Clive Maxfield
Mentor Graphics

Knowledge is the central competitive factor of the future. DDM is the infrastructure 'glue' that holds everything together. Design environments that are tool-centric rather than design centric present a range of problems such as interoperability issues between electronic design automation (EDA) tools and the inability to support multiple design teams located across the globe. An EDA vendor helps its customers deliver quality product at competitive prices, and at a faster time-to-market than its competitors. This paper discusses Design Data Management (DDM), its role in supporting hierarchical thread-based designs and multiple, remotely located design teams, and how EDA vendors need to address the challenges of satisfying the "Design Anywhere - Build Anywhere" requirements of today's marketplace.