Digital IC Design - end of year review

Caroline Pye (Senior Recruitment Consultant) and her colleague Clare O'Brien (Recruitment Consultant) recently wrote the following newsletter for their contacts in the Digital IC Design community.
 
The Merry (aka Wet and Windy) Month of December is nearly upon us! I thought this would be a good time to send an update to everyone in our Most Excellent and Revered Digital IC design community. Hopefully this is helpful – any comments or questions would be most welcome.

1. Highest Demand Since 2008

There has been a significant increase in the number of companies seeking new digital IC design and verification engineers over the last three months, from an already busy baseline. The average number of requirements within companies has also grown – for example one company in three is seeking at least five engineers. Please see below for specific details, covering UK, Europe and Far East – you’ll note that there are very few locations where engineers aren’t in high demand!
 
UK

South West

• Principal ASIC Designer – Communications
• Digital ASIC Lead / Manager – new design group, wireless space
• Digital ASIC Design Engineers – MULTIPLE! 2-20 years experience. Graphics / Video / Comms / Processor / Power management
• Senior FPGA Designers – Video encoding/decoding (MPEG, H264 etc)
• Junior ASIC Design Engineers – MULTIPLE! Grads in high demand to 3 years experience
• ASIC Verification Engineers – Senior / Principal, global brand
• Physical Design Engineers – Senior role, high level of technical challenge
• Physical Design/IC Layout Lead – established IC consultancy

Thames Valley

• Graduate VLSI Engineers – FPGA, Networks, famous global firm
• Graduate Hardware Design Engineers – ASIC/FPGA, superb telecoms company
• Senior SoC FPGA Design Engineer – Berkshire
• Senior ASIC Verification Engineers – Berkshire, SystemVerilog, OVM
• Digital ASIC Design/Verification Engineer – wireless, SystemVerilog
• Physical Design / Implementation Engineers – Several! RTL-GDSII, rapidly growing firm

Home Counties

• Graduate ASIC Design Engineers – lots!  Video / Graphics / wireless connectivity
• Digital Research Engineers – computer arithmetic, datapath design, mathematical operations in silicon – considerable challenge
• Senior ASIC/FPGA Design Engineers – several! Video coding / Networks / Multimedia
• Physical Design Engineers – from graduate up to around 7 years exp, leading UK firm
• Principal SoC Video Architect – H.264, HEVC

Cambridge

• RTL Design Engineers – MANY! From 2-20 years experience. Graphics, Video, wireless -  Blue chip and start-up.
• ASIC Verification Lead – high-speed Ethernet networks
• ASIC Verification Engineers – Yes please! Senior & Principal level, Graphics
• FPGA Hardware Designers - highly dynamic high-tech company specialising in electronics and software – superb technical challenge

Midlands / North

• Senior ASIC/FPGA Design Engineer – URGENT - Manchester - Networks/data storage
• RTL Design Engineers – Midlands - image processing, 2-20 years experience (multiple)
• Principal ASIC Design Lead / Manager – Midlands - ultra high speed network products
• Principal Physical Design Engineer – Midlands
• Senior ASIC Verification Engineer – Sheffield, processors

Scotland

• Principal Digital Chip Design – Edinburgh, Audio
• Physical Design Engineers – Edinburgh, 3-10 years experience

Northern Ireland

• Digital ASIC/FPGA Design Engineers – Belfast, 2-10 years experience, VHDL

EUROPE
Eire

• ASIC/FPGA Designers, 2-10 years experience, Cork
• Principal ASIC Design Engineers - (x2) Limerick
• RTL Design Engineer – award-winning fabless semis company, Dublin 

Austria 

• Senior DSP Digital Designs (x2) – Automotive sector. Lovely location!
• Physical Design Engineers – URGENT - junior and senior
• Digital ASIC Design Engineers – several! Junior and senior, power management

Germany 

• Munich - Senior Digital Design Engineers – IN DEMAND!
• Munich - System Architect – Munich, digital power management products
• Munich - FPGA Hardware Engineer – German speaker
• Munich - Senior / Lead Digital Verification Engineer - huge growth prospects
• Stuttgart - Digital Design Engineers – yes please, microcontrollers and power management
• Southern German border – Digital IC Designer – ideally with microprocessor experience

Scandinavia 

• Sweden – ASIC/FPGA Designers – Several! Video processing, superb global firm
• Sweden – RTL Design Engineers – junior and senior, wireless comms.
• Norway – Principal SoC Verification Expert
• Norway – Principal ASIC Graphics Designer

Spain 

• Seville - Digital Physical Design Engineers – sunny location, fantastic city
• Seville - Front-end ASIC Designers – RTL Design, CMOS camera technology
• Madrid – Digital ASIC Design and Verification Engineers – Several! Spanish start-up

FAR EAST 

• Malaysia - Physical Design Engineers – LOTS! Place & Route skills please,  2-10 years
• Malaysia - Digital ASIC Verification Engineers – 2-10 years experience
• Malaysia – Engineering Director - Kuala Lumpur
• Taiwan – Senior/Lead DFT Engineer - 3D IC technology

2. Demand Drivers

After the wireless revolution of the last decade, a number of new trends / technologies are driving this demand for cutting-edge skills:

• Ultra low power devices are sought for long-battery-life connectivity in areas such as The Internet of Things (the IoT) and remote healthcare monitoring.
• The evolution of SoCs to include a greater proportion of GPUs over CPUs is a development that will influence architectural design over the coming years.
• The need for higher processing power at lower power consumption is keenly felt by networking companies, as more and more information is stored in the Cloud (is that why we’re having record levels of rainfall??).
• The Connected Home (and the potential business models associated with in-home connectivity) is an area of great potential in terms of innovation / new business models.
• The ever-increasing integration of electronics within cars is also driving demand for robust designs (note that we foresee a trend over the coming years of car manufacturers bringing electronics design engineers in house, rather than relying on third party suppliers – though whether this will extend to IC design remains to be seen).

3. UK and European Skills Shortage

The skills demand also results from a chronic lack of enrolment in technical degrees over the last number of years. Different European countries are dealing with this in different ways. In our opinion the UK’s current immigration policy is working against the industry and cutting the skills supply to certain companies, thus forcing them to set up elsewhere and/or restricting their ability to compete internationally. The restriction / uncertainty on graduate immigration is particularly concerning - the students who pay good money to study in the UK / Europe are no longer allowed to stay and work at the companies who desperately need them! This seems illogical, as graduates are most likely to establish a life here and become important contributors to the industry (and the exchequer!) for many years to come.You may feel this as a controversial view, and I’d be happy to hear your own opinions. Neil Dickins, one of IC Resources’ founders, has been asked to sit on a UK Border Agency advisory board. We’re keen to represent the views of the industry and would like to hear from as many people as possible. FYI the industry is waking up to the skills shortage. Two interesting programmes of many:

NMI’s skills foundation www.ukesf.org and Teen Tech www.teentechevent.com

4. Increased Recommendation Scheme

This skills shortage means that your help in identifying new people is of course all the more valuable. I hope that any recommendations come from goodwill, in that you believe we’ll provide a valuable and professional service to the person you recommend to us. Nonetheless it seems right that we should say “thank you” in a more concrete way than just saying “thank you”! Therefore we’re currently happy to extend our recommendation scheme from £500 pounds to £1000 pounds, depending on the seniority of the person recommended.

5. Next Year

Recent economic news seems mixed, but given the points mentioned above we’re hopeful that there will still be plenty of hiring next year within the European digital IC design and verification community. From what I understand, there are also blue chip companies and investment groups sitting on significant funds, so who knows, it might also be a better year for start ups and SMEs. Fingers crossed……..

…..and in the meantime, all the best for the rest of this year. I hope you enjoy a well deserved break and festive holiday season (in just 3 weeks time!). I’d be very happy to hear from you with any updates on how you’re doing, or with any questions / comments about this newsletter, or the market in general.

All the best,

Caroline Pye (and Clare O’Brien, your very own Verification Recruitment Specialist)

PS The IC Group has launched mobile websites….see www.ic-resources.com

RF and Analog IC design - end of year review

Leon Morrison, Senior Consultant, recently wrote the following newsletter for his contacts in the RF and Analog IC design community.

Once again the Merry (aka the Wet and Windy) Month of December is nearly upon us.  I thought this would be a good time to send the 2nd Annual Analog Almanac to our  Most Excellent and Revered RF and Analog IC design community. Any feedback, comments or questions would be most welcome.

The General Picture

Design activity and the demand for skills remains strong, with a wide range of companies throughout the UK and mainland Europe busy on new designs. At the recent Future Horizons IEF conference, Maria Marced (President of TSMC Europe) said that RF and Analog has grown from 60% to 80% of the European market since 2008 (note I’m not sure this included IP, as ARM and Imagination must make up a good chunk). See article below.

RF, Analog and Mixed Signal IC design skills are in high demand, with a current “spike” in CAD/PDK Support and Design Methodology positions. Layout requirements have been low for a number of months – this may be a natural design cycle, or a trend within companies to outsource / take on contractors – however there are 2 layout roles in the UK. I work closely with Dan and Tom in our contracts division so we offer full permanent and contract cover across Europe (and certain other international locations).

Specific Trends / Skills

1.   Over the last few years, as Analog design has evolved, some companies have become more specific about the “sector” experience they’re looking for. Currently three primary sectors of interest are:

• Power Management
• High Speed
• RF IC (High Frequency)

2.   New areas such as Smart Home, Remote Healthcare, Smart & Renewable Energy, Connected Car, etc. are driving Analog and RF skills demand. Of particular interest is the Internet of Things (IoT) (see another article below). Current demand is spread geographically:

• RFIC:    Cambridge, Thames Valley, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland
• Analog / Mixed Signal IC:   England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, France, even Malaysia and Singapore

3.   Some of the jobs we’re currently working on are in particularly interesting technology fields – 4 highlights include:

• Envelope Tracking – very challenging full custom Analog designs
• Imaging for space applications – client’s chip on Mars rover!
• NFC – creating new business models with smartphones
• LTE for next generation wireless communication

Work Permits
 

Certain countries seem to be waking up to the fact that they have a chronic skills shortage, so are slowly becoming more open to work permits. In the UK it is possible to obtain work permits but the bureaucracy and cost is making the majority of companies hesitant to undergo the process. Neil Dickins, a founder of IC Resources, has been asked to participate on an advisory board to the UK Border department, so if you have any comments or views on this issue please let us know.

IC Resources News

IC Resources (and the IC Group) has continued to grow over the last two years. We’re pleased to announce the addition of Peter Markl to the team, who will head up a new Munich office for us. Peter has more than 25 years of semiconductor experience.

We’ve also launched mobile websites – see www.ic-resources.com  on the move!

Recommendation Scheme

 

As always, we’re keen to hear from strong RF or Analog IC Design engineers as well as CAD/PDK and layout professionals. We hope that recommendations are made because you trust our service, but we should also say “thank you” in a concrete way. Therefore for anyone reading this newsletter we’re happy to raise the highest value our recommendation scheme to £1000 (depending on seniority).

Getting in Touch

Please get in touch if you have any questions or comments about this information, or about the market in general. I’d love to hear an update from you, either professional or personal.

All the best for December, the holidays (only 3 weeks away) and of course next year. And remember…..the REAL world is ANALOG.

Links:
Maria Marced / EIF:    Click here
Internet of Things:   Click here 
Leon Morrison: LinkedIn
Peter Markl: LinkedIn

 

Cheers, Leon
Senior Consultant
+44 20 8400 2483  | +44 20 8400 2444 

www.ic-resources.com goes mobile

We’ve launched a mobile website to run alongside our current platform www.ic-resources.com. 

Semiconductor professionals who are using the site from any mobile device will have an easy search functionality and the ability to apply for semiconductor jobs quickly and easily.

Email and, of course, calling are also options for finding out more information on the market or a particular job.

Electronica

Electronica 25th International Fair for Electronic Components, Systems and Applications
13-16 November 2012, Munich

We sent a contingent of 6 consultants to Electronica this year, and there was hardly a pause in the talking over a three day period. The one notable exception was at an excellent restaurant, when we paused to savour some good Bavarian food and well earned fermented hops. The restaurant was chosen by our new German consultant, Peter Markl, who is heading up our Munich office. Peter has been in the high tech arena for more than 25 years, so he renewed many old acquaintances at Electronica as well as establishing a number of new working partnerships.

The show was busy and had more companies from China and Taiwan than ever before. The number of UK companies actually exhibiting was probably slightly lower than in previous years but the UK Networking area, sponsored by the UKTI, was always busy and proved a valuable resource for arranging meetings in a slightly less manic environment than most.

Overall, the general mood can be split into two categories:
1. Technical: development activity is continues at a heated pace and the vast majority of companies are hiring, or would like to hire if budgets allowed!
2. Commercial: subdued in the leadup to end of Q4 but quiet optimism regarding next year.

Semicon 9-11 October 2012

Last week (9-11 October 2012) the Manufacturing Division of IC Resources attended Semicon in Dresden.  Semicon is the leading forum for semiconductor and microelectronics manufacturing in Europe.

Although the main exhibitor part of the show has been decreasing over the years, the vibe was still up-beat with companies producing growth and expansion plans.

New contacts and clients were made for the IC Group among IC manufacturing engineers and managers, with new connections forged throughout Europe.

Dresden and Saxony has become a major growth area for semiconductor manufacturing industry and is continuing to promote itself with new companies emerging.

The highlight once again, of course, coming from the Scottish Development International stand with the infamous Scottish Whisky Reception on Wednesday evening!

For more information on Semicon, please see their website http://www.semiconeuropa.org/

No Wires Anywhere

Will we one day live in a world with no wires? Well, that’s a long way off, but there’s currently huge demand in Europe vis a vis jobs for IC and systems designers with RF expertise. RF IC Design engineers and RF System of Board level designers are sought after by companies in Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Ireland, with a particular spike in demand within the UK.

This demand springs from a number of industry trends merging around RF issues. LTE is nascent, smart grids and new health innovations demand remote or wireless monitoring, and the automotive industry wants to hook up cars to networks while they’re “on the go”. All these, and many other, applications need new RF solutions and can be vastly improved by more integrated chips.

This is good news for RF companies, and of course the test platform companies down the line. Unfortunately the number of people studying RF has been too low for too long – it’s a challenge to find people in Europe to do RF development who don’t need a work permit. To ensure these key jobs don’t go overseas, we need creative ways of attracting new employees – some of these need government cooperation!

IC Resources is a recruitment company placing semiconductor professionals with IC companies worldwide, with a focus on UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Scandinavia, Benelux, Italy, Spain, etc. Areas covered include RF IC design jobs, analogue and mixed signal  IC design jobs, ASIC design and verification jobs, test and product IC engineering jobs, semiconductor equipment engineering jobs, IC sales jobs (account manager to VP), IC marketing and business development jobs, semiconductor FAE jobs, and executive roles (VP IC engineering, VP IC Operations, etc).

Goal-Line Technology Approved

Goal-Line Technology to be First Used in December

IC Resources is a recruitment consultancy providing jobs in the semiconductor industry. With the IFAB approval of goal-line technology, IC Resources looks at the candidates and asks: will there be any more “improvements” to the beautiful game?
With no small part played by FIFA President Sepp Blatter, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), the game’s lawmakers, finally answered the calls for goal-line technology. At the meeting in Zurich, the IFAB members gave the green light to two of the proposed systems: Hawk-Eye and GoalRef.

The fact that there are two competing systems that have been approved should help keep costs down, but smaller clubs are worried about how they will afford to implement the technology.

Hawk-Eye is a system that is already familiar to fans of tennis and cricket. It uses a system of six high speed cameras that can accurately triangulate the position of the ball, with a margin of error of 3.6 millimetres. If the ball crosses the line, that information is sent to the referee’s wristwatch via an encrypted radio signal within one second.

GoalRef features a magnetic field on and behind the goal-line, with a corresponding microchip implanted in the ball itself. If there is any change in the magnetic field the chip reports it back to the referee, again within one second as per the requirements of the IFAB.

There were other contenders in the running. Cairos GLT also used a magnetic field and a sensor suspended inside the ball. It proposed having a grid of thin electrical wires buried in the penalty box and behind the goal-line. The sensor measures the magnetic grid and sends information to a computer which decides whether or not the ball has crossed the line, relaying the information to the referee.

Goalminder is a simpler system. This has high speed cameras built into the posts and crossbar recording 2000 frames per second. The referee makes his decision based on visual evidence, which is relayed to him within 5 seconds, rather than the decision being made for him.

It was decided that goal-line technology would be first used in the World Club Cup which is being held in Japan, this December. A competition featuring the current European Champions Chelsea. There is an irony that won’t be lost on Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard; it was as an England player that one of the most obvious goals ever to be ruled-out was taken from him by the officials in the match against Germany, in Bloemfontein during the 2010 World Cup.

When Marko Devich of Ukraine had a much less obvious goal ruled out, playing against England in the recent European Championships, Sepp Blatter immediately tweeted his support for goal-line technology. He was noticeably much quieter after Lampard’s goal was dismissed two years before.

The technology, if it had been in place at Euro 2012, would have caused an injustice if the referee had given the goal because it wouldn’t have shown that Artem Milevskiy was offside when the ball was played to him in the build-up.

Michel Platini of UEFA has admitted scepticism of the use of technology in football. He advocates the use of the “fifth official”, another referee’s assistant behind the goal-line. It should be noted though, in the match between Ukraine and England there was a “fifth official”, yet he failed to spot the ball had crossed the line or that there was an offside.

Platini believes that the game is on a technological slippery slope. With the introduction of goal-line technology, how long will it be before there are calls for more systems to be put in place? For instance: video replays of tackles, video evidence of offsides; all interrupting the flow of play.

Human error can cost clubs millions of pounds in lost revenue if a bad decision causes relegation, or missing out on participation of cup competitions or European football. Yet what makes this game of ours so special is the amount of debate it instigates amongst its fans. Technology can take that element out of the game and it would be a little less special because of it.


Semiconductor Industry Rises to Meet Demand

Outlook for Semiconductor Industry Jobs Brighter

IC Resources is the number1 brand when it comes to finding semiconductor jobs in the UK, US, Asia Pacific and worldwide. A second quarter growth in worldwide semiconductor sales and a positive forecast for the next two years comes as welcome news for the semiconductor industry.

The semiconductor industry could be on the rise again as demand climbs, according to Market Research Company IHS iSuppli. This is good news for jobs in the semiconductor industry after it suffered a decline in demand for the past couple of years.

It had been predicted that semiconductor inventories worldwide were expected to decline in the first quarter of 2012, but that there could be possible growth in demand. It seems that the IHS analysts called it right as second quarter figures look positive. IHS contends that this upward trend will continue for the rest of the year, with worldwide inventories growing to meet customer demand.

According to figures released by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), global semiconductor sales were $24.1bn in April, showing a rise of 3.4% over the previous month. This represents the biggest monthly rise since 2010. Figures are still 2.9% down from the same time last year which stood at $24.8bn; and show a 5.9% decrease in year to date figures from 2011: $93.7bn this year compared to $99.5bn in April 2011.

That aside, the prediction is for a tentative yet steady upward growth to continue for the rest of this year and become even stronger over the next two years. Brian Toohey, president & CEO of the Semiconductor Industry Association, said, “The outlook for the global semiconductor industry continues to be one of cautious optimism… But that optimism continues to be tempered by macroeconomic factors."

World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) forecast that worldwide semiconductor sales will reach $301bn by the end of this year, a rise of 0.4% over 2011. The figures also suggest that the rise will pick up pace in 2013 rising by 7.2% in global sales, to around $322bn; in 2014 another rise is predicted of 4.4% to $337bn.

It should be noted though, these forecasts are not set in stone; the global economy is in a delicate state and it wouldn’t take much to put a dent in consumer enthusiasm, causing purse strings to tighten and demand to fall. Whenever there is a spike in customer demand and the semiconductor industry, or any manufacturer for that matter, steps up production to meet it, it is not so simple to reduce that level of production when the demand dips. This very often leads to stockpiling of unwanted goods.

For semicondutor careers and recruitment services, visit IC Resources.

Semiconductors & the History of the PC

Semiconductors & the History of the PC (Part Two)

IC Resources is the recruitment partner for some of the most influential companies in the semiconductor industry.  IC Resources provide a large number of semiconductor jobs such as Semiconductor Equipment Engineers, Digital CAD Flow Developers, Analog/Mixed Signal IC Design Engineers, Field Application Engineers (FAE) and Project Management, both permanent and contract for professionals specialising in semiconductors.

The Semiconductor industry is one of the most important industries in the world today. Semiconductors are in fact the cornerstone of the post-modern age, the reason technology surges forward at such a rate and enabled the birth of modern electronics and the instigator of our reliance on electronic gadgets and entertainment and the phenomenon of the home computer. Following on from the previous post, “How Semiconductors Changed the World,” we continue our charting of the history of the personal computer from 1971 to 2001:

• 1971: The unveiling of the Kenbak 1, an 8-bit computer with 256 bytes of memory, considered to be the first personal computer.
• 1973: Based on an Intel 8008 microprocessor, the Micral N form the French company Réalisation d'Études Électroniques (R2E), was the first ever commercial non-kit computer.
• 1975: The Altair 8800 was launched by MIT featuring Intel’s second 8-bit microprocessor the 8080. The S-100 bus became the standard computer bus and its programming language saw the beginnings of Microsoft with Altair BASIC .
• 1976: The single board Apple I, designed and hand built by Steve Wozniack.
• 1977: The Commodore Pet (Personal Electronic Transactor), Commodore's first full-featured computer announced.
  Apple II introduced, replacing the Apple I, featuring a printed circuit motherboard, keyboard, games paddles and a backed up by cassette.
  Based on a TRS-80 microprocessor, the hugely popular Tandy Radioshack desktop computer was launched.
• 1981:  The first time a personal computer was called a PC, IBM based its machine on the Intel 8080 and an OS that they named PC-DOS and which was later renamed MS-DOS.
• 1983: Compaq cloned the IBM PC.
  The launch of the earliest viable PC networking software revived the Novell Corporation.
• 1984: The Apple Macintosh boasted a graphical interface and the first to use a mouse.
  The AT from IBM was launched using an Intel 80286 microprocessor.
• 1985:  A leap forward in the shape of Microsoft Windows.
• 1987: IBMs PS/2 employed 3.5” floppy discs and enjoyed a high resolution video display.
• 1989:  A meeting of minds – Microsoft and IBM form an alliance to develop systems software enhancing MS-DOS, OS/2 and LAN to work with Intel 386 and 486.
  Novell reaches prominence in networking software with the Netware 3.1x range.
• 1990:  Windows 3.0, the next phase in the Microsoft march to OS domination is launched.
• 1993:  Microsoft strikes again with Windows NT. Unlike its predecessors this is not a 16 bit OS, for networking this is the big contender to Novell.
  The Mosaic web browser, credited with popularizing the World Wide Web, is launched.
• 1995:  Not resting on its laurels, Microsoft launches the fully integrated 32 bit Windows 95 to replace Windows 3.11, Windows for Workgroups and MS-DOS. There is also the introduction of the server OS Windows NT 4.0.
• 1998:  Windows 98 integrated 95 and the Microsoft browser IE 4.0.
• 1999:  As a challenger to the growing monopoly that is Windows, Linux is born.
  Novell begins to concentrate more on the internet.
  The dot-com bubble begins to grow as internet based industries spring up.
• 2000:  Windows 2000 arrives with network server software.
  The dot-com bubble bursts, several companies stock prices tumble, some going bust and investors lose millions.
• 2001:  Windows XP replaces Windows 2000.

For semicoductor jobs, recruitment services and more information about the semiconductor industry, visit IC Resources.

How Semiconductors Changed the World

Semiconductors, Human Evolution & the History of the Personal Computer

For semiconductor jobs, IC Resources is the first choice for professionals looking for the next step in their semiconductor career.  IC Resources offer permanent and contract semiconductor jobs such as Semiconductor Equipment Engineers, Digital CAD Flow Developers, Analog/Mixed Signal IC Design Engineers, Field Application Engineers (FAE), Project Management and many more throughout the UK, Europe, USA and Asia Pacific.

There are many examples of inventions and discoveries that academics, theologians and philosophers point to and say that they are the great moments in the history of mankind: discovering fire, inventing the wheel, language, farming, organised religion, the printing press etc. Everybody has a different point of view on this subject. Yet a contender for the title of most important invention in recent times has to be the microprocessor. Without semiconductors there would be no microprocessors, without microprocessors there would be no personal computers, laptops or tablets, no embedded systems providing digital control of appliances and industrial processes, and no mobile phones.

Before the microprocessors incorporated entire CPUs, computer processors had to be built using small and medium scale integrated circuits often containing hundreds of transistors all soldered onto printed circuit boards, several boards would then be interconnected on a chassis. The speed at which these early computers could operate was limited by the distance that signals had to travel between the integrated circuits on the boards. The computers themselves were huge, filling rooms; they were expensive to produce and therefore to buy; they used a lot of electricity to operate and thus produced a tremendous amount of heat. All of these factors made them prohibitive to individual ownership; they were owned and operated by large corporations, governments and universities.

These giants were not personal computers, there would be several terminals hooked into the mainframe or the end user's requests were filtered through operating staff. Computers became more personal with the introduction of the minicomputer such as the LINC and PDP-8 in the 1960s, but these were still roughly the size of a fridge and would cost tens of thousands of pounds to buy.

Then in the early 1970s everything changed with the first commercially available microprocessor, the Intel 4004, and with the introduction of the Kenback signalling the birth of the personal computer. Suddenly the computer could run quicker, was smaller, there were less connections meaning less could go wrong making it more efficient, they were cheaper to produce which pushed the cost of purchasing the PC down. From then on, everybody could afford to own and run a computer and that is why nearly every home in the UK has one today.

This has had a revolutionary effect on the way people live their daily lives, conduct business, learn and, most importantly, enjoy global communication and social interaction; the world has become a community. It is a leap in human evolution that cannot be underestimated in its importance and, when people in the future look back at the history of mankind, this era of technological renaissance could possibly be viewed as our most pivotal moment.

For semiconductor jobs and semiconductor recruitment services visit IC Resources.

Semiconductor Counterfeit Could Cost More than Money

Semiconductor counterfeiting means substandard parts flooding the market

Semiconductor counterfeits account for two out of every three counterfeit electronic components reported; as the semiconductor industry’s leading recruitment partner, IC Resources looks at the repercussions and rising cost of semiconductor counterfeiting.

Data gathered by Market Research Company IHS iSuppli shows that last year saw the number of reports of counterfeit electronic components rise significantly, in fact these reports have tripled in the last two years, with reports of counterfeit components in more than 100 types of device. Of these counterfeit parts, 66% were made up of five types of semiconductor: analogue ICs (integrated circuits), microprocessors, memory ICs, PLDs (programmable logic devices) and transistors, posing an annual risk of around $169billion (£106bn) for the global electronics supply chain.

According to Rory King, Director of Supply Chain Product Marketing at IHS, “The excessive cost of rework, repair, and customer returns for component failures is significant. For the global electronics supply chain, tackling the problem of counterfeit and fraudulent components has become an issue of paramount importance."

It is not just a concern in terms of money though, Analogue ICs alone make up 25% of counterfeit components reported, they are a component used in a wide variety of applications both military and commercial, and they can be found in everything from industrial and automotive devices to computers and consumer electronics. Each one of these five types of semiconductor can be found in military and commercial situations. Industrial users such as aviation, medical, military, automotive and nuclear are, in all probability, relatively minor consumers of counterfeit semiconductors but a consumer all the same. The risk to everyday consumer electronics may be nothing more than an annoying lack of reliability: a crashed computer or the loss of signal on a mobile phone; when you are considering the risk of failure to a component in a military application, or in the nuclear, medical, aerospace or automotive industries, then you are considering a possible catastrophe.

More stringent regulations should be put in place to combat this situation, something that was addressed in the US defence industry by an act signed by President Obama at the end of 2011. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 ensures that those involved at every level of its global defence supply chain “implement processes and systems to analyse, assess and act on counterfeit and suspect counterfeit parts.”

Semiconductor counterfeiting is big business; these components often appear in the form of cheap but convincing looking fakes which can sometimes be hard to differentiate from the real thing. Or they are the real thing; they can be salvaged rejects from the original manufacturers. In either case they are substandard parts that do not meet quality requirements and cannot be expected to operate to the same standard as the originals.

IC Resources is the leading recruitment consultancy serving the semiconductor industry, for an informal and confidential chat about any recruitment issue you wish to discuss, contact us now.

Semiconductor Recruitment: Global Semiconductor Industry Jobs from IC Resources

IC Resources is the Recruitment Partner for the Semiconductor Industry

The semiconductor industry is one of the fastest moving and most important markets in the world today. It is the technology enabler and key driver for economic growth behind the $5tn electronics industry. Therefore, recruitment for semiconductor industry jobs has to be handled by experts; IC Resources are the experts when it comes to semiconductor recruitment offering semiconductor jobs such as Semiconductor Equipment Engineers, Digital CAD Flow Developers, Analog/Mixed Signal IC Design Engineers, Field Application Engineers (FAE), Project Management and many more throughout the UK, Europe, USA and Asia Pacific.

Part of the multi-portfolio Intellectual Capital (IC) Group, IC Resources is Europe’s largest and longest serving semiconductor recruitment firm, with specialist USA and China consultants and an extensive Asia Pacific partner network, IC Resources have the necessary contacts within the semiconductor industry. Their overriding aim is “to be an integral, valued member of the semiconductor community, rather than an external supplier sitting on the fringes of industry.”

Semiconductor Industry Enables Electronics Industry Growth
Since the 1960’s, when the semiconductor industry grew up, there has been a constant need for innovation and flexibility as the electronics industry empires grew at a staggering rate, nothing stands still for very long in the microelectronics world; it seems that the newest device on the market is suddenly very old in a staggeringly short space of time. The electronics industry is reckoned to account for around 10% of the entire world GDP! The driving force behind this behemoth is the semiconductor industry because, put simply, without semiconductors there would be no modern electronics.

Semiconductor Recruitment
This constantly shifting market means that firms around the world need to recruit the best and brightest candidates to keep up with the myriad innovations which continue unabated. The first stop on this search for the best possible candidate should be the IC Resources, recognised as the No.1 recruitment agency for semiconductor jobs. Clients can be assured of top quality candidates because the consultants themselves are top quality; many of the consultants have joined the firm directly from the semiconductor industry, giving them vital hands-on experience and insight into what the ideal candidate should offer.

IC Resources should be the first place candidates looking for jobs in the semiconductor industry visit because they can boast specialist U.S. and China consultants and an extensive Asia Pac partner network, because they are living up to the stated aim of being the semiconductor industry’s de facto recruitment partner, and ultimately because IC Resources builds strong, lasting relationships with the very best candidates and the very best clients the semiconductor industry has to offer and puts them together.

For an informal and confidential chat about any recruitment issue you wish to discuss, contact us now.