IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1543955
32 I-CONNECT007 MAGAZINE I MARCH 2026 ASTER. The intent is to look at where custom- ers are starting to use other tools, bring them into the Siemens fam- ily, and eventually have those tools finely tuned and integrated into the design flow. ASTER specifi- cally complements our Valor NPI technology and creates that designed-for-testability aspect. It pro- vides extensive test coverage that we didn't have. Is "filling the gap" enough for what Siemens hopes to accomplish? Alam: There has to be more value, so we are planning to left-shift ASTER's capabilities early in the workflow. We did the same with Supplyframe: left-shifting to the component selection as early as possible. We highlighted component storage and pricing issues and allowed the engineers to po- tentially switch out components at the schematic stage before they caused issues later on. With Downstream, we purchased some of the best PCB documentation tools in the world. With TestWay, we plan to left-shift the design for test (DFT) functionality so that engineers can get a flavor of what their designs may look like in a testing manufacturing environment way before they reach that stage. The last thing you want is have a manu- facturer send back your board and say, "This whole area is untestable." If you can account for testability very early in the design stage, you offset all that. Almost every time you go through the design stages, from schematic design to layout to cre- ate manufacturing, there's a 10x increase in res- pin costs. If you catch it early, it only takes a few seconds to fix: change the component, add these extra test points, that sort of thing. The further along in the cycle, the more difficult it is. Those are the two strategic areas where we wanted to fill in and left-shift our portfolio. It sounds like a fundamental shift to have practi- cal experience on the manufacturing side, and bring expertise into the design process, allowing for not only functional spec adjustment in design through simulation, but also in building materials and supply chain availability. Patrick Hope: Nolan, I would argue that it is more of a step in an evolution. The fundamental shift may have happened several years ago, but this is such a logical progression for where we are with our DFM tool sets. This is the last piece of the puzzle that fits with our design for fabrication, design for assembly, and now our design for test solutions. The fundamental shift isn't in gaining access to these technologies, but in educating the user base to adopt them. We're ready to do this, and with these acquisitions, we're bringing together a stron- ger force to make it happen. We think that shift has already occurred amongst our clients. It has happened under the surface, and now it's available to your customers for use? Alam: Absolutely. This has been our strategy for a long time. We started with defining a left-shift strategy and then leveraged acquisitions to sup- port that strategy. Whenever we find technology companies or great products that can expedite that vision, we take advantage of it. Do you think the customers are ready for this left-shift? Hope: I think the customers absolutely want this, but are they aware that it exists? Our enterprise- level customers are absolutely ready for this, but are smaller and medium-sized businesses ready? We've conducted numerous studies to dem- onstrate the need for this technology. But the adoption is not insignificant. There's a definite investment in education and manpower. Anytime you bring a new system into an existing workflow, there will be pushback. We have built a system that bridges design to manufacturing. Now you can stay completely within the Siemens flow from inception to reality. But remember, especially within our DFM tool sets, that you can also inte- grate all these solu- tions into a Cadence or Zuken flow, for example. M i c h a e l A l a m ▼ Pat ri c k H o p e ▼