IPC APEX EXPO 2009 was held in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention Center. The 6-day show opened March 28, and a 3-day technical conference session and exhibition was held on March 31.
I attended the last two days of the show to view the exhibition and provide a presentation during the technical session. I would have liked to stay longer (who wouldn’t want to stay longer in Las Vegas); however, I had prior commitments.
Many technology companies are feeling the financial squeeze as the economy continues to falter, and find ways to lower expenses.
Many of my business associates canceled this trip, and those that were in attendance cut their trips short and only stayed 1 or 2 days.
Usually, there are a large number of visitors from Japan and other Asian countries attending large conventions like this; however, the number of attendees was significantly lower this year and most Asians at the conference were speakers.
Attendance for electronics conventions held in Asia has steadily decreased since the fourth quarter of 2008.
Many companies canceled booth reservations at SEMICON JAPAN and NEPCON WORLD as they continue to pinch pennies. These companies revoked non-essential business travel for their rank-and-file representatives as well as upper management.
The number of visitors at the IPC APEX EXPO was considerably lower this year compared to previous years.
The floor size of the exhibition was almost the same as last year, but there were quite a few more vacant booths.
The location of the show could be another reason for the low turnout.
Las Vegas is a destination spot for tourists as well as the business traveler. The business traveler sometimes mixes the two and brings along the family.
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Unfortunately, traveling budgets for most companies are close to non existent as sales continue to plummet, and it is tough to justify a trip to Las Vegas. Perhaps, the expense could be justified if the destination were Silicon Valley or Los Angeles where there are numerous electronics companies within a 1-hour drive, and engineers working at these firms could visit the exhibition after work.
The electronics industry in and around Las Vegas is virtually non existent, and local visitors usually don’t attend electronic shows.
The predominant segment represented at the exhibition was assembly-related instead of the usual printed wire board (PWB) manufacturing.
The few electronics manufacturing equipment companies that did attend the show featured drilling machines, exposure machines, wet lines and AOI.
There were a high number of companies whose product lines included assembling machines and soldering machines. The latest models for assembling machines featured flexible capabilities for different types of components. These new machines are relatively small, but capable of managing a high number of components.
Two on-line news media groups attended the show and conducted live interviews and industry discussions. PCB 007 and UP Media Group (Circuits Assembly) reserved large booths for these interviews, and will upload their findings to their respective Websites. This web-based review will provide some insight to those who were unable to attend the show.
Update your planners as 3 conventions are scheduled over the next few months: KPCA Show in April, JPCA Show in June, and SEMICON West in July.
Hopefully, the weak economy will not put a damper on the turnout.
Source: EPT Newsletter, VentureOutsource.com, April 2009
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