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ASSET InterTech is the world leader in Manufacturing Test and Hardware Debug Solutions for processor-based boards.
Q. Who is ASSET InterTech, Inc.?
A. ASSET (www.asset-intertech.com) has been a pioneer in the boundary-scan (aka IEEE 1149.1 or JTAG) structural test arena. Beginning as a product unit of Texas Instruments, many of the founders of ASSET were involved in the development of the IEEE 1149.1 standard in the mid-1990s. As an independent company since 1995, ASSET has become one of the largest providers of JTAG-based test systems. The company’s ScanWorks® environment has become the boundary-scan test system of choice for practically all major communication and defense/avionics suppliers, including Cisco, Ericsson, Motorola, Alcatel-Lucent, Tellabs, Huawei, Raytheon, Rockwell, Lockheed Martin, BAE, Northrop Grumman, GE and others. In addition, ScanWorks’ adoption by companies like Microsoft for its Xbox 360 video game console and Delphi for its automotive electronics demonstrates that ScanWorks will continue its leadership as boundary scan proliferates in computers, set-top boxes, consumer electronics, industrial controls, automotive and other industries. ASSET is headquartered in Richardson, Texas, and has direct sales and support personnel in the US, Europe and Asia.
Q. What is ScanWorks?
A. ASSET’s ScanWorks environment is a structural and functional test system that utilizes boundary-scan-based access to chips, circuit board structures, sub-assemblies and systems to test, debug and validate the design of electronic systems. In addition to quickly and easily performing tests during every stage of a systems lifecycle, including design, manufacturing, and service and support, ScanWorks can access embedded instrumentation to control advanced high-speed tests like signal integrity analysis, bit error ratio testing (BERT), pattern generation testing and others.
Q. Why is ASSET acquiring ITT?
A. ASSET and ITT have both pioneered non-intrusive electronics test solutions for electronic hardware manufacturers in all market segments. ASSET has approached this market using JTAG (aka IEEE 1149.1 or boundary scan) for structural tests which verify that a circuit board or system has been manufactured correctly. ITT has approached this market using JTAG and/or a CPU’s debug port for functional tests which verify that a system functions as expected. Combining these two complementary solutions creates a test system that can approach 100% test coverage on many hardware designs.
Also, as circuit board complexity and density increases, a market has emerged for these kinds of capabilities to validate the design of semiconductors and high-speed serial buses on circuit boards. The JTAG port is emerging as the de facto access and control mechanism for the embedded intellectual property (IP) and instrumentation that is often required for these emerging applications.
Q. What are the financial terms of the acquisition?
A. The terms were not disclosed.
Q. How big are ASSET and ITT?
A. Both companies are privately held and this information is not being disclosed.
Q. What is the name of the merged company?
A. The merged company will be ASSET InterTech, Incorporated. Its headquarters will remain in Richardson, Texas, USA.
Q. What is the effective date of the acquisition?
A. The public announcement of the acquisition was made December 3, 2007
Q. How long have ASSET and ITT been working together?
A. A strategic partnership was formed between the two companies three years ago. For a news release announcing this relationship and the integration of MicroMaster and ScanWorks, click here. http://www.asset-intertech.com/news_article.html?newsID=78.
Q. Who are some of the customers shared by ASSET and ITT?
A. Many of the large military/aerospace, computing, telecom, medical, industrial and automotive companies which have progressively adopted boundary scan have also utilized emulation-based functional test with MicroMaster. For example, GE Fanuc has utilized the combination of ASSET’s ScanWorks and ITT’s MicroMaster for three years now (see http://www.asset-intertech.com/news_article.html?newsID=78).
Q. What joint products have the two companies developed?
A. The ScanWorks and MicroMaster software applications have been integrated so that users have a seamless way to develop and execute structural and functional tests from one platform. And the hardware interface to units-under-test (UUTs) for both boundary scan and emulation has been integrated, lowering total cost of ownership.
Q. How are existing customers of ASSET and ITT affected?
A. It will be business as usual in terms of Sales and Support. The two companies already share the same distribution channels to a great extent. All existing ASSET and ITT customers will use the sales and support channels they’ve been using. The existing ITT management team, contracts administration, order processing, fulfillment and invoicing will remain the same.
Q. What’s in the future for the merged company?
A. We are planning on greater levels of integration between ScanWorks and MicroMaster to address our joint customers, as well as an emerging roadmap for new CPU support for MicroMaster.
Just as the combination of boundary scan and emulation test yields greater test coverage than the solutions could accomplish separately, we feel that the merged company will provide solutions to our customers in terms of greater test coverage, higher quality, and lower cost.
