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things differently in terms of coming up with innovative solutions that are driving the move to modularisation or miniaturisation. What used to be done in hardware doesn’t necessarily have to remain so. A huge amount of functionality can now be contained on a single chip or board, all of which can fi t within the form factor that is the most appropriate size for our customers’ solutions. Using fewer, smaller but more powerful components in product is not only a lot more sustainable in terms of raw materials but gives distributors far fewer individual components to worry about stocking and maintaining. Sustainability is already built into a lot of the new technologies that market- leading suppliers are developing, which is a very welcome development for us and our customers, but we’re also focused on sustainability of supply. We’re fi nding that our customers are far less prone to panic buying because they know we have supply well planned and under control.
In short, you don’t have to panic buy if you partner well.
CIE: As a UK-based distributor, where do you see the growth markets on home-soil over the next
into that?
Umasankar Pingali: We are a global player and measure our success on delivery time to customers, irrespective of which part of the world the customer is located. Irrespective of their order volume, they can expect the same level of effi cient service.
There have certainly been major efforts to boost the UK semiconductor industry and position itself as a signifi cant player in the global market. But as with any world region, that growth depends on a lot of variables including government initiatives, the prevailing investment climate, market demand and, as we all know, the unforeseeable. The same applies for the growth of automation, although that is perhaps more visible in our everyday encounters with the rapidly increasing compute power, robotic capabilities and, of course, AI. What is absolutely clear is that there is now far less uncertainty, which has the effect of boosting market performance, and we expect that to be the case in the UK and across Europe. Fortunately, Farnell ensured that it was perfectly positioned to not only keep the market supplied in challenging times, but was also ready to support it as
soon as normal activity was able to resume, which is what we see it doing right now.
CIE: Moving forward, how can the industry mitigate against the possibilities of future product shortages, higher logistics costs or freight disruption? Umasankar Pingali: We’ve all learned a lot of valuable lessons lately, including Farnell. But one thing we confi rmed in recent years is that having business continuity processes in place is paramount.
I think we all better understand how to keep our customers’ business running,
how to enable our warehouse locations to continue to support customers in challenging times, and how to enable people to work from home as effi ciently as they would from the offi ce.
We are all a lot better prepared, so embedding business continuity processes and prioritisation requirements into business planning is something that I think everyone now understands a lot better. Who knows when those plans could be put to pressure test? Well, we’ll fi nd out. But as for Farnell, we’re ready.
https://uk.farnell.com/
Innovative HMI concepts As a leading expert in the field of display, touch and embedded
technologies, we offer our customers innovative products, competent advice and individual solutions for the implementation of sophisticated HMI solutions.
› Special shapes, e.g. stretched , curved displays › Pre-configured capacitive & resistive touch sensor technologies › Design and production from prototype to mass production › Extended temperature range › Vibration resistance › Sunlight readability
› PPAP and IMDS entries › Long-term availability › Haptic feedback
LEADING DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY PARTNER
IN-HOUSE OPTICAL BONDING
IN-HOUSE EMBEDDED DEVELOPMENT
IN-HOUSE DESIGN & MANUFACTURING
DATA MODUL Ltd. | Gallan Park, Cannock, Staffordshire WS11 0XG | Phone: +44 1922 45 73 58 |
uk@data-modul.com |
www.data-modul.com
www.cieonline.co.uk. Components in Electronics February 2024 27
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