-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- design007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueProper Floor Planning
Floor planning decisions can make or break performance, manufacturability, and timelines. This month’s contributors weigh in with their best practices for proper floor planning and specific strategies to get it right.
Showing Some Constraint
A strong design constraint strategy carefully balances a wide range of electrical and manufacturing trade-offs. This month, we explore the key requirements, common challenges, and best practices behind building an effective constraint strategy.
All About That Route
Most designers favor manual routing, but today's interactive autorouters may be changing designers' minds by allowing users more direct control. In this issue, our expert contributors discuss a variety of manual and autorouting strategies.
- Articles
- Columns
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - design007 Magazine
EMA Partners with Berkeley SkyDeck
April 16, 2019 | EMA Design AutomationEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
EMA Design Automation has announced a partnership with Berkeley SkyDeck. This partnership provides OrCAD software to SkyDeck startups for use in the design and development of printed circuit board (PCB) electronics within their innovative products. “OrCAD is ideal for companies just starting out because it is easy to learn, yet offers a professional level toolset used by leading electronics companies around the world,” said Manny Marcano, president and CEO of EMA. “And because OrCAD is a highly scalable solution for PCB design, it will help set these startups up for sustained success as they evolve into the tech giants, we hope they become.”
Since EMA’s inception, they have been committed to helping provide future engineers and startups with the tools they need to be successful. EMA supports the student community by providing universities with the OrCAD software students require to not only complete course work and labs, but also prepare them for academic and career success. Using the OrCAD software provides engineering graduates with knowledge of state-of-the-art tools and techniques, giving them the foundation required to be successful in this competitive landscape.
As an accelerator program within UC Berkeley, Berkeley SkyDeck combines the consulting know-how of traditional accelerators with the vast resources of its research university, creating a powerful environment for startups. Berkeley SkyDeck hosts over 200 startups each year and works hand-in-hand to help with product strategy, team building, and customer introductions. “Skydeck’s mission is to help startup ventures bring new and innovative products to market,” said Bree Cahill, director of partnerships at Berkeley SkyDeck. “partnering with companies like EMA gives these startups access to the tools and expertise they need to make their ideas a reality.”
“Due to its popularity, OrCAD is a common teaching tool in universities so many of these startups will already be familiar with the toolset and capabilities,” added Marcano. “This partnership with SkyDeck will extend that into the product development phase, providing access to professional-level design tools for these startups.”
About EMA Design Automation, Inc.
EMA Design Automation is a trailblazer in product development solutions offering a complete range of EDA tools, PLM integrations, services, training, and technical support. EMA is a Cadence Channel Partner serving all of North America. EMA develops Ultra Librarian, TimingDesigner, CircuitSpace, CIP, EDABuilder, and a host of custom solutions to enhance the OrCAD products, and all are distributed through a worldwide network of value added resellers. EMA is a privately held corporation headquartered in Rochester, New York. Visit EMA at www.ema-eda.com for more information.
Testimonial
"In a year when every marketing dollar mattered, I chose to keep I-Connect007 in our 2025 plan. Their commitment to high-quality, insightful content aligns with Koh Young’s values and helps readers navigate a changing industry. "
Brent Fischthal - Koh YoungSuggested Items
Mastering PCB Floor Planning
08/28/2025 | Stephen V. Chavez, Siemens EDAPlacement of PCB components is far more than just fitting components onto a board. It’s a strategic and critical foundational step, often called “floor planning,” that profoundly impacts the board’s performance, reliability, manufacturability, and cost. Floor planning ties into the solvability perspective, with performance and manufacturability being the other two competing perspectives for addressing and achieving success in PCB design.
Elementary Mr. Watson: Routing Hunger Games—May the Traces Be Ever in Your Favor
08/26/2025 | John Watson -- Column: Elementary, Mr. WatsonI’d like to share a harsh truth, and I say this as a friend: PCB designers are often their own worst enemy. It’s rarely the complexity of the circuit, the last-minute changes from mechanical, the limited enclosure space, or the ever-expanding list of design rules that send projects to the dust heap of failed boards. More often, it's our own decisions, made too quickly and narrowly, and with too little foresight, that sabotage an otherwise good design.
Target Condition: Floor Planning Without a Floor
08/27/2025 | Kelly Dack -- Column: Target ConditionBy a show of hands, how many PCB designers have been asked to start a layout without a board outline, keep-out zones, or even height constraints? How many have had to work within a specific enclosure before the schematic was finalized? If this sounds familiar, you're not alone. Starting a PCB layout without critical constraints is like hiring an interior designer to buy furniture and carpet for a house you haven’t even purchased yet, or, even worse, trying to fit four bedrooms' worth of furniture in a one-room cabin.
I-Connect007 Editor's Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week
08/22/2025 | Andy Shaughnessy, I-Connect007In this week’s roundup, we have a variety of articles covering design, manufacturing, sustainability, and, of course, tariff negotiations. We have a milestone anniversary to celebrate as well, with Dan Beaulieu about to publish his 1,000th column. When does Dan even sleep? Here’s to hoping that we have 1,000 more weeks of "It’s Only Common Sense."
New Episode Drop: MKS’ ESI’s Role in Optimize the Interconnect
08/26/2025 | I-Connect007In this latest episode, Casey Kruger, director of product marketing at MKS’ ESI, joins On the Line With… host Nolan Johnson to share how CO₂ laser technology delivers faster, more accurate vias in a smaller, more energy-efficient footprint.