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14 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I AUGUST 2025 thermal management. Next, we have components that carry sensitive signals, such as clocks, crystals and RF parts. Those usually require careful handling when it comes to grounding and impedance, so it's always good practice to plan their placement early and ensure they are properly isolated. Lastly, the designer needs to consider design for manufacturability and make sure that they are placing components and routing in a way that aligns with the fabrication capabilities of their cho- sen contract manufacturer. Understanding the manufacturer's capabilities early on is key to avoid- ing costly design in the long run. Walk us through your floor planning process. Do you work with other EEs or designers on this? This process seems to differ from company to company. At my current job, we have expert layout engineers who handle board design. As EEs, we focus on designing the schematic, and then we hand it off to the layout team. However, we work closely with them during the floor planning stage and through- out the design. We ensure that sensitive compo- nents are not placed close to noisy signals, work with mechanical engineers to avoid part interfer- ences with mechanical features, and consult with the EMC team to address ESD/EMC requirements for each design. Everything needs to be designed to be properly tested and automated in production. What are some of the challenges that designers face during floor planning? One of the main challenges designers face during PCB floor planning is managing signal integrity issues, specifically crosstalk between major com- ponents such as high-speed digital processors, memory, and analog circuitry. Proper placement of these components is critical to minimizing interfer- ence and ensuring reliable performance. Designers must also work within the constraints of a specific board shape or mechanical enclosure, which can limit layout flexibility and part selection, as well as electrical design itself. Dealing with ther- mal considerations could be another bump in the road, as well as following proper design guidelines when it comes to DFM. Does floor planning differ across the different EDA tools? At its core, floor planning practices remain simi- lar across different tools. Sure, the programs are different, and it might be a slightly different road to get there, but at the end of the day, the goal of floor planning stays the same regardless of which tools you have at your disposal. Do you have any floor planning advice you'd like to share? No matter how many times we go through the same process, it's surprisingly easy to forget the lit- tle things. As engineers, we have to keep track of a lot, and it's always good to have something in place to remind us and ensure nothing slips through the cracks. As we go through the process and learn, I've found it best to create a checklist and add to it over time as needed. That way, I can go through the list every time I'm working on a design and know with certainty that I am not for- getting anything. It also helps to have peers, as I do in my job now, to check and review all the documen- tation I release. While this is something that not everyone is able to have (especially at smaller companies), I hope teams can still find ways to add peer review to their design pro- cess so they can catch issues before it's too late. DESIGN007