Engineering Services

 

Since year 2007, our engineering division has been growing at a tremendous rate. Led by veteran project managers, NCS teams are ever-ready to meet client deadlines, whether months ahead or the next business day.

We handle numerous projects for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), Original Device Manufacturers (ODMs), Independent Software Vendors (ISVs), and global entities from various industries. Clients choose NCS as their preferred Malaysia outsourcing company for engineering design and validation services for pre- and post-silicon processes.

Pre-Silicon

Pre-silicon involves the process of validating IC design before tape out, validation of Register Transfer Level (RTL) design, and computer signal integrity. We certify the functionality of CPUs, embedded systems, circuits, and chipsets using input output buffers and by measuring signal propagation and point-to-point transmission signals.

 

Post-Silicon

With Post-Silicon, we certify functionality of finished boards and chips, their frequencies, operating temperatures, circuits, and electrical signals (voltages and marginality). We validate software compatibility, driver applications, and operating systems (e.g. Windows, Linux, and AndroidTM ) of mobile devices, tablets, notebooks, desktops, and servers. Our engineers develop scripts that automate test processes to extract data, run analyses, and debug. 
Lastly, we correlate the final Design For Manufacturing (DFM) process.

 

Physical Design

This penultimate stage of the IC design process requires design of photolithography masks to produce physical layout geometries on silicon. Based on schematic references, Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools are deployed for floor planning and layout tasks. For highly complex and demanding IC projects for international clients, our teams of engineers possess proven track records for delivering superior quality work on-schedule using the most current techniques and the latest design methodologies. With the depth of experience arising from these collaborations, our engineers are able to advise and perform at all stages of the physical design process, from the initial floor planning through verification, including DRC & LVS until final tape-out stage.

 

Package Simulation & Board Design

Our engineers implement computer aided design (CAD) tools for package simulation, board layout and circuit design. Additionally, performs simulation testing for signal integrity on 2D and 3D packages.

 

Software/Firmware Testing & Validation

NCS engineers are stationed on- and off-site to manage and execute the full suite of validation and quality assurance for software and firmware projects. Clients set the deadlines and NCS supplies Ready to Market (RTM) deliverables. Although deadlines are typically set at several months, NCS can mobilize its teams to accommodate urgent, high priority deadlines that require turnaround by the next business day.

NCS oversees the entire comprehensive process of software and firmware validation, which includes requirement analyses; project cycle and timeline forecasting; test case development and review; test coverage and strategy planning; operating system installation on desktop and embedded platforms; device drivers integration; test execution; sighting, filing, and rectifying bugs; and preparing validation summaries.

Software and firmware testing can encompass: software applications, device drivers, BIOS configuration and boot test, and IO components (e.g. SATA, Audio, UART, Ethernet, CAN, GPIO, I2C, SPI, SDIO and USB). The scope of testing covers basic acceptance test, functional test, integration test, interoperability test, stress test and more. Our experience includes but is not limited to the following:

  • Microsoft Operating Systems (since 2005): Windows XP, Vista, 7.0 and 8.0; Windows CE; Windows Embedded XP, POS and Compact; and MS DOS
  • Linux Operating Systems (since 2005): Redhat, Ubuntu, WindRiver, Suse 11, Meego, Moblin, Fedora, AndroidTM, and Tizen
  • Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) (since 2010)
  • Device Drivers (since 2004)
  • Performance tuning applications, e.g. overclocking CPU and RAM (since 2005)
  • Compatibility test for Windows Hardware Quality Labs (WHQL) (since 2006)
  • BIOS customization tools (since 2007)

 

Automated Script Development

We develop automated test scripts to validate client software functionality and features. Our automated tests detect errors more efficiently, can be performed 24/7, and are capable of cutting test times by as much as 600% over manual testing, allowing resources to focus on other tasks simultaneously.

 

24-Hour Software Testing & Validation Services

NCS is the pioneer Malaysia outsourcing company for Engineering and information technology (IT). We have now built the first independent facility in North Malaysia. The NCS Offshore Development Center (ODC) is an independent lab providing 24-hour software testing and validation services. Clients supply proprietary software or hardware, and we deliver validated versions ready for mass production. Click here for more information on the NCS ODC.