The most common question asked of electronic product developers today is how to do more with less. How do you incorporate newer, faster technologies in smaller packages to take advantage of new products and architectures that provide more functionality and power efficiency, all on time and under budget? Is it possible to retool processes without negatively impacting designer productivity? Can advanced techniques and current best practices be made available at the designer’s fingertips during development, without leaving the design environment?
Increased consumerization of electronics and a convergence of various elements of functionality, due in part to the Internet of Things (IoT), are putting intense economic pressure not only on time-to-market, but on cost of development as well. Add to that increased competition in the electronics industry and continued globalization, and we’re seeing increased investments in tools, training, new best practices and increasing openness to collaboration.
To illustrate the continued globalization, according to information released by the EDA Consortium in an October press release, PCB and multi-chip module revenue is at $148.3 million, a YoY increase of 5.2% compared to the same quarter in 2012. The four-quarter moving average for PCB and MCM, however, increased 10%. This is compared to overall industry revenue which increased only 3.8% YoY for the same quarter reported, but dropped almost 1% in sequential quarters. The four-quarters moving average, which compares the most recent four quarters to the prior four quarters, increased by only 5.3%.
