China has undergone great change in the last decade and now stands as the world’s second largest economy. Continuing this growth will require innovation in a broad range of markets. Design innovation, in particular, will be critical to China’s ongoing industrial and economic development. Sometimes, however, innovation requires help. That’s what the Electronic Design Innovation Conference (EDI CON) hopes to accomplish, when it debuts in March 2013 and it is what we at Agilent Technologies do on a daily basis – provide the solutions and technology necessary to nurture and encourage design innovation and development. It is this desire to inspire innovation, through its focus on applications, emerging technologies and practical engineering solutions, that makes Agilent proud and honored to serve as EDI CON’s Platinum sponsor in its inaugural year.
The journey to realizing EDI CON began back in October of 2011, at the European Microwave Week in Manchester, England. It was there that talks began with Horizon House, an experienced and well-established event organizer, on the need for an event to provide design engineers and system integrators the latest information on RF, microwave and highspeed digital products and technologies. It was clear that Agilent should play a critical role in helping plan and participate in the event. As the world’s largest test and measurement company, it is our job to help bring technology innovation to China so that digital, RF and microwave technologies can move forward.
Agilent has a long and well-established history in China, beginning when it was known as Hewlett-Packard (HP) and spanning almost 30 years. In 1981, David Packard visited China and came away with the foresight and wisdom to understand that China was an emerging market and a measurement company, like HP, could be a crucial player in its economic and societal development. That insight prompted the opening of HP’s first office in Beijing in 1985. Today, Agilent has a significant presence in China, providing customers with sales, marketing and business support, as well as service. Agilent also has R&D and manufacturing organizations in Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu. The company’s largest software applications development organization is based in Beijing.
The partnership Agilent established with Horizon House to bring EDI CON to China is yet another way in which we will continue to play a role in China’s ongoing development. This event will enable researchers, scientists and engineers in China to gain insight into challenges in digital, RF and microwave design. By bringing designers together with measurement scientists in a collaborative environment, EDI CON will be able to highlight and help foster emerging technologies and solutions for effectively addressing those challenges.
Now more than ever before, China needs an event like EDI CON. The technical problems facing today’s wireless and digital product designers are getting more complex and difficult to solve. For example, in the wireless industry alone, design and test are complicated by increasing device complexity and functionality, higher data rates, rapid growth in software content, increased focus on network security and higher integration of components and modules. Wireless engineers must also now confront different measurement requirements for different technologies, multiple technologies converging in single devices and the constant evolution of existing technologies and emergence of new technologies.
The challenges are no less daunting for digital product designers. Here, technologies are continuing to transition from analog to digital and devices require more integration and functionality – at a lower cost. Devices also require higher speed and lower power, prompted by the growth of video and social media. Additionally, consolidation is underway in the digital arena as design shifts into Asia. Each of these trends drive new challenges that engineers must learn to address effectively if they are to succeed. Many of these trends are key topics on the agenda for EDI CON 2013, which will take place at the Beijing International Convention Center on March 12-14, 2013, in Beijing, China.
EDI CON promises to be an exciting and transformative event for China, one that we support on many different levels. Agilent is not only the event’s Platinum sponsor, we also will have a booth on the show floor and be presenting a number of technical papers. Additionally, I am honored to be delivering the keynote address. We look forward to a great event and hope to see you all there.
Visit http://www.ediconchina.com/ for more information about the event.