IPC Welcomes President Biden’s “Buy American” Executive Order

BANNOCKBURN, Ill., USA, January 25, 2021 — IPC welcomes the “Buy American” Executive Order signed today by U.S. President Joe Biden. The COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated starkly the importance of building robust domestic manufacturing capabilities that the United States lacks today. 

According to a White House statement, the Executive Order will:

• “Close current loopholes” in domestic content and purchasing requirements.
• Increase transparency and oversight of potential waivers to “crack down on unnecessary waivers.”
• Reinvigorate the U.S. Manufacturing Extension Partnership and other federal mechanisms to better connect small- and medium-sized enterprises to contracting and subcontracting opportunities.
• Appoint a new senior leader in the Executive Office of the President in charge of the government’s Made-in-America policy initiative.

IPC President and CEO John Mitchell said, “The Executive Order is a meaningful milestone on the road to our manufacturing future. IPC encourages President Biden to complement the Executive Order with an ambitious, interagency U.S. manufacturing strategy that builds capabilities domestically and strengthens ties to U.S. allies and trading partners.

“IPC believes in both free, fair, rules-based international commerce, and in the right of all nations to ensure access to trusted and resilient supply chains for essential goods and services. In signing this Executive Order, President Biden moves closer to achieving the latter, even as a he works with allies and trading partners to promote the former. 

 “IPC looks forward to reviewing the Executive Order more closely and engaging with the Director for Made-in-America to provide our input on implementation. IPC also encourages President Biden to continue to take swift action during this pandemic to provide immediate, short-term support to manufacturers and workers in a manner that also provides long-term benefits and builds resilient manufacturing networks in the U.S. and worldwide.”

About IPC
IPC (www.IPC.org) is a global industry association based in Bannockburn, Ill., dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its nearly 3,000 member companies which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $2 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Washington, D.C.; Atlanta, Ga.; Miami, Fla.; Brussels, Belgium; Bangalore and New Delhi, India; Bangkok, Thailand; and Qingdao, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Suzhou and Beijing, China

Contact:
Sandy Gentry, IPC Communications Director
+1 847-597-2871 or SandyGentry@ipc.org