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How effective ECAD-MCAD co-design leads to first-pass success

ECAD-MCAD Co-design Leads to First-Pass Success
By achieving first-pass success, costly design iterations are minimized or eliminated, product development costs are reduced, and product launch goals are achieved. This paper discusses how an efficient ECAD-MCAD co-design process can help design teams eliminate costly electro-mechanical issues during new product development and increase the probability of achieving first-pass success.

How ECAD-MCAD co-design impacts time to market and first-pass design success

The smaller-denser-faster mantra associated with today’s designs is magnifying the significance of ensuring that electro-mechanical compatibility is addressed prior to first fabrication. Waiting until fabrication to validate ECAD and MCAD compatibility is not an option for today’s companies that need to launch products quickly. The compatibility of the printed circuit board and all associated electrical components, with the enclosure and all associated mechanical hardware, must be ‘designed in’ using a correct-by-construction methodology.

Given the need to launch products quickly and the impact of ever-increasing electro-mechanical complexity, how do companies adjust their product-development process to achieve first-pass success? One adjustment is to utilize a system that allows for ECAD and MCAD design data to be exchanged incrementally throughout the design process.

These companies realize that synchronization of electrical and mechanical information is essential to ensuring that no physical violations occur when the PCB is placed within the enclosure and/or the entire system. They know that ECAD-MCAD compatibility:

• Reduces time to market

• Creates more robust designs

• Increases productivity

The impact of poor ECAD-MCAD collaboration on product development

Poor ECAD-MCAD collaboration has been shown to impact all stages of product development, from concept through to fabrication, as a result of:

  • No consistent, continuous communication to keep the ECAD and MCAD data synchronized

  • No ‘what if’ evaluations to avoid costly and time-consuming design iterations

  • No process to negotiate proposed changes between the ECAD and MCAD domains

  • No methodology for validating design intent early and often

Processes that facilitate collaboration across disciplines, especially the ECAD and MCAD disciplines, are vital to the success of today’s smaller-denser-faster products.

Learn more about ECAD-MCAD co-design.

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