 | IC Manage is a highly scalable IC design management solution that provides version control, configuration management and defect tracking within a multi-site, real time collaborative model. IC Manage is optimized for ultra reliability and performance over a wide range of bandwidths and latencies with easy set up and low lifetime administration costs. IC Manage simplifies the development of multiple designs via built in dependency tracking with automatic change propagation, a new technique that can significantly reduce time to market.
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IC Manage's mission is to develop industrial strength design management tools for IC and system design.
IC Manage is a highly scalable IC design management solution that provides version control, configuration management and defect tracking within a multi-site, real time collaborative model. IC Manage is optimized for ultra reliability and performance over a wide range of bandwidths and latencies with easy set up and low lifetime administration costs. IC Manage simplifies the development of multiple designs via built in dependency tracking with automatic change propagation, a new technique that can significantly reduce time to market.
Shiv Sikand, Vice President of Engineering, is one of the world's foremost design database management experts. He developed the fundamental concepts for IC Manage when he was a member of a large microprocessor design group at Silicon Graphics and further enhanced these concepts during his tenure as a CAD engineer at several Silicon Valley semiconductor companies. Shiv was looking for a reliable design management system to manage the design data for multiple design teams working on multiple projects at multiple locations. He knew that simple version control systems based on UNIX configuration management systems were inadequate for complex IC design. Simply being able to snapshot evolutionary stages of a design, misses what is really required to design ICs using libraries with threads of commonality. Shiv wanted a system that supported more than the development of a single chip; he wanted a system that efficiently supported multiple design teams developing multiple chips.
At the time, SGI software developers were using a new Software Configuration Management (SCM) system developed by Christopher Seiwald at Perforce. Perforce took an entirely new approach to SCM, using a relational database coupled with a change-based architecture (each change has a unique entry in the database providing total traceablility), atomic transactions (all elements involved in a change are guaranteed to be transferred) and inter-file branching (giving the ability to branch designs in simple namespaces with efficient delta storage and automatic dependency tracking). Perforce is very robust with over 120,000 copies in daily use around the world. Shiv realized that Perforce had the attributes that he was looking for in an IC design management system. These attributes are:
* Performance
* Capacity
* File and variant traceablility
* Collaboration
* Reliability
Shiv created a Cadence-Perforce integration in 1998 that very successfully implemented the robust IC design management system that he had envisioned. Shiv was so passionate about sharing his solution with other designers that, with SGI's permission, placed the product into the public domain in 2000. It has since been deployed at a number of companies for large-scale design. In some instances, this new design management technology was used to replace proprietary systems and is continuing to prove its value at companies like SGI, NVIDIA, Apple and Matrix Semiconductor as well as a number of exciting startups such as Aeluros, Pixim, TriCN and Raza Microelectronics.
The overwhelming success of this initial product at these companies convinced Shiv that there was a strong market for a more complete commercial product based on this initial concept. Shiv and Dean Drako founded IC Manage in 2003. Perforce has enthusiastically backed the founding of IC Manage and Christopher Seiwald, the President and Chief Technology Officer of Perforce is a member of the IC Manage Board of Directors. Perforce also cooperates with IC Manage in technical support, worldwide sales and support activities.
Dean Drako, President and CEO, has an amazing entrepreneurial track record in developing successful companies in the EDA and software industries. Dean developed a strong interest in design management when he was a chip designer at Apple computer. Design Acceleration (DAI), which Dean founded in 1993, developed simulation data management tools. Dean was researching design management prior to Cadence acquiring DAI in 1998. Dean shares Shiv's passions that there should be next generation design management tools that reliably and efficiently handle the demands of leading-edge IC designs. The company was founded to conquer that challenge.
Steve Pollock, VP of Marketing also has a strong chip design background and worked at DAI as the VP of Marketing where Steve and Dean were previously working together to define a design management strategy. IC Manage is the continuing extension of that original idea and vision.
Gary Gendel, Chief Software Architect has been involved in IC design and EDA for over 25 years. Shiv and Gary last worked together on the architecture, design and implementation of advanced circuit checking and noise analysis tools for microprocessor design. Gary was most recently Chief Technology Officer of Genashor Corporation developing advanced logic and fault simulation tools.
The company will announce details and availability for the new software in Q1 2004.
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