Show Time

PCB East 2026: Bigger Venue, Bigger Crowds

PCB East 2026 celebrated its move to Worcester with an increase in conference classes, exhibitors and attendance.
by Andy Shaughnessy

I’ve always enjoyed attending PCB East, but this year was even better because I was there as a PCEA staff member.

As some of you may recall, I worked with Mike Buetow and Frances Stewart years ago as editor of PCD&F and conference chair for PCB East and PCB West. The show felt like Homecoming Week. It’s funny how the old “show mentality” kicked back in after I spent years away from putting on shows and conferences.

There’s never a dull moment in trade show world.

“Where’s the power drop for these booths?”

“Are we going to run out of food?”

“Does anyone know the venue’s Wi-Fi password?”

The show’s relocation from Boxboro to Worcester was the hot topic of conversation. Attendees, speakers and exhibitors that I spoke with were universally happy with the new venue, the DCU Center in downtown Worcester.

This is reflected in the show numbers, with attendance up almost 48% over last year. Realtors often point to the importance of “Location, location, location,” and that certainly holds true in the Boston metro area. We learned one lesson years ago: Many people avoid driving into Boston.

Figure 1. Speakers Rick Hartley and Susy Webb check in at the registration desk.

The second PCB East was held in 1997 at the Hynes Convention Center in downtown Boston, and attendance was lighter than expected. Later, designers and manufacturers in New England told us that they’d rather commit hara-kiri than drive into the city.

Since that show, PCB East has been held outside the city in suburban areas. The Boxboro Regency was home to PCB East for years, but the hotel’s layout wasn’t ideal for a trade show. By 2025, it was clear that the show had outgrown that venue.

The move to the DCU Center in Worcester turned out to be a huge upgrade. This venue is light and bright, and much more open, with a better traffic flow in and out of the show floor. And, as one speaker joked, the conference rooms are all in the same zip code. The DCU Center is also within walking distance of a variety of restaurants and bars, which is a bonus. 

Figure 2. The high-speed design classes at PCB East were very popular, as usual.

Another topic on everyone’s mind was AI. Many of the classes covered AI in design or manufacturing, and Sean Patterson’s PCB Management Forum keynote discussed what managers need to know to implement AI within their companies. As he pointed out, it’s up to managers to lead with AI and not just farm it out to an “AI guy” in the IT department.

I visited the conference classes, and the two classes that were standing room only both dealt with EMI: Rick Hartley’s “Circuit Grounding to Control Noise and EMI” and Gerry Callahan’s “SMPS Layout – PCBA Design Practices to Avoid EMI.” Both classes had over 50 attendees.

The rain that was forecast for the week of PCB East was delayed for a few days, and the sun was shining on expo day. The show floor was jammed for the first couple of hours, and it stayed busy throughout the day. Among the expo attendees, I ran into designers, fabricators, EMS providers, test engineers, and even a few chip designers.

Figure 3: The show floor was busy all day, from opening through teardown.

I also met quite a few college students, which is a big plus. We need to expose as many students as we can to this industry, because I don’t think they get much PCB content at their universities. That’s one benefit of having a show in Worcester: there are dozens of colleges nearby, including eight in Worcester. (For music trivia fans, the Jimi Hendrix Experience album “Live at Clark University” was recorded there in 1968, with tickets selling for $3 and $4.)

Exhibitors were happy with the new location and the turnout. “Beer on the Floor” was a big hit, of course. Overall, everyone I spoke with was bullish on the future of PCB design and manufacturing, and excited about new technology. Designers were a little worried about filling the open PCB designer positions as the boomer class heads toward retirement.

But the number of young people at PCB East was a good sign. Are PCB design and manufacturing careers becoming hip again?

I spent much of expo day conducting interviews for our Talking Heads video program. These engineers and managers were excited to share the news about their latest innovations, equipment and processes.

It’s nice to see so many technologists becoming more at ease with the video interview format. Not long ago, companies in this industry might have had one person with the chops to do an on-camera interview. Now, each member of the design team or process flow wants to be interviewed. I think we can thank Joe Rogan, Amy Poehler and their fellow podcasters for helping to eliminate the “fear of the red light.”

Now, we’re all getting ready for PCB West. The show must go on!

I’m so happy to be back working with Mike and Frances again, as well as my new co-workers Ryann Howard, Will Bruwer and Leah Spinks. I’m lucky to work with such a great team.

I’ll see you all again on the road!End of article content 

Andy Shaughnessy is content architect of PCD&F/Circuits Assembly; andy@pcea.net.