iNEMI Conference will Bring Together Environmental Leaders from the Electronics Manufacturing Industry

Herndon, VA — February 4, 2011 — The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI) is hosting the Environmental Leaders Conference on February 23 and 24 in Ocotillo, Arizona (near Chandler). Hosted by iNEMI member Intel Corporation, this conference will bring together leaders from corporations, universities and government agencies to share their experiences and discuss future plans for a sustainable future.

“iNEMI is working with our members to drive improvements in electronics manufacturing that will achieve scientifically quantifiable benefits for the environment,” said iNEMI CEO Bill Bader.  “Significant progress has been made, but additional complex challenges remain, and collaboration is critical for closing industry gaps. This conference is intended to bring together environmental leaders from the electronics manufacturing industry and key stakeholders to share experiences and define environmental research priorities.”

In addition to sharing the experiences and expectations of environmental leaders, the two-day event will review progress made in the past year by several of iNEMI’s environmental projects. It will also discuss key findings from the Environmentally Conscious Electronics (ECE) chapter of the 2011 iNEMI Roadmap, scheduled for release in late March of this year. Confirmed speakers and facilitators include:

Jackie Adams, Senior Technical Staff Member, IBM
Darren Beck, Manager, Corporate Responsibility, Sprint Corporation
Todd Brady, Environmental Director, Intel
Ric Erdheim, Senior Counsel, Philips Electronics Government and Industry Affairs
Carol Handwerker, Professor of Materials Engineering, Purdue University
Barbara Karn, Physical Scientist, Office of Research and Development, US EPA
Randolph Kirchain, Principal Research Associate, Materials Systems Laboratory, MIT
John Malian, Program Manager, Design for Sustainability, Cisco
Carole Mars, Electronics Sector Coordinator, Sustainability Consortium and Arizona State University
Scott O'Connell, Senior Manager, Environmental Affairs, Cisco
Tom Okrasinski, Senior Manager, Environmental Engineering, Alcatel-Lucent
Mark Rossi, Research Director, Clean Production Action
Ellen Struck, Director, Business Development, UL Environment Inc.
Stephen Tisdale, Manager, Environmental Core Competency, Intel
Josh Walden, Vice President, Technology and Manufacturing Group, Intel

“We held a similar meeting — a by-invitation environmental research stakeholders forum — in Vienna in early November,” explained Bader. “That meeting was held in conjunction with Going Green — CARE INNOVATION 2010, and we had a very productive session in which we identified 12 research topics. We hope to continue the dialogue in the meeting this month and further hone our list of research needs.”
 
The 12 topics identified at the meeting in Europe were:

1. Effective tools for rapid multivariate analysis.
2. Shared peer-reviewed lifecycle analysis materials databases.
3. Sample business cases on sustainability.
4. Transient input-output for new material applications.
5. Simplified lifecycle analysis (LCA) for unit processes (raw materials).
6. Improved knowledge of product user behavior.
7. Simplified LCA for key product segments – right tool for right need; clarify priorities.
8. Cooperative industry, NGO and regulator definition of most effective suite of policy instruments.
9. Eco-reliability (green applications need to have high-reliability, multi-stage lifecycles or short lifetime with full asset recovery).
10. Resource criticality modeling.
11. Resilient systems.
12. "White list” of materials acceptable for use.

 
Registration
Registration is free, but space is limited. Anyone interested in attending the conference should go to http://www.inemi.org/cms/calendar/Env_Leaders_Feb11.html for additional details and to register.

About iNEMI
The International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative’s mission is to forecast and accelerate improvements in the electronics manufacturing industry for a sustainable future.  This industry-led consortium is made up of approximately 100 manufacturers, suppliers, industry associations and consortia, government agencies and universities.  iNEMI roadmaps the needs of the electronics industry, identifies gaps in the technology infrastructure, establishes implementation projects to eliminate these gaps (both business and technical), and stimulates standards activities to speed the introduction of new technologies.  The consortium also works with government agencies, universities and other funding agencies to set priorities for future industry needs and R&D initiatives.  iNEMI is based in Herndon, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), with regional offices in Shanghai, China; Limerick, Ireland; and Tokyo, Japan.  For additional information about iNEMI, go to http://www.inemi.org.