Proactive Management

Notes from the Road (We’re Back, Baby!)

Like most people, I haven’t been traveling much since early 2020, but over these past couple of years of pandemic-imposed video calls, I’ve become amazed at how quickly and naturally we’ve formed trusting relationships with people we’ve never met in real life (IRL). If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video call…

How to Find Discontinued Embedded Boards

The inevitable has finally arrived. An embedded board in your application has been discontinued by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM). Your company needs a critical embedded board, and revenue depends on timely delivery. But the OEM cannot build additional boards for you and the franchised suppliers don’t have any inventory left. What can you do? Predictably,…

7 Perspectives about Legacy Engineering

Once component EOL notices have been issued and COTS embedded boards are discontinued, the processes for keeping your embedded systems vital drastically changes and so must your overall thinking about them. When the supply chain is active, acquiring the boards and components you need requires simply placing an order. Extending or even reviving a product…

Building for VICTORY: The U.S. Army and the Vehicle Integration Network Initiative

It isn’t a high-profile battle, but those who know are aware that our armed forces are engaged in a perpetual war with an enemy that is, ultimately, unbeatable. That enemy is obsolescence. However, just because obsolescence is inevitable, it doesn’t mean there aren’t victories. Or one singular “VICTORY,” as the case may be.

SAE AeroTech 2013: Innovation and Total Life Cycle Support

The SAE 2013 AeroTech Congress and Exhibition in Montréal, Quebec, Canada, brought together an international community to discuss both design and total life-cycle sustainment. Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) boards and components continue to bring technological achievements in the form of advanced flight systems, heads-up displays, sensors that track aircraft usage to identify the best time for…