In September 2009, Premier Farnell acquired CadSoft Computer, the developer of the EAGLE (Easily Applicable Graphical Layout Editor) brand of electronic design software. Since then, the company has been offering the EAGLE software, which now incorporates its DesignLink web service environment that provides an electronic interface to major CAD tools, through its element14 online community.
Our acquisition of CadSoft was our first step toward building on the strong foundations of our strategy to focus on electronic design engineers, as Premier Farnell continues to invest and develop new and unique ‘beyond component’ design solutions.
“We will continue to work closely with design engineers globally; and as we understand their needs, look for ways to support them no matter what stage of the design cycle they are at,” says Allen Tan, Global Head of Product Data & Technology Center, Premier Farnell.
Recently, the company announced the EAGLE Version 5.10—the latest version of EAGLE software—providing electronic design engineers (EDEs) with an array of new functions that allow them to write user language programs to do things such as pricing of the current schematic under development, as well as enable them to update previously existing designs with pricing and availability. In addition, it allows the design engineer to select and add part attributes while allowing the country of origin of parts to be quickly identified for defense or other sensitive applications. “While designing, EAGLE version 5.10 users will be able to interface with the Premier Farnell database to check device parameters and availability of components, prices and part numbers, download datasheets, and verify certificates such as RoHS,” Tan explains.
“To date, Premier Farnell remains as one of the few electronics distributors to have acquired a CAD software brand. While these type of comprehensive tie-ups and tight software integration is still in its nascent stages in the electronics distribution industry, we do see there are increasing pressures to reduce design cycle times, increase efficiency and ensure fast time-to-market. At the same time, technological advancements and increased environmental requirements in the electronics industry is making the design process more complicated. Therefore we have decided to address electronic design engineers’ challenges head-on by offering tool that integrates seamlessly with our database, to achieve smoother workflows and hopefully result in shorter design timeframes,” concludes Tan.
Premier Farnell, www.premierfarnell.comCaption: Allen Tan, Premier Farnell
