IPC at CES: Reinforcing our Industry’s Commitment to Sustainability

by John Mitchell, IPC president and CEO

CES 2024 truly showcases the best of electronics innovation for today and tomorrow. It’s exciting to be here. One of my biggest takeaways from today is how absolutely essential it is for the electronics industry to reinforce our commitment to sustainability – sustainability for smart cities and homes, vehicle technology, fitness and wearables.

As President of IPC, I meet with electronics companies from around the world. More than ever, I hear about a clear need for more standards, education, and advocacy support to ensure sustainability in the design of and materials sourcing for these innovative technologies.

However, we need to develop stronger mechanisms for uniform information collection and sharing about the energy, water, and materials needed across the electronics life cycle to make better design and to make sure innovative technologies are also less impactful. Accessing this information is complicated by business sensitive information and transparency challenges. I’d love to see technology help to address this data challenge and open up possibilities for better insights and better decisions that enable the industry to build electronics better.

Opportunities for innovation like we see at CES must include sustainability considerations including how we can access information that helps us all to be more efficient in how we select and use our resources including chemicals, materials, water and energy.

The electronics industry is keenly aware of the opportunity we have to find real sustainability solutions including improved energy efficiency, responsible recycling, and sustainable materials management. I am excited to continue our work at IPC and help our global members work together and meet these important goals.