PCB West 2026 Conference Registration Now Open

PEACHTREE CITY, GA – PCEA opened registration in May for the technical program at PCB West 2026, featuring over 50 classes and more than 120 hours of in-depth electronics engineering training on circuit board design and assembly.

Rick Hartley, Karen Burnham, Susy Webb, Stephen Chavez, and Tomas Chester are among the headliners of this year’s conference. It will be held Sept. 29 to Oct. 2 at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. It features classes for every level of experience, from novice to expert.

Registration for both the technical conference and the exhibition takes place at pcbwest.com. Those who sign up by Aug. 21 can take advantage of the early bird special discounts for the conference.

The scope of classes ranges from the basics of design engineering, libraries and circuit grounding to more advanced fare such as power distribution, EMC, stackups, and thermal management.

More than 25 of the presentations are new to the conference, including ones for advanced dielectrics for thermal PCBs, AI, and time budgets for new projects.

“PCB West is the leading conference and exhibition for printed circuit design and manufacturing in the world,” said Mike Buetow, conference director, PCB West. “It is the best place to find subject matter experts designing and building everything from popular consumer devices to the most sensitive and critical high-reliability technologies.”End of article content 

PCB East 2026 Attendance Up Almost 48% Over Last Year

PEACHTREE CITY, GA – Attendance for the PCB East 2026 conference and exhibition rose nearly 48% year-over-year, the Printed Circuit Engineering Association (PCEA) announced. Attendance at the technical conference was up 38%, while overall registration grew 42% from a year ago.

The annual trade show was held April 28 through May 1 at the DCU Center in Worcester, MA. In all, more than 85 leading suppliers of electronics design tools, manufacturers of bare boards and assemblies, suppliers of fabrication and assembly equipment and materials, and related industry companies exhibited at the show.

“The East Coast market once again showed its incredible vibrancy,” said Mike Buetow, conference director and president, PCEA. “Due to demand, we moved to a larger space for 2026, which resulted in the addition of 20 more exhibitors. The industry response speaks for itself.”

“There were some great classes at PCB East 2026,” said conference attendee Paul Brydges, principal PCB designer at Evident Scientific.

“It was a great PCB East and a great week meeting old friends and making new connections,” said exhibitor Carrie Guenther, marketing manager for RBB Systems. “Thanks to PCEA for arranging such a great PCB East in a new location!”

“PCB East was a blast,” said exhibitor Brandon Bourn, founder of Zenode, which printed custom ID cards for attendees. “Over 200 people had their custom Titan card made. Countless more stopped by booth 214 to see Zenode in action.”

“It was wonderful making new connections and catching up with industry friends,” said exhibitor Jeffrey Beauchamp, director of technology and engineering with NCAB Group. “We’re grateful to everyone who made PCB East such a meaningful and successful event.”

PCB West 2027 will take place April 26-30, again at the DCU Center.End of article content 

Lackey to Lead Flex Webinar this Month

PEACHTREE CITY, GA – Flex and rigid-flex circuit design and manufacturing expert Dave Lackey will present a free webinar for PCEA members this month.

The talk, Fundamentals of Flex and Rigid-Flex, takes place Jun. 24 from 1 to 2 p.m. Eastern. To register, click here.

The presentation will cover material selection, cost considerations, fabrication notes, design tool considerations, panel/array usage, manufacturability and much more. Whether you are starting with a simple flex design or a complex rigid-flex design, this presentation will give you a different perspective.

Lackey is vice president of business development with ASC/Sunstone, where he has worked since 2008.End of article content 

Online Learning Classes Now on PCEA Site

PEACHTREE CITY, GA – PCEA now hosts its online learning platform, Printed Circuit University, on the pcea.net website. Through this addition, PCEA members have access to various training videos and other content on board design, fabrication and assembly. In addition, past chapter meeting recordings are available on the site.

Access to much of the content is free to individual members, while some extended tutorials are available via subscription.End of article content