VUTRAX Application: Networks

The Electro Magnetic Compatibility (EMC) standard, which was introduced in 1993, has increased the complexity of most printed circuit boards designed by Pinacl Communication Systems Limited. Its introduction has placed the company's ECAD software under the microscope, placing even greater emphasis on the ability to design quickly and accurately. According to Nick Andrews, Drawing Office Manager, VUTRAX has been more than equal to the task.

"The modification process is a big strength of this system" he explains. "You move from schematic to artwork and then back again, very efficiently. Providing the schematic is correct and you have obeyed all the design rules, it is almost impossible to get an error in the artwork."

Any company wishing to sell into Europe is bound by the EMC standard, so the effects of its introduction have been widespread. A large part of Pinacl's business is with Europe, but the North Wales manufacturer sells its public and private telecommunication networking systems across the world. Companies in the UK who have made use of their services include NTL, Scottish Telecom and Portugal Telecom.

VUTRAX caters for all PCB design requirements, running on personal computers and integrated into a company-wide network that includes stock control and document management.

Circuit boards are multi-layer, generally four layers but occasionally up to ten, using both leaded and surface-mount technologies. The designs are mixed analogue and digital and highly populated. Because track lengths are so critical and with signal speeds often very high, the drawing office performs all component placement and routing manually.

"The pattern copying feature on VUTRAX has been very helpful during this routing", adds Nick Andrews. "It allows you to copy circuitry from one part of the board onto another, creating 16 channels in the time it takes to do two, for instance."

Hardly surprisingly for a company that designs and installs computer networks, Pinacl has linked electronic design with all related functions across the company. The schematic and parts lists within VUTRAX are used as the basis for stock control, while technical drawings, are transferred into a desk top publishing system and used for manuals.

All drawings are available to the rest of the company (via the network), in keeping with the concurrent engineering philosophy employed at Pinacl. This sees the mechanical and electronic drawing offices working in parallel with the production, purchasing, quality and testing departments ...right from the beginning of a project.

Concurrent engineering helps to keep lead times down. The introduction of EMC has put even more pressure on companies trying to get their goods to market quickly, but at Pinacl lead times are also being helped by electronic design software that makes modifications as easy as possible. VUTRAX provides many useful features, but above all it performs the basics very well.