In our third episode, we\u2019re discussing the impact COVID-19 had on the electronics industry. We talk about manufacturing disruptions from lockdowns to increased supply chain disturbances. Let\u2019s learn how digitalization is working to alleviate these impacts on electronics manufacturing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meet the expert<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
First, let\u2019s meet our industry expert for this episode \u2013 Oren Manor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Oren is the Director of Business Development for Digital Manufacturing at Siemens Digital Industries Software. He is responsible for charting the future direction of Siemens\u2019 products and technologies for the electronics manufacturing portfolio. Oren has been working in this role for almost a decade, coming from the Valor division of the Mentor Graphics acquisition. Prior to working at Siemens, he worked for Signature-IT and Jungo in business development and sales positioning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Oren received a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Economics from Tel Aviv University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Connect with Oren Manor on LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before the pandemic, many electronics manufacturers talked about digitalization for years, but hesitation prevented adoption. When COVID-19 hit, suddenly all the talk about digitalization became a real necessity. Social distancing, manufacturing flexibility and supply chain disruptions drove the massive impact on the electronics industry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Firstly, social distancing continues to play a big role in the approach to managing the pandemic. Activities that aren\u2019t critical to the in-person production line such as pre-production, engineering, bill of material development, and machine recipes preparation can be done far away from the machines. Manufacturers needed a better digital infrastructure to help companies develop new products without physically being on the production line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Secondly, electronics manufacturers needed much more flexibility on where they manufacture their products and how decreasing batch sizes are impacting production. Lockdowns impacted when some manufacturers ran production, leaving them to chase available manufacturing capacity across the globe. Since production lines are not identical from site to site, moving them is not trivial and many waited to continue production after lockdowns ended. To seamlessly change over from one site to another, manufacturers need digital twins, machinery and software to set up to make it work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thirdly, the global shortage of electronics components driven by the supply chain disruptions impacted electronics manufacturers. The primary costs for many electronics products are the components. With the pandemic, some components aren\u2019t available for months (or years), resulting in changes in the design to be able to manufacture. With every change comes revisions and new product introduction tests, and more challenges for the manufacturer. To counteract these issues, manufacturers can better track material usage, optimize the way they are used and avoid excess on-hand inventory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Learn how digitalization is impacting the electronics manufacturing industry. Listen to the latest episode of \u201cThe Voice of Smart Digital Manufacturing\u201d podcast here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe impact of COVID-19 on electronics manufacturing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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