ALS Uses Cadence Sigrity X to Accelerate High-Speed PCB Design

A new Cadence success story details how Advanced Layout Solutions (ALS), a UK-based design bureau specializing in high-speed PCBs, developed an efficient workflow that overcame significant design challenges due to increasing complexity in their projects that required higher accuracy and faster design cycles. The company’s expertise spans a range of complex designs in industries where precision and innovation are vital, and growing customer expectations and increasing complexity of PCB layouts drove ALS to seek a cutting-edge solution to maintain their competitive edge and deliver superior results. By adopting Cadence Sigrity X signal and power integrity (SI/PI) tools, ALS revolutionized their PCB design processes, significantly reducing iterations and time to market and strengthening their position as a trusted partner for cutting-edge PCB projects.

Business Challenges

• Increasing complexity of high-speed PCB projects leading to higher customer expectations
• Need for faster design cycles to maintain a competitive edge in the market
• Risk of falling short on customer satisfaction due to outdated design processes

Design Challenges

• Difficulty in early identification of signal and power integrity (SI/PI) issues, resulting in costly late-stage rework
• Limited simulation capabilities for high-speed interfaces and dense layouts, affecting accuracy and efficiency
• Lengthy design cycles caused by repeated iterations and challenges in performance-cost optimization

The Solution: Early SI/PI Problem Detection with In-Design Analysis

To tackle these challenges, ALS has incorporated Cadence Sigrity X SI/PI analysis tools into their workflow, which provides a comprehensive and flexible framework for addressing the demands of next-generation PCB designs. Sigrity X in-design analysis capabilities enable ALS designers to detect and address SI/PI problems during the initial PCB layout stages and Sigrity X PowerDC simulations allow them to optimize the layer stackup, copper weights, and overall power delivery network, often identifying opportunities to save costs by reducing copper usage or removing unnecessary layers.

Results

• Time-to-market acceleration
• Improved design accuracy
• Optimized costs
• Enhanced reputation and customer confidence

Conclusion

Adopting Sigrity X SI/PI tools enabled ALS to transform its approach to high-speed PCB design and deliver exceptional results for their customers. The partnership between ALS and Cadence has empowered ALS to push the boundaries of PCB design, ensuring robust, efficient, and timely solutions in a fast-evolving industry.

ALS is confident in their ability to meet future demands as electronic designs become more sophisticated. Their collaboration with Cadence ensures continuous access to the latest tools and expert support, enabling them to tackle even more advanced challenges. 

Learn more about the ALS/Cadence partnership and how you can achieve unpreceded success using Sigrity X SI/PI tools.