WASHINGTON -- The US President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology is recommending US policy-makers "respond forcefully" to Chinese policies aimed at boosting its expertise in semiconductor manufacturing or limiting US exports.

BANNOCKBURN, IL — Orders for printed circuit boards at North American fabricators fell 5.4% year-over-year in November.

FRANKFURT -- The German semiconductor market will drop 4.4% to 11.4 billion euros this year, according to a new ZVEI forecast.

Plymouth, WI — Kurtz Ersa North America, a leading supplier of electronics production equipment, today announced that it will hold a two-day ERSA Versaflow 3 Selective Soldering Level II Application Training Course from Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2016 at 1 p.m. through Friday, Dec. 9, 2016 at 12 p.m. at its new facility in Guadalajara. This course will provide the knowledge and hands-on experience required for process application and programming on the Versaflow 3 selective soldering machine.

The course will provide instructions to properly optimize the Versaflow systems with minimal or zero defects at the highest throughput possible. Training course topics will include:

• Advanced Process Understanding

• Flux / Preheat / Solder Process Overview

• Lead-Free Solder Alloys

• Process Requirements and Limitations

• ERSAcad3 Offline Programming

• Program Troubleshooting

For more information or to register for the course, e-mail Chad Suckow at chad.suckow@kurtzersa.com.