COMMODITY SOLUTIONS

‘Commodity’ Semiconductors Are Key

Mark Hocking, Commodity Marketing Manager for Arrow Northern Europe, explores some of the issues affecting the sourcing of commodity semiconductors and points out that these devices are just as important as the higher profile ‘core' devices when it comes to ensuring competitive advantage.

The growth of the electronics market, and the increasing use of semiconductor devices in everything we touch, has led to an explosion in demand for so called ‘commodity' products. Perceived as low cost, low value, these commodities are actually the bedrock without which no system can function.

Driven by system demands for low power, integration and smaller board size, the technical and packaging advances in the discrete and logic arenas have been equally as profound as in other higher profile technologies. What's more, these products are subject to the same vagaries of our cyclical industry – and a line down costs manufacturers the same whether the fundamental cause is a low cost Op Amp or expensive MCU.

Despite the enormous increase in everything digital, we live in an analogue environment. This means we need commodity products to create the interface between digital systems and the ‘real’ world. While there is a natural tendency during design to focus on the system core, the commoditised parts required (such as A/D converters, Op Amps, MOSFETs or diodes) may have cost parity with the core and therefore their selection parts should take place adequately early in the design cycle.

It's equally imperative to select the correct products in support of the core. At Arrow, we have come across many ‘horror stories' where a selected single-source part is announced obsolete, on technical hold, on allocation or even temporarily unavailable because of events such as factory fires or wafers becoming contaminated. An inability to source product inevitably has a negative impact on time to market and critical revenue streams.

Fortunately, Arrow is uniquely positioned to support all your commodity and peripheral needs. From our world-class line card to global inventory, we can provide the product and solution to keep you ahead of the competition. Our strength and unique offering lies in:

• Dedicated inventory and marketing specialists
• Access to global inventories
• Unrivalled position and influence with our key vendors
• Cross reference and re-engineering of commodity BOMs to provide optimised solutions

Therefore, when you think commodity - whether it's a piece of logic, SOT23 diode, an LDO or a simple switcher - Arrow has the solution, determination and passion to support you.