half of 2006, reports America's Growth Capital (AGC), a Boston-based investment bank. In particular, technology initial public offerings...

Mini-microphones make big market waves.
September 1, 2006... By Russ Arensman, Contributing Writer Nearly a decade ago, Knowles Acoustics , a leading maker of electronic hearing-aid components, set out to develop a better microphone using silicon-based microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)...

Big view, small package.(Kopin Corp.)
September 1, 2006... By Barbara Jorgensen, Senior Editor "Good things come in small packages" is a cliche that will never get old in the electronics industry. The drive toward smaller, lighter, faster and cheaper pervades everything from semiconductors to...

LED market lights up.(light emitting diodes)
September 1, 2006... By Geoffrey James, Contributing Writer For decades, LEDs played supporting roles in the electronics business, mainly as indicator lights on control panels and as backlights for the LCD screens on handheld devices. On the heels of...

Will OLEDs steal LED's thunder?(organic light-emitting diodes )
September 1, 2006... By Geoffrey James Even as LEDs move into new markets, organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) may undercut a core market for today's LEDs: the screens on handheld devices. "OLED displays consume half as much power and have brighter...

Is DFT the key to reducing test costs?(design for test)(Brief article)
September 1, 2006... By Sally Cole Johnson, Contributing Writer In an era when semiconductor costs are outpacing market growth, there's no doubt that the industry would like to see faster automatic test equipment (ATE) development that carries a low price...

DFM: As much hype as promise.(design for manufacturing)(Brief article)
September 1, 2006... By Ann Steffora Mutschler, Senior Editor The semiconductor industry is rampant with hype on design for manufacturing (DFM) technology as the savior to continuing manufacturing device below 65 nanometers. But some in the technical community...

What's up with Zigbee?(Zigbee Alliance)
September 1, 2006... By Jessica Davis, Senior Editor When the Zigbee Alliance made its debut in 2002, the organization heavily promoted its new networking protocol to OEMs as a home automation tool. The technology would enable a futuristic home to monitor and...

China flexes environmental muscles.(electronics industry)
September 1, 2006... By Tam Harbert In the next two years, the Asian giant will issue a slew of new regulations. Will you be ready? Just when the electronics industry thought it had cleared one of its toughest regulatory hurdles in years--the European...

First class to China.(David Hu and John Yu )
September 1, 2006... By Bill Roberts Chinese engineers David Hu (right) and John Yu put their American educations to good use at home Homestead High School in Silicon Valley produced Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, founders of Apple Computer . A generation...

Expanding EMS' reach.(eye medical outsourcing, Waters Corp.)(Company overview)
September 1, 2006... By Barbara Jorgensen, Senior Editor Contract manufacturers eye medical outsourcing market Companies evaluate many factors when choosing a manufacturing partner and are usually loath to act on "a leap of faith." But ultimately,...

A force to be reckoned with.(Company overview)
September 1, 2006... by Russ Arensman, Contributing Writer Seagate will be tough to beat--if it doesn't fumble Maxtor's acquisition Seagate Technology 's $1.9 billion purchase of rival Maxtor , completed in late May, looks like a mixed blessing for the...

Beware the hidden costs of outsourcing.
September 1, 2006... By Bill Roberts I know this is Electronic Business 's annual issue on the top EMS providers, and I know that Gartner forecasts that the EMS business will grow 15 percent this year to $230 billion. So what I'm about to say sounds like...

Don't try this at home.
September 1, 2006... By John Dodge, Editor-in-Chief Stu Pann has a big job, and he is never happy. As head of Intel 's manufacturing supply chain, 47-year-old Pann, along with his 2,500-strong customer fulfillment group, is always trying to do a better...