The ATP is enabling U.S. firms to pursue research opportunities leading to new markets and new performance capabilities. Some examples of ATP awards made in the program's general competitions for electronics-related technologies are:
Four ATP focused programs, which provide cost-shared support for collections of industry-led projects, are helping the electronics industry surmount obstacles en route to new technologies in:
A fifth program is leveraging information technology to enhance health care services.
NIST research and services have helped to build the technical infrastructure that enhances company capabilities in areas ranging from R&D to marketing. In semiconductor manufacturing, services now extend from an array of Standard Reference Materials (SRMs) incorporated into the industry's quality control systems to tests for electromagnetic compatibility. One SRM, used to check the accuracy of equipment that measures lines on photomasks, helped reduce errors by a factor of 10, saving photomask manufacturers an estimated $30 million annually. Through its National Semiconductor Metrology Program, NIST is addressing the highest priority measurement needs of U.S. chip manufacturers and their suppliers. These efforts involve more than 70 companies and dozens of other organizations, including nearly 40 universities. To pave the way for the even tinier and more powerful integrated circuits of the future, NIST and its partners are developing tools to:
NIST also is tackling industry's infrastructural needs in optoelectronics, microelectromechanical devices, wireless communications, high-speed communications, and storage technology. NIST-developed tests and its facilities are used by companies as they develop and evaluate information technology standards and applications in areas such as product data exchange, electronic commerce, software interoperability, simulation and virtual reality, networking, and information security.
Through centers in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, the MEP is delivering hands-on technical and business assistance that is helping smaller manufacturers in the 16,500-firm electronics sector improve their performance and capabilities.
Individual electronics companies and influential industry organizations are among the U.S. business community's most dedicated practitioners and ardent proponents of quality management. For example, SEMATECH, the consortium of U.S. chipmakers, launched a supplier-improvement program based on the criteria for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The American Electronics Association created a quality steering committee and a three-year, quality-program implementation guide for companies, also based on the criteria.
Eleven of the 32 Baldrige award winners since 1988 derive all or part of their business from sales of electronic components, products, or services. They are: