en.Wedoany.com Reported - The U.S. Electronics Manufacturing and Assembly Consortium (EMAC) officially launched the second Bright Electronics Manufacturing Challenge on May 1, 2026. The competition provides U.S. college students with a real-world electronic manufacturing engineering experience, featuring a progressive three-round format covering PCB design, manual assembly, and robotics competition. The final will take place on October 27-28, 2026, at the SMTA International conference held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois.
EMAC is a national organization funded by the U.S. Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program, focused on addressing workforce shortages in the electronics manufacturing industry. It collaborates with SMTA, universities, and government agencies to build a complete talent pipeline from training to employment. Building on the inaugural event in 2025, this year's competition has compressed the schedule into three rounds, mirroring real-world industrial product development cycles. Teams consist of 2 to 5 enrolled students, must include a faculty advisor, and team members may span disciplines covering PCB design, embedded programming, mechanical integration, and project management. The registration deadline is June 22, with a $25 entry fee, and participants must maintain their enrolled status through the Fall 2026 semester.
The first round is a PCB design competition, with a time window from July 1 to July 31, 2026, to be completed remotely by all participating teams. The challenge requires each team to design a custom printed circuit board to serve as the control center for the competition robot. Teams must submit schematics, manufacturing files, design rule check reports, and design documentation within specified stack-up structure and board dimension constraints. Each team may independently add one custom feature to compete for an additional award, with a top prize of $1,000 in cash. All participants will receive a one-year Altium Designer software license and access to official training course resources.
The second round focuses on assembly processes and will be held live on October 27 during SMTA International. Advancing finalist teams will complete circuit board assembly and soldering under uniform timed conditions using specified components, tools, and their team's manufactured PCB. Scoring emphasizes soldering quality and process compliance, with a $500 cash prize. If a team designed a custom feature in the first round, they must prepare the necessary additional materials themselves. The third round is the final challenge, taking center stage on October 28. Teams will bring their self-designed robots to a dedicated competition arena, where the integrated performance of firmware, mechanical, and electronic systems will be tested in real combat. The champion prize is $2,000.
Tara Dunn, SMTA Training and Education Director and EMAC Program Lead, stated that the Bright Electronics Manufacturing Challenge lets students experience more than just classroom assignments—it encompasses every aspect a real electronics engineer faces, from PCB layout and routing to hands-on assembly and then to live competition in the robot arena. Each round corresponds to the actual pressures and sense of achievement found in the industry.
SMTA International is the premier annual flagship event for the North American electronics manufacturing sector. The 2026 agenda includes academic symposiums, technical workshops, industry exhibitions, and talent recruitment segments, with the exhibition hall located near Chicago O'Hare International Airport. The Bright Electronics Manufacturing Challenge is integrated into the official conference program, offering participating students the opportunity to meet industry employers, equipment vendors, and senior engineers face-to-face on site. The competition itself has also become embedded within the U.S. electronics manufacturing workforce development ecosystem.
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