Defense Speak Interpreted: The Autonomous Plane Battle—Skyborg Vs. Loyal Wingman
American Made Advocacy: Congress Back from Break With Work To Do
Beyond the Board: What Companies Need to Know Before Entering the MilAero PCB Market
A Passion for PCB Prototypes: Accurate Circuit Engineering—'Good People Doing Something They Love'
August 13, 2025 | Linda Stepanich, Community MagazineEstimated reading time: 1 minute
Founded in 1983, Accurate Circuit Engineering (ACE) in Santa Ana, California, is a PCB prototype manufacturer and industry leader in radio frequency (RF) and microwave boards. It started as a family company and still adheres to those values by knowing its staff well and tailoring work and education to encourage them to stay at the company.
George Zell and Charles Lowe founded ACE as a small circuit board shop with five employees. Four decades later, it has expanded to three buildings and 72 employees. ACE was incorporated in 1985. James Hofer joined the company in 1999 as director of operations and is now a partner.
“ACE is good people doing something they love,” James says. “I am passionate about what I do, and ACE allows me to pursue that passion. I came from a flex and rigid-flex background, so when I joined the company, I decided we needed to find a niche. I thought I would change ACE into flex and rigid-flex, but they were running a lot of thick backplanes and ATE test boards. So, we decided to go with RF, microwave, and antenna, matching the lines and equipment already in place.”
ACE is a successful boutique business with repeat customers. They like it that way. “We’ve been offered incentives to increase running production orders,” James says. “We’re not interested. We get frequent emails to be acquired by the big conglomerates, but we refuse. We want to remain a small shop where people know where their product is being built, and they know the operators and the inside team building that product.”
In this industry, everything changes rapidly, and it’s important to stay updated. “Being a prototype manufacturer means our company needs to keep our finger on the pulse of the industry,” James says. “Being a member of the Global Electronics Association community allows us to keep abreast of the market. The Association offers us training, guidance, and insight that just can’t be found elsewhere. In my opinion, being a member of the Global Electronics Association is a must.”
Continue reading this article in the Summer 2025 issue of Community Magazine, a joint publication of I-Connect007 and the Global Electronics Association.
Share on:
Testimonial
"In a year when every marketing dollar mattered, I chose to keep I-Connect007 in our 2025 plan. Their commitment to high-quality, insightful content aligns with Koh Young’s values and helps readers navigate a changing industry. "
Brent Fischthal - Koh YoungSuggested Items
Precision PCB Acquires Assets of Microplace
10/13/2025 | Precision Technologies Inc.Precision Technologies Inc., doing business as Precision PCB, a One-Stop PCB Fabrication and Assembly services company with 27 years of experience providing Quality, Reliability and Excellence in customer service, has acquired the assets of Microplace, Inc.
Muon Space Awarded $44.6M Space Force SBIR Phase III Other Transaction Authority (OTA) Agreement
10/13/2025 | Muon SpaceMuon Space, a leading provider of end-to-end space systems specializing in mission-optimized satellite constellations, announced it has been awarded a $44.6 million Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Firm Fixed Price Phase III Other Transaction Authority (OTA) Agreement from the United States Space Force’s Space Systems Command System Delta 810 (SYD 810).
Beyond Thermal Conductivity: Exploring Polymer-based TIM Strategies for High-power-density Electronics
10/13/2025 | Padmanabha Shakthivelu and Nico Bruijnis, MacDermid Alpha Electronics SolutionsAs power density and thermal loads continue to increase, effective thermal management becomes increasingly important. Rapid and efficient heat transfer from power semiconductor chip packages is essential for achieving optimal performance and ensuring long-term reliability of temperature-sensitive components. This is particularly crucial in power systems that support advanced applications such as green energy generation, electric vehicles, aerospace, and defense, along with high-speed computing for data centers and artificial intelligence (AI).
Thales Alenia Space Inaugurates State-of-the-art Space Smart Factory
10/08/2025 | ThalesThales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), has inaugurated its Space Smart Factory in Rome with a ceremony attended by Italian President Sergio Mattarella. The factory — one of Europe’s largest intelligent, digital, reconfigurable manufacturing facilities — is located at the Tecnopolo Tiburtino high-tech innovation hub in Rome.
Firefly Aerospace Announces Strategic Acquisition of SciTec to Advance National Security Capabilities
10/07/2025 | Firefly AerospaceFirefly Aerospace, a market leading space and defense technology company, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire SciTec, Inc., a leader in advanced national security technologies, for approximately $855 million through a combination of $300 million in cash and $555 million in Firefly shares issued to SciTec owners at a price of $50 per share.