ECIA CEO David Loftus Addresses Symposium on Counterfeit Parts and Materials
Event organized by SMTA and CALCE to enable organizations to find solutions from all sectors of the industry 

ATLANTA –ECIA’s President and CEO David Loftus spoke on behalf of the authorized channel at the Symposium on Counterfeit Parts and Materials in College Park, MD.  The topic of his presentation was "The Role of Authorized Supply Chain in Combatting Counterfeiting.”  

"With current shortage conditions in the electronic components market, counterfeits are increasing both in number and sophistication,” Loftus commented. “It is imperative that buyers purchase product through manufacturers' authorized channel partners to ensure 100% genuine product, that have been properly packaged and handled, backed by the full manufacturers' warranty. ECIA provides a unique web site resource, www.trustedparts.com, to search for electronic components exclusively from sources that have been verified to be authorized.”

The event was organized by SMTA in conjunction with the Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering (CALCE) at the University of Maryland and took place June 28-30. Changes in the electronic supply chain have been fast and furious in the last decades and their impact on industry is still evolving. It is well understood that the scourge of counterfeit electronic parts is related to the changes in the supply chain, but it is only one of the many impacts. This symposium provides a forum to cover all aspects of changes in the electronic parts supply chain related to how an organization performs part selection and management through the whole life cycle of the parts. Going beyond anecdotes and examples of counterfeit parts, it focuses on the solutions that are available and are under development by all sectors of the industry.