Encore Semi
Reshaping Engineering Services

The electronics industry has entered a new paradigm with companies that traditionally manufactured electronic systems looking to specify or build Integrated Circuits. Likewise, the semiconductor firms have ventured into building full-fledged Systems on Chip (SoCs) and complete platforms. This trend is fueling gaps in skills and expertise. Efficiently closing those gaps and adding momentum to the path-breaking ventures undertaken by companies is Encore Semi—a major engineering services company serving the semiconductor and electronic systems domains. Encore Semi has expertise ranging from systems engineering to the design of advanced Integrated Circuits and firmware, using the latest process technologies such as FinFET, Fully Depleted Silicon on Insulator (FD-SOI) or Silicon Photonics. “We evolve continuously to bring the right expertise and resources to our clients, linking the dots between technologies, IP, SoC and Systems,” mentions Olivier Lauvray, President and COO, Encore Semi.

Encore Semi partners with its customers to provide expert assistance for the execution of strategic projects and roadmaps. “We combine our expertise, resources, tools, methodologies and long-term commitment, to build solutions that enable our clients to achieve their goals,” says Lauvray.

In a more dynamic situation referred to as on-demand resource augmentation, Encore Semi also “patches” the individual gaps that clients may have in their projects.

In all engagements, Encore Semi’s strategy is to inject specific domain expertise at the silicon/firmware level to bring more value in SoC projects: acceleration, optimization or risk mitigation.

Encore Semi has many customers that are the main players of the semiconductor industry, and demand is growing from the electronic systems firms. When a Tier1 telecom company wanted to design its own 5G chipset, it decided to focus on architecture and specific circuit design, but engaged with Encore Semi in a long-term partnership to support the various tasks beyond their focus: digital signal processing implementation, RF design, layout, SoC-level integration. When one of the top Data Storage leaders wanted to accelerate their roadmap, they engaged with Encore Semi and leveraged its extensive expertise in Enterprise Solid State Drive hardware and firmware development. When a key semiconductor player shaped the ambition to gain a strong position in the growing autonomous car market, the company’s best-in-class team helped them assess their compliance to the ISO 26262 Functional Safety standard and put in place efficient solutions to overcome the safety vulnerabilities.

Customization services for derivative products is another area where Encore Semi has carved a niche for itself. One of Encore Semi’s clients received numerous requirements for customized SSDs, which they could not turn down. However, catering to client requests affected the company’s R&D roadmap. When brought onboard, Encore Semi, with its mastery over developing enterprise-grade firmware, handled the pipeline of customization requests, including new feature development, testing, and validation. “It was a win-win collaboration where we helped achieve faster time-to-market without disrupting their R&D efforts,” says Lauvray. The company enjoys similar levels of trust and success with many global organizations.

To cater to its clients who are global leaders in semiconductor, system engineering, telecom, and automotive domains, Encore Semi has the ambition to expand its operations internationally, starting with China. Although the company already enjoys multiple expertise, Lauvray sees a need to continuously expand their service portfolio. He draws the analogy of a chef to illustrate the company’s objectives. “We gather the best ‘ingredients’ and continuously add more, we listen to what clients want, and we cook them a savory recipe that keep them thrilled about working with us.”