The board of directors for the Electronic Components Association (ECA) reinforced its commitment to EIA standards at its annual meeting last week and set aggressive plans for extending membership programs.
Under an agreement last year, EIA standards accreditation for North America was fully transferred to ECA, although all standards activities will continue to be conducted under the well-established EIA name.
Current EIA activities include collaboration with JEDEC and IPC on standards for solderability, process sensitivity for passives (PSL), and moisture sensitivity classification, labeling and handling (MSL). Future work could include cooperative efforts with organizations such as CEA, IEEE, GEIA and TIA.
“Under ECA’s guidance, the EIA standards effort is stronger than ever,” says James R. Kaplan, ECA chair and chairman of the board and CEO of Cornell Dubilier Electronics. “We’re committed to a leadership role in developing North American standards and working as a partner with international organizations to establish standards that benefit the industry worldwide.”
The EIA standards commitment is a major part of a strategic framework and action plan established by ECA’s board of directors. Other areas of concentration include:
Continuing to support technical conferences and investigating opportunities in new sectors or technology areas. ECA currently sponsors or co-sponsors the CARTS, EDS, ECTC and IWCS conferences.
Implementing new membership programs, services and categories.
Expanding collaboration with industry partners to provide information and resources for the entire supply chain.
Extending worldwide market research data and resources that help members make more informed decisions.
Continually updating the ECA web site (www.ecaus.org) to increase its role as a hub for electronic components information and resources.
“This new plan is generating a lot of excitement,” says Bob Willis, ECA president. “We have an influx of resources and involvement that will allow us to deliver services like never before. All I can say for now is ‘stay tuned.’”
About ECA
The Electronic Components Association (ECA) represents the passive components industry and the technologies, materials and supply chain associated with it. ECA offers market research, conferences, standards development under the EIA brand, issue advocacy, technology intelligence and collaborative efforts that help improve the business and technical expertise of its members. For more information, visit www.ecaus.org.