SEMI went global in the mid-1980s because it saw the industry moving that way, according to Stanley T. Myers, president. Direction also is taken from a global perspective. Myers says that thinking of goals as local and global together makes cooperation profitable for SEMI members. For example, SEMI has regional advisory boards in key supplier countries to keep track of local issues and bring them to the attention of the international board when appropriate. Even regional organizations work with SEMI and recognize that the industry is a global business, he says.
Executives even attend each other's executive council meetings.
The SIA, San Jose, Calif., takes a different tack, one that some might say is less globally enlightened but much more focused on the needs of a specific set of companies. In other words, stave off Japan. Public policy is the second area, which means trying to influence legislation and regulations regarding trade relations with the PRC, export controls to cut red tape, visa quotas for overseas engineers, and issues with environment, health and safety. The SIA founded SRC in 1982 because there weren't enough engineers graduating with a semiconductor education, and it could fund relevant research at universities, Scalise says. SIA also is putting efforts into education at the K-12, college and graduate school levels, he says.