Bridging the Frontier Bob Smith, Executive Director
Bob Smith is Executive Director of the ESD Alliance responsible for its management and operations. Previously, Bob was senior vice president of Marketing and Business Development at Uniquify, responsible for brand development, positioning, strategy and business development activities. Bob began his … More » Nominations Now Being Accepted for the Inaugural Phil Kaufman Hall of Fame HonorFebruary 9th, 2021 by Bob Smith, Executive Director
Our segment of the $2-trillion global electronic products market may be small but we are mighty, populated with superstars whose unrivaled contributions to the semiconductor design industry helped grow it to where it is today. Alas, only 25 of our superstars have been honored with the Phil Kaufman Award for Distinguished Contributions to Electronic System Design since 1994. Some of the more deserving died before they were recognized for their efforts that today fortify the entire global semiconductor and electronic products markets. Because deceased members of the community are not eligible to receive the Phil Kaufman Award due to a policy set by the IEEE, the award sponsors took action. The ESD Alliance and the IEEE Council on Electronic Design Automation (CEDA) are rolling out the Phil Kaufman Hall of Fame to posthumously recognize our superstars who shaped our community through creativity, entrepreneurism, innovation and inspiration. Help us acknowledge those unrecognized superstars by nominating one or more of them who should be part of the inaugural Hall of Fame. Please take the time because selections for entry into the Hall of Fame will be determined through a nomination process. Nominations will be assessed by the ESD Alliance and CEDA Kaufman Award review committees and approved nominees will be honored for their contributions and achievements in 2021. The nomination period runs from now through Friday, March 26. The link to the nomination form can be found here. Inductees will be announced in early April. A special Phil Kaufman Hall of Fame page on the ESD Alliance and IEEE CEDA websites will host their photos, citations and tributes. It’s also not too early to start thinking about nominating one of our superstars from the 2021 Phil Kaufman Award. While we put it on hiatus last year, we’re moving forward with the award and the popular dinner ceremony. The nomination is downloadable here. Tune into our Panel During SEMI’s Technology Unites Global Summit And, speaking of superstars, I listened in on a lively and informative pre-recording last week of our panel, “Innovating for the Future! Electronic System Design –– Where Microelectronics Begins,” to be broadcast during SEMI’s Technology Unites Global Summit. I hope you’ll tune in Thursday, February 18, at 9am PST to hear it for yourself and be inspired. Moderator Nitin Dahad, Editor-in-Chief of embedded.com and Correspondent on EE Times, wades into a great discussion about system design, the importance of our ecosystem and its long reach throughout the global electronic products market segment. Verific’s Rick Carlson, Dean Drako, of Drako Motors, Eagle Eye Networks and IC Manage, Cylynt’s Ted Miracco, Anna Fontanelli at Monozukuri and D2S’ Aki Fujimura have plenty to say about their experiences and our ecosystem. Each unstintingly offers examples of how they made their mark in the electronic system design ecosystem and what they are still doing in surprising new ways. Treat yourself to an entertaining hour celebrating electronic system design and those of us in it. Registration information for the full program can be found here. To learn more about the ESD Alliance, a SEMI Technology Community, and our other programs and initiatives, visit the ESD Alliance website or contact me at bsmith@semi.org. Engage with the ESD Alliance at: Website: www.esd-alliance.org ESD Alliance Bridging the Frontier blog Twitter: @ESDAlliance |