The need for innovative approaches to putting the U.S. manufacturing base in a competitive position has created new opportunities for academia to offer constructive help, in partnership with government and industry.  The University of Maryland, along with several other academic centers throughout the United States, has established strong ties with government and industry through State-Industry-University Cooperative Research Centers (SIUCRC), sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF).  These research consortia have helped academia focus their resources in research, education and training on real-world problems relevant to today’s technology.  Mechanisms have been cooperatively developed for transferring state-of-the-art technology to relevant manufacturing agencies.  The CALCE Electronic Packaging Research Center is an existing SIUCRC, and has been active in the area of surface mount and microelectronic packaging for the last 8-9 years.  This center is now teaming with Army Research Labs, and to make available to local industries, a unique micro-factory facility for research and hands-on training in surface mount manufacturing.  This paper discusses some aspects of this cooperative program and the potential impact on electronic manufacturers.
 

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