Charles Clark of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne has an interesting article in EDN Magazine called “Parts Are Parts,” discussing the trend toward Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) electronics for military systems, and some of the additional work and potential pitfalls one inevitably encounters when using them in military systems. Interesting point about the problem with tin as a substitute in lead-free components, too. As he explains: “Properly screened and tested inexpensive commercial parts are viable alternatives to the virtually extinct military- and space-rated component types. But the old adage remains true: “If you want economy, you have to pay for it.” Read the full article.
Meanwhile, Geoffrey James has an article called “The war at home” in Electronic Business Online, discussing how the war in Iraq is changing the relationship between defense and commercial electronics – and how the move toward network-centric warfare will affect the US semiconductor industry. The problems with sand damage that we discussed earlier today is not confined to vehicles; and the maintenance overhand will hit the electronics field all the harder because much of the damaged gear isn’t made any more and so can’t be repaired. James draws upon a variety of industry surveys and reports, and notes that one of the big spinoffs of NCW in the USA will be the need for defense contractors and mainstream semiconductor/ electronics firms to find improved ways of working together, on multiple fronts. Read the full article.