The NMI Design Advisory Board (NDAB) oversees the development and implementation of strategy for the design community. It functions as a source of insight, knowledge, expertise and ideas providing guidance and quality assurance for the initiatives of NMI.

 

• Geoff Barrett, NDAB Chair, Technical Director, Broadcom Broadband Communications Group
• Ian Phillips, Principal Staff Engineer, ARM
• Dr. David Burrows, Vice President of Product Management & Execution, Aptina Imaging
• Iqbal Sharif, Senior Director Touch Engineering, Atmel 
• Simon Chang, Director of Physical Design, CSR
• Gary Duncan, VP Engineering, Dialog Semiconductor
• Ian Macbeth, CEO and Founder, eoSemi
• Peter Hughes, Vice President Silicon Engineering & Operations, Icera
• Steve Neill, Vice President, Bristol Design Centre and Technical Director, Infineon Technologies (UK) Ltd
• Keith Kidd, Senior Director Technology, Renesas Electronics Europe
• Dermot Barry, VP Consumer Silicon, S3
• Graham Curren, CEO, Sondrel
• Dr. John McLean, Division Head, STFC-RAL
• Roger Shepherd, ST Ericsson
• Peter Frith, CTO, Wolfson Microelectronics

Geoff Barrett, NDAB Chair, Technical Director, Broadcom Broadband Communications Group

Geoff is responsible for leading a number of design process improvement projects within Broadcom and directing the development of Broadcom’s Firepath DSP processor. He graduated in 1984 from Oxford University and spent 5 years as a researcher in Oxford’s Programming Research Group. He joined ST Microelectronics in 1989 before joining start-up Element-14 in 1999. Element-14 was acquired by Broadcom in 2000.  

Geoff is the author of 9 patents and 28 published papers. He has also made key contributions to programming language design (occam-3 and UBIK), microprocessor design and verification methodologies.

Ian Phillips, Principal Staff Engineer, ARM

Ian is Principal Staff Engineer at ARM Ltd of Cambridge, where his role is to nurture strategic technology and opportunities until their business value can be quantified. Apprenticed in electronics 1965-69, he graduated from University of Wales - Swansea, in 1975. He went on to work for  Pye-TMC, Philips, Plessey, GEC and Mitel  before joining ARM in 1998. As an electronic designer he gained wide experience of design and manufacture as the microelectronic/microelectronic system technologies evolved through this most exhilarating period.  His role is very outward facing and he is involved with many European Research Universities, Institutions and Government Bodies, as both advisor and technology scout. He is a frequent presenter on many European stages; an advocate of improved University/Industry relationships; Visiting Professor at the Universities of Liverpool and Plymouth; and the winner of the 2008 NMI award for his personal Contribution to Industry.

Dr. David Burrows, Vice President of Product Management & Execution, Aptina Imaging

In 1998 Dr. Burrows established a new R&D organisation for Micron Corporation to develop logic and mixed signal IP for its embedded memory technologies. By 2003 the department was focused on foundation IP and product design to support Micron’s CMOS imaging product range. David now runs the UK Imaging Design Centre for Aptina.

After receiving a degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and a PhD on mobile radio and control theory from Bath University, Dr. Burrows joined Plessey Research in 1982 to work on radar systems using field programmable hardware, where he later later set-up the silicon engineering group to develop structured design methods and CAD tools in the areas of built-in self test and logic synthesis. He joined LSI Logic in 1988 to work on mixed signal CAD software.

 

Simon Chang, Director of Physical Design, CSR plc.

Simon is the Director of Physical Design at Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) - responsible for advanced analogue design and RF techniques and applying these to new processes. He joined CSR shortly after founding in 1999 as an Analogue Design Engineer, and has also worked as an Analogue and RF Group Leader, leading a team of analogue and RF designers in Cambridge to deliver CSR's Wireless LAN radio.

Prior to joining CSR, Simon worked as a design engineer at Schlumberger, designing analogue and RF circuitry that operated behind the bit of oil drilling equipment to sense information about the surrounding rock formations.

Simon has degrees in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering from the University of Queensland and a PhD in CMOS Analogue micro-electronics from the University of Nottingham. He is currently studying for an Executive MBA at the University of Cambridge.

Gary Duncan, VP Engineering, Dialog Semiconductor

Gary is Vice-President of Engineering, responsible for all IC design & development activities for the Dialog Semiconductor Group. This consists of the development activities of the Audio and Power Management , Automotive & Industrial and Display product groups. 

Gary joined Dialog Semiconductor in October 1987 and has more than 30 years experience in the semiconductor industry. In his time at Dialog he has had executive responsibility for the Marketing, Operations and Engineering departments.

Starting his career at Plessey Semiconductor, Gary has also held positions at LSI Electronic Systems, Texas Instruments and ES2 before arriving at Dialog Semiconductor in its former guise of IMP Europe. During this time he held engineering positions in process engineering through test and product engineering having specialised in yield improvement.

 

Ian Macbeth, Co-founder and CEO, eoSemi

eoSemi is a design services business specialising  in mixed-signal systems since 2006, and undergoing a self-funded transition to semiconductor start-up specialising in timing devices. Ian has 23 years’ experience in the semiconductor industry with an analog and mixed-signal CMOS IC focus. 

Prior to founding eoSemi, he was Chief Technical Officer and co-founder of Anadigm, an international VC-backed leading supplier of programmable analog ICs and software. He jointly developed the first commercial dynamically field-programmable analog array (FPAA) and led all silicon & software product and technology development within the company, promoting its vision for dynamic and non-linear analog signal processing. 

A 1985 BSc Hons graduate of the University of Edinburgh, Ian is author of 17 technical publications – two winning institutional awards, and 8 patents on analog IC and systems design. He has a keen interest in technology enterprise. For fun he flies microlights.

Pete Hughes, Vice President Silicon Engineering & Operations, Icera

 

Pete has overall responsibility for the baseband, RF and PMIC silicon engineering teams, as well as having responsibility for hardware engineering, product and test engineering and manufacturing operations functions.

 

Prior to Icera, Pete Hughes was Director of Broadcom Corporation's (NASDAQ: BRCM) Bristol, UK design centre where he held overall responsibility for the development of DSL central office chipsets. Pete was part of the founding team at Element 14, a start-up semiconductor company that was acquired by Broadcom in 2000 for $640M. Prior to Element 14, Pete was a technical lead at STMicroelectronics (NASDAQ:STM), in Bristol, UK where he led the joint analogue and physical IP development activities between STM and nVIDIA.. Pete has a background in high-speed memory and analog chip design, and started his career in process development and device physics at Inmos. He holds an MSc in Microelectronics from Edinburgh University and a BSc in Physics from Manchester University. Pete is a Member of the IEEE.

 

Steve Neill, Vice President, Bristol Design Centre and Technical Director, Infineon Technologies (UK) Ltd

Steve graduated in electronics from Hull University in 1982 and joined the Semiconductor Components group of ICL in Kidsgrove. After joining Inmos in 1984 Steve was involved in a number of processor development projects. Steve joined Infineon Technologies (IFX) in 1999, initially responsible for a Central R&D development group focusing on processor development. Based out of the newly opened IFX Bristol Design Centre with the consolidation of activities in 2000 he took up the role as head of the design centre. Steve has now been actively involved over the last 15 years in driving six processor development projects covering a wide spectrum of performance and application.

He presently holds a seat on the IFX (UK) Board.

 

Iqbal Sharif

Iqbal joined Atmel as the Senior Director for Touch Engineering in October 2010

Prior to this he was the Senior Director and General Manager of NXP Semiconductors Digital TV SoC Group having joined the company in 1991. He led NXP’s Digital IC division, which utilises many of the companies latest design flows methodologies and research activities, from an emerging consumer perspective to complete products in Set Top Box and Digital TV.

Before NXP, Sharif held the title for Development Manager of the STB Group. In this position, he led the organization that researches, develops and designs next-generation hardware and software technologies for all Set Top Box platforms for consumer market segments.

Previously, Sharif led a number of program management roles, where he was responsible for NXP’s Digital TV chipsets and systems for consumer and commercial OEM customers. 

Sharif received a bachelor's degree in Electrical and Electronic engineering from Portsmouth University in 1991.

Keith Kidd, Engineering Director, Renesas Electronics Europe

Keith is responsible for the Engineering Division of Renesas Technology Europe, with teams located in the UK and Germany. Development areas cover LSI, IP, embedded SW & microcontroller development tools plus the design & manufacture of reference systems for worldwide customers.

He started his career designing control systems in automotive and industrial companies, followed by 12 years at Hitachi’s semiconductor division in Product Marketing and as Manager of European Strategic Marketing.

Keith has a Bsc in Engineering Electronics, an MBA from Warwick Business School and has worked in the electronics sector for 28 years.

 

Dermot Barry, VP Consumer Silicon, S3

Dermot's role involves setting the strategic direction for S3's System-on-Chip (SoC) design services business and the Mixed Signal IP product portfolio. Dermot has full responsibility for global sales and operations and manages key strategic relationships, delivering successful solutions to clients such as NXP, TI, Micronas and Phonak amongst others. 

Prior to joining S3 Dermot worked as Research & Development Engineer for Philips Research in Eindhoven from 1985-1994 where he was responsible for analogue IC design focusing on ICs for mobile, broadcast and cordless communications. From 1994-1997 Dermot was VP of US Sales & Business Development at S3 and drove S3's initial ventures into the US marketplace from a base in San Jose. 

Dermot joined Cadence Design Systems, from 1997-2000, as a Senior Sales Manager for Design Services in UK and Israel, again broadening his expertise and experience in the industry. Dermot re-joined S3 in 2000 as General Manager of the Wireless Systems Business Unit and was recently appointed as VP, Consumer Silicon. 

Dermot is well known in the industry and is a key member of S3's management team. Dermot graduated from University College Dublin in 1985 with a Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.). 

 

Graham Curren, CEO, Sondrel

 

Graham is the CEO and founder of Sondrel, an independent IC services company formed in 2002. Funded entirely from profits, Sondrel now has offices in UK, Sweden, France, Italy, Israel and China, and provides leading edge design services, in advanced technology and low power techniques, to many of the top global semiconductor companies and start-ups. 

Graham’s previous roles include managing an ASIC design centre, and as the European head of application engineering, design service and marketing for a major US EDA software company where he grew annual revenues from $2M to $80m.

Dr. John McLean, STFC-RAL

Roger Shepherd, ST Ericsson

In 1979 Roger graduated with a degree in mathematics from Warwick University and joined Inmos, a high-profile UK funded semiconductor start-up which was subsequently acquired by SGS-Thomson Microelectronics (now STMicroelectronics).  At Inmos Roger worked on the Inmos transputer and the occam parallel programming language. Later he set up the organisation which delivered the software tools, operating system and applications for a 64-bit processor developed by ST. More recently has taken the Lx/ST200 VLIW processor from a research project to a mass production product.

Roger has been a Visiting Professor of Engineering in the Department of Computer Science at Sheffield University and was the recipient of an STMicroelectronics “Exceptional Patent Award” in 2000.

Roger now heads ST-Ericsson's processor group in Bristol. He has responsibility for the ST200 and ST40 processor families and an ongoing interest in complex, software centered systems.

Peter Frith, CTO, Wolfson Microelectronics

Peter joined Wolfson as an Analogue Design Engineer in 1985 and in 2000, became Wolfson’s VP of New Product Definition. In this role he was instrumental in leading the design of many of the Company’s current successful products.  In 2006 he began his current position as the Chief Technical Officer for the company.

Prior to being at Wolfson, he worked at MEDL having achieved an Honours Degree in Physics and a Masters Degree in Microelectronics from Durham University.