Now’s the chance for you and your company to help shape the electronic system and semiconductor design ecosystem as nominations open to voting member company CEOs, presidents or COOs to serve on the ESD Alliance Governing Council. Up to nine members will be elected to a two-year term.

The charter of the Governing Council, formerly known as our Board of Directors, is to provide input and steer the direction of the ESD Alliance. Its role is growing, especially as our global footprint expands and we increase our initiatives with the launch of ES Design West. And yes, elections are normally on a two-year cycle. We postponed 2018 elections as we became a SEMI Strategic Alliance Partner.

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It gives me a great deal of pleasure to announce Julie Rogers is the new director of marketing for SEMI Americas.

Julie Rogers

Julie is no stranger to the ESD Alliance community. Our members, friends and others from the system and semiconductor design community know her from our many events and member activities. For more than three years prior to her new role at SEMI, Julie was director of marketing and operations for the ESD Alliance where we all enjoyed getting to know her and soaking up her energy and enthusiasm.

The move to SEMI doesn’t mean that she’s bidding our community farewell. Fortunately for us, she will work with both SEMI Americas and the ESD Alliance marketing our vision and strategy, including brand recognition and increasing event attendance. 

Yes, a huge responsibility and I can’t think of anyone more suited with her experience, cheerfulness and energy.  Julie’s abundance of energy could come from her various athletic pursuits –– kiteboarding, running and skiing.

Julie will be at the ESD Alliance Booth #100 in the foyer during DVCon U.S. Monday, February 25, through Thursday, February 28, at the DoubleTree Hotel in San Jose, Calif. Please stop by to congratulate her and learn more about our charter, programs, initiatives and events.

Now, let’s hear from Julie about her career and her new role at SEMI.

Your career has been varied and took you into several different markets, including medical. What attracted you to the semiconductor industry? How is it different from the medical industry? How is it similar?

For 19 years, I wrote grants to medical device and pharmaceutical companies for Dignity Health, now CommonSpirit Health, to help fund its physician education programs. During this process, I realized the acceleration in AI and IoT was going to positively change patient care through less invasive products, improving diagnosis, management and treatment with new technologies.

Device manufacturers can bring these products to market in a shorter time period versus traditional pharmaceutical and medical devices, greatly impacting effectiveness, cost, treatment and positive outcomes –– both in and out of the hospital setting.

These new devices would not exist without the semiconductor industry. I welcomed the chance to join the ESD Alliance and become involved in the industry that was driving these new products and changes that I was seeing from my work in the medical field.

What is your charter as SEMI’s director of Americas marketing? 

My role is to ensure SEMI America’s marketing vision and strategy is aligned with our global message to maximize effectiveness in member communication, brand recognition, new member outreach, event promotion and attendance for an overall portfolio of 40 plus events.

It is an exciting time at SEMI as we are growing through new partnerships and mergers, expanding our strength throughout the entire semiconductor ecosystem that provides value to members for further collaboration and business development.

I am working with a great team to build and create increased awareness and improve member engagement and satisfaction for all the SEMI activities.  We have a new website, an exciting inaugural event –– ES Design West co-locating with SEMICON West July 9-11, 2019 –– and many other industry events to look forward to in 2019.

What’s your current priority? 

With all this growth, we need to hire a Marketing Manager and Marketing Specialist within our team. They will further promote our initiatives, increase our social media presence, provide content and graphics for our websites and oversee the production of event collateral signage, flyers, promotional materials, video/photo production, and more.

You came to SEMI last year when the ESD Alliance became a SEMI Strategic Association Partner. How do you see SEMI and the ESD Alliance working together?

Since joining SEMI, we’ve had an overwhelmingly positive response from SEMI’s global community. There is tremendous interest in design and many requests to take our messages and community to the various regions.

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to attend SEMICON Japan 2018, ISS and FLEX/MSTC. I will go to SEMICON China 2019 where design topics will be featured and the ESD Alliance will host a high-level executive reception featuring several design member companies at this 100,000 plus attendee event.

We provide the platform and assistance to make valuable connections through collaboration and development of the design ecosystem in these regions and encourage participation in our Americas activities.  We are working with our members to help build relationships and maximize the SEMI network of successful companies.

In addition to your new role, you are the chair of the ES Design West Advisory Council. How is planning going? What can we expect when it opens in July as a co-located SEMICON West event? 

We have a dynamic group of industry veterans as members of the Advisory Council to identify current topics and expert speakers. They are planning a blockbuster conference agenda covering every corner of the electronics systems design ecosystem, from electronic design and automation and semiconductor electronic systems to intellectual property, embedded systems and software, machine learning, security and more.

I encourage you to check out our TechTALK and Meet the Experts opportunities. Planning is going well and the program is nearly complete. We’ll have sessions on More than Moore, Silicon Design in the Cloud, Security, Design for Low Energy, Machine Learning, Advanced Applications and AI & EDA.

While we are a technology-driven industry, one focus for the event is to highlight the commercial successes and applications of the technologies that drive the system and semiconductor design ecosystem. In addition to this, we will look forward to emerging new trends in our industry. And, stay tuned to learn about an exciting evening event.

A bit more about Julie:

Julie represents SEMI in industry forums through committee positions for World Wide Women in Electronic Design (WWED), Wit (Women in Technology) & Wisdom, and the DAC Heart of Technology (HOT) committee. She serves as chair of Dignity Health Community Board Mercy McMahon Terrace.

In the 19 years Julie managed her own marketing firm, she specialized in physician education symposia for her long-time client, Dignity Health, now CommonSpirit Health.  Prior to starting her own firm, Julie was the director of marketing for Weintraub Tobin, a business and litigation law firm, and the Sacramento, Calif., Regional marketing director for the American Cancer Society. She worked for more than eight years in television with NBC affiliate KCRA-TV and ABC affiliate KOVR-TV in Sacramento.

In the Design and Design Automation Ecosystem community, February often means DVCon U.S., the must-attend conference for design and verification engineers, EDA developers and design managers. It’s a technical forum that offers a great opportunity for the community to discuss difficult verification challenges and solutions.

DVCon will be held again Monday, February 25, through Thursday, February 28, at the DoubleTree Hotel in San Jose, Calif. Attendees who want to see the exhibits should plan on being there for the DVCon Expo and Reception Monday from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. Otherwise, the exhibit floor will be open Tuesday and Wednesday from 2:30 p.m. until 6 p.m.
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Designers and suppliers of the electronic system design ecosystem rejoice –– we’re merging design and the bigger electronics supply chain at the inaugural ES Design West, sponsored by the ESD Alliance, a SEMI Strategic Association Partner …

… As it should be. After all, design is the foundation of semiconductor innovation and manufacturing, and enables smarter, faster, more powerful, and more affordable electronic products, a $2-trillion global market.

Co-located with SEMICON West July 9-11 at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, ES Design West is the only event in North America that:

• Connects the electronic system design ecosystem to the worldwide Electronic Product Supply Chain
• Offers a forward-looking “system-centric” perspective
• Gives attendees and exhibitors a link to the electronic product supply chain driven by design
• Provides a strong program focused on the commercial aspects of electronic system design
• Accelerates conversations, information exchange and collaboration to address common issues, challenges and opportunities that takes new electronic products from concept to consumer
• Features networking and social activities
• Promotes the full spectrum of design including IP, EDA, embedded software, design services and design infrastructure

The Advisory Council for ES Design West is chaired by Julie Rogers, the ESD Alliance’s director of marketing and operations, and its members are putting finishing touches on a program that’s sure to appeal to all members of our community. The preliminary program can be found at: https://bit.ly/2sxwpCE

Julie Rogers

Merging design with the large electronic supply chain is not just a slick marketing slogan. It’s a necessity as complexity grows with higher performance, lower power and smaller geometries. Increasingly, decisions made during design impact what happens during manufacturing. Successful chip and system design requires that the manufacturing processes consistently and reliably deliver parts that meet specifications as applied during design.

Many of the previously disparate areas within the semiconductor industry now overlap. More important, the supply chain from manufacturing needs to be addressed through design. A good example is packaging, a step further down the supply chain and seemingly light years away from design. Designers weren’t concerned with how a chip would fit on the package or the wiring of a printed circuit board. Small, powerful mobile devices changed all that as packaging became critical to product success.

Electronics begins at design, though design historically has been viewed as a separate activity from the manufacturing process. Once completed, a chip design was “thrown over the wall to manufacturing and test. The designer was done and on to a new project. The world has changed and this is no longer possible.

Building the bridge between design and the electronic product supply chain began in 2018 and will continue in earnest this year, culminating at ES Design West. Please set aside July 9-11 so you can join the adventure at ES Design West co-located with SEMICON West at San Francisco’s Moscone Center.

An Exhibitor Prospectus for ES Design West is available with compelling exhibiting options and sponsorship opportunities to meet the needs of all companies throughout the Design and Design Automation ecosystem. It can be found at: https://bit.ly/2ABbuDj

Follow the ESD Alliance:

Website: www.esd-alliance.org

ESD Alliance Bridging the Frontier blog: http://bit.ly/2oJUVzl

Twitter: @ESDAlliance

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8424092

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ESDAlliance

Note: This is the first in a continuing series of blog posts about people in our industry who have creative outlets outside of their “day jobs” in the electronic system design ecosystem. If you are one of them, drop me a line at: bsmith@semi.org

It was a cold and blustery night. I readjusted my muffler and trudged through Boston’s East Fens neighborhood to meet my prey at the local dive bar.

I stomp into Bukowski Tavern across the street from the convention center on the edge of Back Bay. I make my way past the long bar with the regulars slouched in their seats nursing their Oh So Precious IPAs in a dive bar no less to a table in back with more elbowroom. This, after all, isn’t a casual conversation but a serious discussion about crime.

A shadow looms over the table as I check out the typical bar-food menu and wonder what a vegetarian would order …

… and there stands mystery novelist Ray Daniel, better known to our industry as Ray Salemi, who is balancing his writing career with his verification consultant gig for Mentor, a Siemens Business. The thought of debugging chips by day, creating mayhem on the written page by night amuses me as I look into a face boasting a goatee and moustache, befitting a hardboiled mystery writer.

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Yes, we’re listening. 

Julie Rogers confirmed it in her recent EDACafe blog post. Anyone familiar with the ESD Alliance knows this to be true and will continue to be so as we expand our mission as a SEMI Strategic Association Partner.

Listening is a large part of what we do. We are the eyes, ears and the voice of the design ecosystem to promote the importance of the electronic design ecosystem to the broader semiconductor and electronic manufacturing supply chains.

It’s an immense responsibility which means regular communication with the industry at large and specifically to you and your company. As the executive director, it’s my job to keep our corner of the industry visible and relevant. I do that through blog posts like this one and opinion pieces. We regularly turn out news releases about our programs, new members and other topical information. And, you will see us at many industry conferences and other events.

The ESD Alliance isn’t only about listening and communicating the electronic system design ecosystem’s value to the semiconductor industry. In fact, we have a series of ongoing programs, some that are as long-running as our 20-plus year history, all based on what our members tell us. We break them into categories that include market information, risk management, growth and efficiency, emerging companies and industry voice.

Of course, we are known for presenting since 1994 the annual Phil Kaufman Award for Distinguished Contributions to Electronic System Design along with the IEEE Council on Electronic Design Automation (CEDA).

The Market Statistics Service (MSS), part of our marketing information category, is one of our longest running programs and recently celebrated 20 years as a service for our industry. Quarterly revenue data is collected from contributing companies and aggregated by an outside accounting firm to ensure no individual company data is disclosed. Members receive a quarterly report with up-to-date information and trends for determining total available market and more.

Consider the Export Committee, a part of the risk management category, a resource to member companies for risk management and avoidance. It represents all ESD Alliance members with a unified voice in Washington, D.C., on export licensing and compliance issues. The committee presents an overview of our industry to the classes at the National Defense University (NDU), educating students who are on track to be future U.S. government leaders on the workings and value of the semiconductor industry. It also arranges and hosts an annual NDU visit to Silicon Valley.

Another effort that’s part of the risk management category focuses on license management and anti-piracy. It works on technologies and best practices to help honest customers operate within their license agreements and prevent bad actors from cheating. Current efforts are aimed at developing solutions to manage licensing in the presence of virtual servers and host-id duplication. This is being done in concert with a group of enterprise users that provide review and input to ensure that the solutions are acceptable to end users.

Under the growth and efficiency category is the Interoperability Committee. It publishes a recommended platform support OS roadmap for all member companies and sets expectations with users for supported platforms, reducing member company resources and costs to develop and support a wider range of platforms.

Our newest initiative is ES Design West, an industry event to be co-located with SEMICON West 2019 West at San Francisco’s Moscone Center July 9-11, which we are offering as the premier event for our entire design community. ES Design West will be located in the South Hall and features its own “Meet The Experts” theater. An Advisory Committee of industry leaders is actively meeting to steer the inaugural event and an Exhibitor Prospectus is available West with exhibiting options and sponsorship opportunities.  Secure your premiere exhibit space by contacting Eric Rude at erude@semi.org

In addition to all of these active programs and initiatives, ESD Alliance members, including new members, become member of SEMI as well at no additional cost. If your company would like to join the ESD Alliance, please visit the ESD Alliance website to read about these active committees and our other ongoing initiatives. Or, contact me for more specifics on ROI or other justifications for joining. I can be reached at bob@esd-alliance.org.

We’re listening!

Follow the ESD Alliance:

Website: www.esd-alliance.org

ESD Alliance Bridging the Frontier blog: http://bit.ly/2oJUVzl

Twitter: @ESDAlliance

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8424092

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ESDAlliance

Giving and thanks are this week’s watchwords as the U.S. gets ready to celebrate Thanksgiving. The ESD Alliance is giving thanks this week to nine notable members of the electronic system design ecosystem who are willing to volunteer their time, energy and experience to shape the inaugural ES Design West.

They are:

• Dennis Brophy, director of strategic business development from Mentor, a Siemens Business
• Rick Carlson, vice president of sales at Verific
• Dave Kelf, Breker Verification Systems’ chief marketing officer
• Stan Krolikoski , Cadence fellow, Strategic Alliances
• Vic Kulkarni, vice president and chief strategist at Ansys
• Ramond Rodriguez, Intel’s manager of EDA Suppliers
• Herta Schreiner, vice president of corporate marketing at Synopsys
• Elan Tanzer, technical content director from Arm
• Jan Willis, executive advisor from Calibra

As many readers of this blog know, the ESD Alliance is SEMI’s newest Strategic Association Partner. Previously, we were a long-time sponsor of the Design Automation Conference.  Under the SEMI umbrella, we’re organizing ES Design West, co-located with SEMICON West 2019 West at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, July 9-11, 2019. We are one of four co-located partners and events at SEMICON West and we will be in the South Hall.

ES Design West is an exciting new entry into our events calendar. It will feature technical program tracks to provide attendees with information on recent developments and trends in electronic system design, as well as new products and innovative technologies critical to our members.

SEMI helped us kick-off the meeting with all of nine of our members able to join the meeting either by phone or in person. I am the chair of the Advisory Council and delighted by the turnout and enthusiasm. Together, we will shape this exciting new event including the floor layout, program, exhibitor opportunities and promotions.

The objective of the Advisory Council is to to provide guidance and direction to SEMI for the look and feel, organization and program content development of the ES Design West. Members will serve as advocates for all our corporate partner exhibitors, a critically important aspect to the success of any event in our industry.

Perhaps, serving as advocates may be their most important role. As Dave Kelf remarks, “ES Design West is taking a refreshing, new direction for the electronic system design community, providing a dynamic, interactive exhibit floor and program crafted to highlight the commercial part of our business. I am sure this will be a must attend event, and am delighted to be part of the committee setting the course.”

As well, Advisory Council members will offer feedback, information and commentary to SEMICON West Show Management. They will lead expo-related elements and conference tracks, including speaker recommendations and recruitment, technical content, special activations on the show floor and related activities such as pre-SEMICON West webinars, sponsorships, networking events and workshops.

“The impact of deep learning is being felt everywhere including the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain,” suggests Jan Willis. “It’s timely that the ESD Alliance will bring the electronic system design community together with the attendees of SEMICON West through the new ES Design West to discuss this and other key trends driving the semiconductor industry forward.”

Reading through this blog post, if you didn’t get the message that SEMI and the ESD Alliance are listening, let me reiterate: We’re listening … to our Advisory Council members, the electronic design system ecosystem … and you! We intend to make ES Design West the premier event for our entire community.

If you’re interested in learning more, we can provide you with an Exhibitor Prospectus for ES Design West with compelling exhibiting options and sponsorship opportunities. To learn more about ES Design West and secure exhibit space, contact Eric Rude at erude@semi.org

Happy Thanksgiving!

Follow the ESD Alliance:

Website: www.esd-alliance.org

ESD Alliance Bridging the Frontier blog: http://bit.ly/2oJUVzl

Twitter: @ESDAlliance

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8424092

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ESDAlliance

Photos from the recent Phil Kaufman Award dinner & ceremony can be found on the ESD Alliance website. As you’ll see, this year’s recipient, Dr. Tom Williams, is well regarded by the electronic system design community.

Tom Williams (at left) and Synopsys’ Aart de Geus.

Congratulations and best wishes, Dr. Williams, from the ESD Alliance and IEEE CEDA.

The electronic system design ecosystem feted Design-for-Test expert Dr. Tom Williams at a well-attended Phil Kaufman Award dinner & ceremony November 7 hosted by the ESD Alliance and IEEE CEDA.

Here are two photos capturing the mood of the evening. More will be available soon.

Tom Williams (far left) with the Phil Kaufman Award statuette. With him are Shishpal Rawat (at right) and me (Bob Smith).

Prior Kaufman Award recipient Aart de Geus from Synopsys.

Tom Williams is an impressive photographer. Don’t rely on my say so –– check out his website at: https://bit.ly/2Anv3zl

Dr. Thomas W. Williams, this year’s recipient of the Phil Kaufman Award.

That’s not why the selection committee from the ESD Alliance and IEEE CEDA chose him to be the recipient of the 2018 Phil Kaufman Award for Distinguished Contributions to Electronic System Design, however. Tom was selected because he is an extraordinary technologist in an industry composed of an exceptional number of extraordinary technologists.

Tom took an overlooked design area now known as Design for Testability and revolutionized chip testing, a significant and lasting achievement. Efficiently testing today’s chips would not be possible without his scan test techniques that both created a revenue stream for EDA suppliers and saved chip companies many millions of dollars over the last 40 years.

I’m looking forward to Tom Williams’ acceptance speech Wednesday, November 7, at The GlassHouse in San Jose. While he’s certain to talk about DFT, his slide presentation will include many of his striking photographs. The evening will be memorable and will include great food and plenty of networking. It starts at 6:30 p.m. Please join us. Attendance is open to member companies, though attendees don’t need to be members to attend. Registration information can be found at: http://bit.ly/2MwQdCN. Sponsorships for the evening are available as well. Julie Rogers, our director of marketing and operations, (jrogers@semi.org) has details.

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