Data I/O makes equipment for programming integrated circuits such as microcontrollers, flash memory and logic devices. In 1997, Data I/O wanted a deeper understanding of marketplace trends related to programming recently introduced semiconductors with fine pitch leads. Specifically, the company needed hard data and insight into industry experiences on the relative merits of fine pitch programmers:
How did usage differ across programming categories? (automated vs. manual vs. in-circuit)
How did user experiences vary across the company’s four main customer types?
Programming houses
Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs)
Contract electronics manufacturers
Chip manufacturers
Results: The market study found Intel and Motorola were making major commitment to usage of boundary scan programming methods in order to perform in-circuit programming, instead of relying solely on standalone programmers. This posed an immediate and long-term threat to Data I/O, which the company countered within the next 12 months by forming a partnership with JTAG Technologies of The Netherlands, a recognized leader in boundary-scan programming based on the IEEE 1149.1 standard.
We learned that 84% of respondents had implemented new or improved quality control/quality assurance methods in order to address concerns about fine pitch coplanarity. Additionally, 44% of respondents said fine pitch coplanarity problems had been “particularly costly” on at least one occasion. Examples of such incidents included: entire lots sent to scrap; time-consuming board programming; and fallout rates as high as 3% for an expensive 138-pin device.
Client Contact: Stuart Jensen was Marketing Manager at Data I/O for this project.. He now owns DANDUX Belting LLC.
"Richard and his team were fundamental pillars in our strategic planning and technology assessment activities, as well as the development of a marketing and sales plan to introduce a family of products. We were facing a fundamental shift in integrated circuit packaging technology that potentially affected 80% or more of our customer base. Richard's research not only quantified the impact of that market development, but also gave us great insight into the concerns, both real and perceived, of our customers and many who were not our current customers. The key advantage of Richard's research is that he and his team not only research the items/questions proposed, but seek to identify issues and information that surround and drive the identified concerns. The result is that he brings back an understanding of the market as opposed to simply answers to questions. He also developed a quantifiable sales opportunity and key actions to meet that opportunity. His demeanor is direct, analytic by nature, and focused on the conversion of data into information."