ESTC is one of three premium semiconductor packaging conferences in the world and a leading international event within the field of electronic packaging and system integration. The Conference is organised every two years and is the representative forum of IEEE EPS (Electronics Packaging Society of IEEE) in Europe. It is supported by IEEE EPS in collaboration with IMAPS Europe and a group of two local organisers: Politehnica University of Bucharest (UPB), Technical University of Cluj-Napoca (UTCN) and “Nicolae Balcescu” Land Forces Academy Sibiu.
With around 115 oral presentations in over 20 technical sessions, 10 keynote speakers, 7 workshops, 4 continuing education courses (CDP), 33 exhibitors and a visit to the main sponsor of ESTC 2022, Continental Automotive Systems Romania, the organisers attracted over 350 participants from 30 countries.
The Conference was opened by Paul Savasta, the ESTC 2022 General Chair, Kitty Pearsall, President of IEEE EPS, and Daniel Wright, President of IMAPS Europe.
In her presentation, Kitty Pearsall gave a short historic overview of the supply chain transformation through the years, up to today’s electronic packaging landscape being global and integrated by IoT. The industry has shifted from globally integrated companies that have been replaced by OEMs/IDMs, OSATs, and foundries. This shift has led to even more uncertainties in the global semiconductor packaging supply chain. Presently, facilities are facing challenges in digitalising and optimising their main manufacturing processes, utilising AI/MI and negotiating massive amounts of data.
She also talked about the drivers for semiconductor packaging as well as the supply chain disruptions such as material shortages, regulatory and EHS or counterfeit parts. That becomes increasingly important since only a few companies invest in their supply chain visibility, yet they cannot see across their entire supply chain. “Greater than 50% of companies polled had no supply chain visibility at all” she stated.
Rolf Aschenbrenner, Deputy Director at the Berlin-based Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM, gave the second keynote address. He discussed the most recent technical trends in semiconductor packaging, such as High Performance Packaging (HPP), which are extremely complex packages with a variety of functions that must deal with issues such as organic substrates, thermal management, power distribution, and chiplet implementation. “Chiplets will change a lot but it’s not the package, it’s the design philosophy” he said. He concluded by predicting a “bright future” for the industry anyway, being aware of the main challenges including political circumstances or a shortage of young, qualified people. Politicians have ideas on how to handle these problems, but “we have to help them to follow the right ideas.”
The closing keynote was held by Sonok Rivetto, General Manager of main sponsor Continental Sibiu, who gave an in-depth overview of her company as a key player for future mobility as well as the Sibiu region. To attract young people, the company is successfully partnering with local universities and high schools.
The second and third days were a varied combination of technical sessions, technical keynotes, as well as workshops and industrial pitches. In the closing session, the baton was handed over to ESTC 2024 General Chair Dr. Tanja Braun, Group Manager at Fraunhofer IZM. ESTC 2024 will take place in Berlin, Germany, in September 2024.
