I finally realized why I find the semiconductor industry so compelling, and why the people are so great to work with. It’s because it’s made up of people who like to fix things and find solutions. This came to me while I was reading this morning’s email, which included an announcement of IMEC’s 25 Anniversary Celebration, which takes place as part of this year’s IMEC Technology Forum (ITF2009) from June 2-4, 2009. The announcement talked about how consumers rarely think about what goes into creating the devices that they have come to rely on to conduct their lives. “Executives managing the world’s leading high-tech companies are constantly monitoring problems and trends and thinking of solutions for each one. After all, engineers and scientists are fix-it people.” This is not an industry of complainers. This is an industry of pro-active trend-setters.
Therefore, it makes perfect sense that rather than reflecting on the past 25 years, the ITF will celebrate IMECs 25th anniversary by highlighting the theme of science and technology innovation for the next 25 years. The program will feature experts from IMEC and within the industry who will discuss their vision and startegies on both scaling and non-scaling activities, changes in business approach, and collaboration opportunities with R&D centers.
In addition to presentations, highlights of the 3-day event include a reception at IMEC’s state-of-the-art campus, two panel discussions about advancements in the biomedical and photovoltaic domains, a walking dinner followed by a contemporary classical recital of Wim Mertens, and wrapping up with talks from IMEC’s experts covering “The 10 nanometer device”, “Heterogeneous integration”, “Semiconductor technology for the next generation and conversion of renewable energy”, “Wireless and optical communication” and “Human++: merging biology and electronics for a better life.”
This sounds like the perfect way to celebrate such an important milestone. Let me be among one of the first to congratulate the people at IMEC on what they have achieved, and wish them 25 more innovative years. We all stand to benefit from what they do. – F.v.T.
