Mountain View, Calif. - June 7, 2004 - Apache Design Solutions, the technology leader in physical power integrity solutions for system-on-chip (SoC) designs, today announced SkyHawk, a new automated constraint-driven power grid generation and optimization engine for nanometer SoCs. The new product helps chip designers determine power grid requirements early in the design process, refine the power grid as the design evolves, and analyze it at every stage of the design cycle. SkyHawk uses the same simulation kernel as RedHawk-SDL, Apache's signoff dynamic power-grid solution validated in TSMC's reference flow 5.0. SkyHawk aims to prevent power integrity issues that may be difficult to fix late in the design cycle.

SkyHawk generates multi-layer, multi-region power grids while honoring all routing, power, and blockage constraints. It also considers the effects of simultaneous switching logic and I/Os when determining the amount and type of routing resources needed by a power grid. To meet dynamic power requirements, a designer needs to use a power-grid planning tool driven by true transient simulation with SPICE-level accuracy. SkyHawk, combined with RedHawk-SDL's vectorless-dynamic engine, generates power grid designs that ensure silicon-proven accuracy.

"With the complexity of nanometer designs and power requirements, our customers can't afford to over-design or under-design the power-grid anymore. SkyHawk is Apache's next major solution after RedHawk-SDL to address the SoC power challenges from prototyping to signoff," said Keith Mueller, Apache vice president of worldwide sales and marketing.

"Accuracy has always been our highest priority. SkyHawk's utilization of the proven simulation kernel from RedHawk-SDL brings both static and dynamic effects into the early-stage power-grid generation for an efficient utilization of chip resources while meeting power integrity requirements," said Andrew Yang, CEO of Apache.

With SkyHawk's fast turnaround time, designers can explore different power grid design styles and options. The region-based power grid planning capability enables designers to avoid excessive use of routing resources where power routes are not needed. In addition, SkyHawk allows designers to explore different options for connecting memories and other intellectual property (IP) blocks to the full-chip grid.

Pricing and Availability
SkyHawk will be available as a beta release in Q3 of this year. It is licensed on Linux, Sun Solaris, and HP-UX. Annual license pricing varies with configuration and starts at $150,000.

About Apache Design Solutions
Apache is a provider of innovative next-generation physical power integrity software that accelerates the design process and guarantees the reliability of massive system-on-chip semiconductors operating at gigahertz frequencies. By providing tools for power, timing, and system I/O integrity, Apache enables leading networking, wireless, communication, consumer, and semiconductor companies to develop highly competitive and reliable products. Apache's physical design integrity products are used early in the nanometer design process with minimal setup, delivering the highest standards of computational performance, capacity handling, and integrity. For more information, including a white paper on dynamic analysis, visit www.apache-da.com.

Contact:
Apache Design Solutions
Yukari Chin, (650) 237-5422, Email Contact

Public Relations for Apache
Cayenne Communication LLC
Michelle Clancy, (252) 940-0981, Email Contact