Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1348195
MARCH 2021 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 11 designers may need more handholding on high- tech boards. Tim Haag explains how to inter- pret information that just doesn't make sense. Tamara Jovanovic shares a variety of examples to keep bad data out of your design cycle. Nick Barbin shows designers how to use checks and balances to stop the "garbage in, garbage out" cycle. And Ed Acheson provides an update on IPC-2581C, which allows rigid-flex designers to share build intent digitally. We also have an article by Tony Plemel, and columns by Barry Olney, Kelly Dack, Phil Kinner, Patrick Crawford, Tara Dunn, John Talbot, and Matt Stevenson. IPC APEX EXPO takes place March 8–12, and we'll be there, bringing you interviews with the industry's top technologists and man- agers. Maybe we can chat—even virtually! See you next month. DESIGN007 Andy Shaughnessy is managing editor of Design007 Magazine. He has been covering PCB design for 20 years. He can be reached by clicking here. At least OEM designers have some control of their data. If you're a designer at a service bureau, unless you're dealing with a long-time customer, everything that comes through the door is suspect. And the CAM engineer might as well be wearing Lieutenant Columbo's stained trench coat. It's the CAM folks' job to find faults in the design data package you've handed off—and they almost always find faults. We have multiple reasons why bad data is missed, but I imagine time to market is the pri- mary culprit. With all the potential areas where incorrect data can enter the design cycle, it's easy to miss one little mistake, which then prop- agates downstream, oen necessitating a call from the fabricator at 6 p.m. on a Friday. Even the best detectives miss clues now and then. So, this month, we asked our expert contrib- utors to discuss their special operations and tac- tics for keeping bad data out of their designs. Jen and Mark at Monsoon not only discuss the chal- lenges, they also explain why it's best to "trust but verify" data every step of the way. Dana Korf discusses how to gauge the experience level of a design team, and a few sure giveaways that In Our Industry, the Whole is Truly Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts