News Briefs (March 20, 2006)

Design engineers faced with time-to-market issues and faster design cycles have a new online resource -- www.screamingcircuits.com, an Internet-based quick-turn and short-run printed circuit board (PCB) assembly company. The site’s “Get a Quote” feature is available 24 hours a day and lets customers get a PCB assembly quote within 30 seconds. The company says using the online quote and order feature lets designers spend more time working on the design and less time waiting on prototypes. A new service is the assembly of lead-free and RoHS-compliant circuit boards. Canby, Ore.-based Screaming Circuits also helps customers transition to lead-free and RoHS boards and gives a 10 percent first order discount. . . . Semtech Corp. of Camarillo, Calif., a supplier of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors used in computer, industrial and communication applications, announced the hiring of 20-year semiconductor and electronics industries veteran Mohan Maheswaran as its president and CEO, effective April 3. Maheswaran, who will also become a member of the company's board of directors, replaces interim CEO John D. Poe, who will remain as Semtech's board chairman. Maheswaran most recently was executive vice president and general manager at Intersil Corp. and has also worked for Elantec Semiconductor, Allayer Communications, IBM Microelectronics, Texas Instruments, Hewlett-Packard and Nortel Communications. . . . Rep. John E. Sweeney (R-NY) and DARPA Director Anthony J. Tether were recognized by the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) on Thursday for supporting critical scientific research. Sweeney received the SIA Congressional Leadership Award for his efforts in securing matching funds for the Focus Center Research Program, a collaborative effort of the government, the semiconductor industry and 30 universities, and for helping to pass technology-related legislation, including improved intellectual property protections and broadband deployment. Tether was given the SIA Administration Leadership Award for his support of the Focus Center program and his contributions to industry through DARPA. The awards were announced at SIA's annual Washington conference.