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The folks at Altium are introducing live links from Altium Designer (see article #212300540) to the databases of component suppliers. The first live link will be to worldwide components supplier Digi-Key.
Having these live links will let designers search on-line supplier databases directly from Altium Designer, and consider important information such as cost and availability when choosing components. At the moment, this is often left to the procurement department after the design is essentially completed, when unavailable parts can delay release schedules or lead to a major redesign.
The choice of a component can significantly influence manufacturing costs, production time, and the reliability and long-term serviceability of a design. By providing live links, Altium is working to ensure all the crucial information about a component is at designers' fingertips, right at the start of the design process. And they can have this information retained right throughout the design process to manufacture.
Designers can pull information on component cost and availability, for example, directly from a supplier's database and incorporate this into their design and decision making processes. Once links are established within Altium Designer, the information can be updated at any time, ensuring the integrity of component data. Designers will no longer have to continuously check supplier web sites to get the latest information. Combine these live links to supplier databases with the ability to publish information, such as bills of materials, directly to online servers, and the door is open to sophisticated real-time quoting and ordering services.
Linking to Digi-Key's database extends the partnership announced by Altium and Digi-Key in September, which covers the distribution of Altium's Innovation Station. (Altium's Innovation Station combines Altium Designer and Altium's NanoBoard reconfigurable development platform. Designers can use the Innovation Station to explore design concepts, create rapid prototypes, and then move to custom PCB design and manufacture, all within Altium's unified design environment.)
For more information on the latest release of Altium Designer, go to www.altium.com. For more information on Altium's Innovation Station, go to www.altium.com or www.digikey.com.
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