Electronics Technician · IPC Certified

Caleb Hudson

IPC-certified electronics technician with a degree in Electrical Engineering Technology. I inspect, rework and build circuit board assemblies, and I troubleshoot hardware until it works.

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About

Hands-on, measured, documented

I’m Caleb Hudson, an electronics technician who holds IPC J-STD-001 and IPC-A-610 certifications and an A.A.S. in Electrical Engineering Technology. At Pro Active Engineering I inspect complex circuit board assemblies with X-ray, AOI and the eye, rework them to IPC-A-610 (down to 0402 parts) and build electro-mechanical assemblies. That means reading schematics and drawings, writing up defects clearly and chasing down hardware problems that don’t follow the script.

Before that, I trained on wafer-processing equipment through the MNT-EC AT3 program and spent a summer as an equipment support intern at NY CREATES. There I shadowed the fab’s equipment-maintenance team through tool installs, preventive maintenance and vacuum-chamber work.

Away from work I take the same approach with my own hardware: measure before replacing anything, change one thing at a time, and keep a record. The repair log for my 2003 Honda Accord and the vacuum lab prototyping project show how I work.

Experience

Where I've worked

Electronics Manufacturing Technician

January 2026 – Present

Pro Active Engineering
- Inspect complex PCBA subassemblies and components — including BGA, QFN and LGA packages — using X-ray, AOI and visual inspection to IPC-A-610, catching bridging, voiding, insufficient wetting and other nonconformances.
- Hand-solder and rework SMT parts down to 0402, and build electro-mechanical assemblies under ESD controls.
- Work from work instructions, schematics, assembly drawings and blueprints for first-article inspection and for troubleshooting non-routine hardware problems.
- Log defects in Manex QC with SPC and work with engineering and quality to keep high-volume builds on schedule.
- Feed inspection results back to SMT operators to support pick-and-place, reflow and other line processes.
- IPC-A-610
- X-ray
- AOI
- BGA / QFN / LGA
- 0402 rework
- Manex QC
- SPC
- ESD
Equipment Support Technician Intern

June 2025 – July 2025

NY CREATES
- Built an inventory-tracking model that freed up cleanroom floor space and reduced risk on assets worth more than $100,000.
- Spent two months shadowing the equipment-maintenance team in the fab every day: tool installation, preventive maintenance, vacuum-chamber operation, contamination control and troubleshooting.
- Prepared cut sheets and Gantt timelines for prospective equipment installs, and organized technical sessions that connected fellow interns with process engineers and tool owners.
- Cleanroom
- Preventive maintenance
- Vacuum chambers
- Contamination control
- Asset tracking
Advanced Technology Technician Training (AT3)

September 2024 – June 2025

Micro Nano Technology Education Center (MNT-EC)
- Training in cleanroom protocol, process-chamber components, entry-level maintenance tasks and facility safety for wafer-processing equipment.
- Cleanroom protocol
- Process chambers
- Equipment maintenance
- Facility safety

Credentials

Certifications & education

Certifications

IPC J-STD-001 Certified IPC Specialist (CIS)

Requirements for soldered electrical and electronic assemblies

MATC · 2023
IPC-A-610 Certified IPC Specialist (CIS)

Acceptability of electronic assemblies

Pro Active Engineering · March 2026

Education

A.A.S., Electrical Engineering Technology

MATC · 2025

Relevant coursework

AC/DC circuits
Analog and digital circuit techniques
Embedded programming
Interfacing and programming
Networks
Solar PV installation lab

Electronics & electrical

Skills & tools

Assembly & quality

Building boards and assemblies, and proving they meet the standard.

Hand soldering, SMT and through-hole
Rework down to 0402
Box build and electro-mechanical assembly
X-ray and AOI inspection
IPC-A-610 / J-STD-001
ESD controls
Manex QC and SPC

Test & diagnostics

Measuring first, then fixing the actual fault.

Digital multimeter and oscilloscope
Schematics, assembly drawings and blueprints
Electrical test equipment
High-voltage safety
Vacuum leak testing
Precision hand tools

Cleanroom & equipment

Supporting semiconductor tools where contamination matters.

Cleanroom protocol
Process-chamber components
Vacuum-chamber operation
Preventive maintenance
Contamination control
Equipment install planning

Software & embedded

Enough code and CAD to design, simulate and talk to hardware.

Embedded C
AVR microcontrollers (ATmega2560)
SPI, USART, BLE, ZigBee
MATLAB
NI Multisim
Autodesk CAD

Recent work

ongoingMarch 2026 – Present

Automotive diagnostics & mechanical repair

Accord repair log

Ongoing repair log for a 2003 Honda Accord: a parasitic drain traced to the factory CD changer, a dashboard and factory-radio teardown to bypass it, battery monitoring and replacement, a knock sensor, a power-steering flush and more.

Automotive
12 V electrical
Diagnostics
Mechanical

completeJanuary 2025 – June 2025

Prototyping for engineering training kits

Electro-mechanical prototyping & vacuum lab

Materials testing on 3D-printed parts sealed with liquid sealant to make low-cost pneumatic tubing for rough-vacuum trainers, plus custom electro-mechanical assemblies for entry-level engineering training kits.

Vacuum
3D printing
Materials testing
Electro-mechanical
Prototyping

Technical note

Finding a parasitic battery drain

A step-by-step method for measuring key-off current draw with a multimeter and narrowing it down to a single circuit.

All projects →

Contact

Let's talk

Hiring for an electronics or hardware role, need a hand with a project, or just want to compare notes on a repair? Email is the best way to reach me.

Open to electronics technician, manufacturing and hardware roles.

Based in Wisconsin.

caleb@calebhud.com