Reverse Engineering Circuit Boards in China: A Resource Or A Risk?

GLEN ARM, MD September 10, 2007 – With Chinese-based vendors and subcontractors facing greater scrutiny over recent quality-control and process-control lapses, Maryland-based Armistead Technologies is poised for growth. Armistead Technologies has specialized in reverse engineering printed circuit boards (PCBs) for more than 18 years.

“We give people an option,” founder and owner John Armistead says. “You don’t have to go offshore to get a PC board reverse engineered.”

Armistead is quick to point out the benefits of working with a U.S.-based firm for reverse engineering critical electronic components. “The key issue is about control – how do you control the process?” Armistead asks. “Some major companies have the resources to place someone on-site in China or India, to make sure that everything gets done the way it’s supposed to, and nothing gets loose.”

But recent events have shown that even the strictest oversight procedures can’t plug all the potential gaps and leaks.

That’s where smaller American engineering firms hold an important advantage. “When you outsource a reverse engineering project to Armistead Technologies, the people doing the work are me and my team,” Armistead says. “You’re not dealing with some faceless corporate entity, and you’re not sending your engineering or manufacturing files out of the country. Everything stays here.”

Armistead readily admits that offshore engineering firms are making inroads throughout the electronics industry. “Everyone’s getting emails from companies based in India or Asia, saying ‘outsource your engineering to us.’ Heck, even I get those emails,” he says with a chuckle.

But, for manufacturers wanting to keep their intellectual property closer to home, companies like Armistead Technologies remain ready to answer the call. So, for the time being, at least, there is a choice.

About Armistead Technologies, LLC.
Armistead Technologies is an engineering firm based near Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1989 by John Armistead, a graduate electrical engineer from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Armistead Technologies specializes in reverse engineering printed circuit boards, and re-engineering older PCB designs to be compliant with updated standards and compatibilities.

For more information, visit http://www.reverse-engineer.com/offshore-reverse-engineering.html or call John Armistead at (410) 627-2408.