March 11, 2026

#718 – Layout Review with Zachariah Peterson

1 hour

Welcome Zachariah Peterson of Northwest Engineering Solutions!

Zach listed the various places people can find his work, including

The Altium YouTube channel

Zach’s YouTube channel

His personal technical blog

The Altium Blog

various industry conferences like PCB West 01:10

Zach mentions that he has been creating video content and seminars for several years, traveling to places like Denmark to teach high-speed design. 01:10

They discuss the recent acquisition of Altium by Renesas and how the company is trying to balance enterprise features with the needs of individual users. 03:15

He notes that the pricing for professional design software has recently become more accessible for freelancers and consultants. 11:15

He suggests that learning the fundamentals of EMC is one of the best ways for an engineer to become more valuable in the industry. 14:00

He warns against relying solely on semiconductor data sheets for EMC guidance because they often contain outdated or incorrect information. 18:45

They talk about the massive costs and delays that happen when a product fails its initial testing runs in a lab. 21:00

Zach shares how his background in applied physics and lasers made it easier for him to transition into high-speed RF and digital design. 25:15

He explains that he relies on mental models and specialized software tools more than solving complex equations by hand on a daily basis. 27:00

He stresses the importance of understanding the physical manufacturing process, such as how circuit boards are pressed and laminated. 30:00

They discuss the common problem of engineers over-specifying expensive materials when a cheaper option would work perfectly fine. 32:45

Zach predicts that the most useful AI tools will eventually be built directly into existing PCB design software rather than living in separate browser tabs. 35:30

He shares how he uses AI to quickly find generic part numbers, which saves him a lot of tedious manual searching. 42:00

He compares different AI design tools, noting that some generate schematics from data sheets while others use proven building blocks. 46:30

He describes an internal tool he is building to help him search through and reuse circuitry from his own past projects. 49:30

He admits he isn’t a fan of code-based schematics because he prefers graphical tools and doesn’t consider himself a professional coder. 51:00

He tells the story of how his popular one-minute design reviews started as a spontaneous way to manage the many requests he receives on LinkedIn. 54:00

He points out that many designers fail to use their software’s built-in design rule checks, leading to thousands of avoidable errors. 58:45

They talk about the decline of mentorship in the industry and the risk of companies losing important tribal knowledge as senior engineers retire. 61:15

Zach shares his goals for the coming year, including a deeper focus on manufacturing nuances and advanced EMC testing standards. 66:00

He encourages engineers of all levels to attend industry conferences like PCB West and DesignCon to learn directly from experts. 70:00

They conclude the episode by sharing where listeners can find more of his technical articles and videos online. 1:02:30

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By The Amp Hour (Chris Gammell and David L Jones)

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