Datest Wins a Global Technology Award for PCBA/PCBF Reverse Engineering Service

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Datest, a leading provider of advanced, efficient and mission-critical in-circuit testing, test engineering, and X-ray inspection solutions, announces that it was awarded a 2015 Global Technology Award in the category of Test Services for its PCBA/PCBF Reverse Engineering Service. The award was presented to the company during a Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015 ceremony that took place at the Messe München exhibition center in Munich, Germany during productronica.

Datest’s PCBA/PCBF Reverse Engineering Service creates CAD files, parts lists, netlists and electronic schematics where previous archives were lost or never existed.  Flying probe technology can create of all these files, which can then be handed over to a layout service bureau for board redesign and creation of Gerber photoplot files.

Faster than manual reproduction, the Reverse Engineering Service can be implemented in days rather than weeks. It is more accurate because it relies on precise positional accuracy of flying probes. 

The service enables a contemporary and cost-effective board-level product to be reconstructed, replacing antiquating, obsolete and marginally reliable old product. It facilitates archiving of design data for accurate documentation and data control for future use.  Stable archiving guards against loss of records in the event of mergers, acquisitions, or natural/manmade disasters. The end-user is no longer wedded to a single board supplier (sole source) because they have the only set of gerber files. Test programs also can be developed where previously none existed.

Robert Boguski, Datest’s President commented, “Too often in the past, reverse engineering has had a negative connotation, implying something proprietary was either stolen or plagiarized. This is ethical reverse engineering. This service addresses a specific and sometimes pressing need, which is to recreate and support archival data for legacy products with extended life cycles, often where no other means to do this exist. This situation is especially prevalent in the medical and military/aerospace markets, where product life cycles often last decades.”

Premiering in 2005, the Global Technology Awards program is an annual celebration of product excellence in electronics surface mount assembly. Premier products based on the finest examples of creative advancement in technology are chosen by a distinguished panel of industry experts.

About Datest

Datest is an ISO9001 and AS9100C-certified, ITAR-registered provider of advanced, integrated PCBA testing and inspection services to the CM/EMS and OEM communities since 1984.  Datest features in-circuit testing and test engineering development for all major platforms as well as flying probe testing, boundary scan testing, functional testing, and four kinds of x-ray inspection (2D, 3D, CT-Scan, and AXI).  Datest also offers a wide variety of engineering and value-added services, including failure analysis and “bonepile” rehabilitation.  Datest also proudly introduces counterfeit component detection services, consistent with SAE AS 5553 and PRO-STD-001.  For more information about Datest, please visit www.datest.com or call 510-490-4600.