# An Interview with Chris Denney

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2018-10-15
- Length: 1h 34m
- Episode: 411
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/411-an-interview-with-chris-denney/

## Summary

Chris Denney, CTO of Worthington Assembly, discusses the evolution of US contract manufacturing, contrasting the manual, low-volume shops of the past with modern, highly automated facilities. He details the partnership with CircuitHub, which uses native EDA files and APIs to automate quoting and data normalization, drastically reducing the time engineers wait for prices. Denney also provides specific design-for-manufacturing advice, such as avoiding double-sided assembly for heavy components and verifying footprints to prevent assembly errors.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney#t=0) Introduction and Chris Denney's Background
- [23:08](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney#t=1388) The State of US Contract Manufacturers
- [36:45](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney#t=2205) Worthington Assembly's Transformation and Automation
- [53:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney#t=3211) The CircuitHub Partnership and Automated Quoting
- [1:20:20](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney#t=4820) Design for Manufacturing: Silkscreen and Component Placement
- [1:26:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-10-15-an-interview-with-chris-denney#t=5196) Component Sizing, Risk, and Hiring

## Topics

- [Design for manufacturing & NPI](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/design-for-manufacturing)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [EDA & CAD tools](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/eda-and-cad-tools)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Test & measurement](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/test-and-measurement)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Worthington Assembly (company)
- CircuitHub (company)
- DigiKey (company)
- KiCad (tool)
- Eagle (tool)
- Octopart (company)
- Panasonic (company)
- Samsung (company)
- Apple (company)
- AOI (tool)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Chris Denney | PCB Design, Fabrication, & Manufacturing](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2022-12-16-chris-denney-pcb-design-fabrication-manufacturing) (Being an Engineer)
- [Ep. 8 | From Prototype to Market: Design for Manufacturability with Untapped Engineering Resources](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2020-08-25-ep-8-from-prototype-to-market-design-for-manufacturability-with-untapped-enginee) (Moore's Lobby)
- [S7E2 WEBINAR: Your Manufacturer is Stupid: Why Your Circuit Board Design Is Making Their Job Harder with Chris Denney](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2026-01-09-s7e2-webinar-your-manufacturer-is-stupid-why-your-circuit-board-design-is-making) (Being an Engineer)
- [#037 - Disrupting with digital manufacturing, with Nick Pinkston of Plethora, USA](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2017-09-13-037-disrupting-with-digital-manufacturing-with-nick-pinkston-of-plethora-usa) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [EMS@C-LEVEL 2022 Season Episode #1 with Altium and MacroFab](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2022-02-20-ems-c-level-2022-season-episode-1-with-altium-and-macrofab) (EMS@C-LEVEL)

## Citing this page

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