Mentor opens design laboratory in Russia

MIET is one of the leading Russian universities preparing specialists in electronic systems design, and the new center will train students to use leading-edge electronic design tools. "This collaboration with Mentor Graphics will enable the training of a new generation of technology specialists," said Professor Yuri Chaplygin, MIET rector. "Teaching students how to work most effectively with industry-leading electronic design tools ensures a workforce well-prepared to advance Russia's growing electronics industry." Mentor's contribution to MIET includes software and hardware, training materials and scholarship funding. The new center plans to start offering courses in September focused on printed circuit board/system design and hardware description language (HDL) design and verification. Later courses will address mixed-signal custom integrated circuit (IC) design and verification. Mentor Graphics design tools were provided under the auspices of the company's Higher Education Program, which makes available Mentor's leading-edge design tools to colleges and universities for classroom instruction and academic research. This program, which has been in existence since 1985, helps maintain a skilled electronics workforce by facilitating engineering graduates' proficiency with state-of-the-art tools and techniques. "The better prepared new engineering graduates are, the better for the industry," said Hanns Windele, Mentor Graphics vice president for Europe. "As an EDA technology leader, we firmly support collaborations with centers of academic excellence such as MIET."