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18 The PCB Design Magazine • November 2014 feature make one feel shaky or even feel a bit insecure. But the work belongs to your company, and the responsibility for meeting the schedule is a management call. Your job as a PCB designer is to support their decision and help in every way possible. There is a way that you can help your com- pany conquer the occasional design overload challenge. Your first instinct—working longer hours, chasing the "high" of one more night, one more design—is inefficient and unhealthy. But as a PCB design collaborator, you can ob- tain a different type of high by taking an active part in helping to develop and streamline an outsourcing process. help Find a Suitable Outside Design Source The PCB design community is amazingly well connected. Chances are you know several PCB designers who work at a design service bu- reau, or own their own design bureau. It's al- ways a good time to make connections. Start with local PCB services in your area, and then take time to review some of the many design bureaus found online. A word to captive PCB designers regarding outsourcing PCB design: You might be close to having an outsourc- ing experience if: You get to work and your de- sign team's office floor is covered with lottery ticket stubs, and you overhear the purchasing gal men- tion she saw them all celebrating on the news the last night. Resistance is futile! At some point, the company you work for is going to have too much PCB design work to fit through the product development, time-to-market pipe- line. Management will begin to notice your bloodshot, worked-all-night eyes and see that you do not have enough bandwidth to do it all. They will not be able to justify hiring another captive designer. They will look into outsourcing. PCB designers can be a bit possessive of de- sign work. They view it as their livelihood, their raison d'être. Designing a successful PCB can lead to a rush of satisfaction. The thought of sending work out to be designed by another can by J. Kelly Dack, CID+ Adding Value to Your Design Outsourcing Experience