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Beyond the Rulebook
What happens when the rule book is no longer useful, or worse, was never written in the first place? In today’s fast-moving electronics landscape, we’re increasingly asked to design and build what has no precedent, no proven path, and no tidy checklist to follow. This is where “Design for Invention” begins.
March Madness
From the growing role of AI in design tools to the challenge of managing cumulative tolerances, these articles in this issue examine the technical details, design choices, and manufacturing considerations that determine whether a board works as intended.
Looking Forward to APEX EXPO 2026
I-Connect007 Magazine previews APEX EXPO 2026, covering everything from the show floor to the technical conference. For PCB designers, we move past the dreaded auto-router and spotlight AI design tools that actually matter.
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Altium’s New Cloud Platform Connects Electronics Industry Ecosystem
April 20, 2021 | Altium LLCEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
Altium LLC has launched Nexar, the cloud-based partner platform designed to connect the rapidly growing community of Altium 365 PCB design users and their companies with the software, suppliers, and manufacturers needed to transform ideas into smart and connected products.
Electronics industry researchers estimate that there are 31 billion internet-connected devices in the world today, with consumer demand growing that number to 75 billion by 2025. Growth of that magnitude is driving the need to reimagine the way that the electronics industry works together, evolving from “tool chains” and isolated job functions to integrated environments and collaborative workflows.
Over 5,000 companies and 11,000 users have already adopted the Altium 365 cloud platform for electronics design. With the introduction of Nexar, partners can join this ecosystem of electronics innovators to make valuable software and services available to Altium 365 users.
“Altium is committed to making our vision for industry transformation a reality,” said Ted Pawela, Chief Ecosystem Officer at Altium. “Design, supply chain, and manufacturing stakeholders today operate largely in isolation from one another. By bringing them together on a collaborative, cloud platform, we have the opportunity to dramatically accelerate the industry’s ability to introduce new products.”
Some of the ways that partners can use Nexar’s open API include integrating with Altium 365 and Altium NEXUS; presenting reliable, up-to-date component data from the Octopart search engine; and embedding ready to use “embeds” such as the Altium 365 ECAD viewer on web pages or within an application.
Important partner categories for the Nexar ecosystem include:
? Software companies, including ECAD, MCAD, CAE, PLM, and ERP
? Board fabricators and electronic manufacturing service (EMS) companies
? Electronic component distributors and manufacturers
? Engineering service providers
While these categories are anticipated, there are no restrictions on who can become a Nexar ecosystem partner, and no costs involved. “Our goal is to build a vibrant ecosystem of customers and partners who benefit from each other’s participation,” said Pawela. “We are doing everything possible to make the experience of joining this ecosystem frictionless.”
To learn more about Nexar and to become a Nexar partner, please visit www.Nexar.com.
About Altium
Altium LLC, a global software company headquartered in San Diego, CA is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. For over 30 years, Altium has been delivering software that maximizes the productivity of PCB designers and electrical engineers. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products. Visit www.altium.com.
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