Optimism in the electronics market is surging, according to ECIA, bolstering data from a national manufacturing index that reached a 37-year high in March. The ECIA’s Electronic Component Sales Trend (ECST) monthly survey, which assesses month-to-month sales growth sentiment, leapt up between 26 and 27 points in component and end-market measures from February to March.…
While Renesas officially aims to get its Naka 12-inch wafer production line back to full operation within one month, research firm TrendForce expects the immediate task of restoring the cleanroom and installing new equipment systems to take much longer than that. Renesas said that the fire burned about 5 percent of the total area of…
The snowstorms in Texas have led to a 133-car pileup, nearly a half-million without power, and millions in the state under boil-water notices. The storms’ impact on semiconductor fabrication plants in the Lone Star state has also received attention. “The storm-related power outages in Texas could have a mind-blowing impact on fabs and, in turn,…
In recent years, decreasing vehicle costs and more options from car manufacturers have driven a steady increase in electric vehicle (EV) sales. With about 97 percent of battery charging taking place at work or at home, drivers of electric cars willing to accept that they may need to charge up over lunch when traveling longer…
A perfect storm of events have converged to create the semiconductor shortage of 2021. High-level collaboration across the electronics supply chain could make the deficit less painful, experts say. Shortages often prompt less-than-optimum purchasing behaviors. Competitive bidding for inventory drives prices up. Exceptions to approved vendor lists become common. And double-ordering – where purchase orders…
The burgeoning semiconductor shortage of 2021 hit chipmakers “like a ton of bricks,” according to one distributor. Of course, that’s not the phrase semiconductor suppliers would use. But the supply chain is in the midst of a perfect storm. A convergence of events is creating what’s expected to be a shortage of CPUs, MPUs, memory,…
U.S. manufacturing activity remained robust at the start of the year although pandemic-related supply and worker constraints curtailed production and drove prices up. The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index, the PMI, decreased by 1.8 percent in January to 58.7 from the December level of 60.5. The index remains well above 50, the line of…
On December 31, Texas Instruments Inc. and Avnet Inc. formally end their 40-year distribution relationship. Avnet’s success in replacing that business – estimated at 10 percent of Avnet’s sales — will be evident in the future, said Phil Gallagher, who was named Avnet’s CEO on November 23. Avnet’s fiscal 2020 sales reached $17.6 billion. TI…
Over the past 20 years, there has been a move toward a more diverse component sourcing model. But, with the logistical challenges that Covid-19 has presented to the global supply chain, what had been a steady drift has become a seismic shift. With an unpredictable global market, purchasers find themselves considering new vendors and markets…
The idea that the electronics industry would close the year on a high note seemed absurd 9 months ago. But like the manufacturing sector writ large, the supply chain has bounced back from the worst of coronavirus pandemic. “In spite of serious concerns about both supply and demand impacts in the early stages of the…