1) What is your Job title? Manager of PCB Layout Services 2) Are you involved in PCB Design or some other activity - (please indicate)? Scheduling, assignment, checking, release, and logistical support for all layout activities. 3) What type of boards do you create? Single punched, double and multilayer drilled boards. 4) How large is a typical design team at your company? Usually 4 persons. 5) What is the duration of your typical design time? First iteration turned-around for test in 4 weeks. 6) What percentage of the time spent is on Schematic Development? 20% 7) What percentage of the time spent is on PCB Design or Layout? 50% 8) What percentage of the time spent is on Manufacturing support? 25% 9) What percentage of the time spent is on Signal Integrity analysis? 1% 10) What percentage of the time spent is on Thermal/EMI? 2% 11) How many boards are typically in your projects? 12 12) How many FPGA's or ASIC's are used in your projects? 1/2 dozen 13) What is the average layer count of your PCB designs? 1-6 14) What is the typical clock speed or frequency your designs operate at? Medium Frequency (television) 15) Do you consider your designs to be 'high speed'? No 16) Will you be doing much more, more, the same, less, or much less designs next year? Less 17) What CAD tool(s) do you use? Mentor Graphics Boardstation 18) Do you plan on spending more, same or less on CAD tools next year? Same 19) Are Signal Integrity tools important to the success of your board designs? No 20) Are you very satisfied, satisfied, or not satisfied with your design tools? Not satisfied 21) What does your CAD tool do Right? Or Wrong? What do you like about it and not like about it. Mentor Graphics is very learning intensive and not very intuitive. Once you learn it, it's as good or better than others, but it is not for the casual user. The old THEDA software was lightyears ahead of Mentor Graphics from just a layout tool, it just didn't have the peripheral enhancements and extra baggage, which most layouters don't need anyway. Mike Huffman ([log in to unmask] ) CID+, IPC Certified Advanced Interconnect Designer Electrical CAD Manager Philips Consumer Electronics, BCT Projection TV PHONE 865-521-3448, FAX 865-540-8021 One Philips Drive, P.O. Box 14810, Knoxville, TN. 37914-1810 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DesignerCouncil Mail List provided as a free service by IPC using LISTSERV 1.8d To unsubscribe, send a message to [log in to unmask] with following text in the BODY (NOT the subject field): SIGNOFF DesignerCouncil. To set a vacation stop for delivery of DesignerCouncil send: SET DesignerCouncil NOMAIL Search previous postings at: www.ipc.org > On-Line Resources & Databases > E-mail Archives Please visit IPC web site http://www.ipc.org/contentpage.asp?Pageid=4.3.16 for additional information, or contact Keach Sasamori at [log in to unmask] or 847-509-9700 ext.5315 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------