Rapid Automation Design

What Rapid Automation Design does

Rapid Automation Design is a privately held engineering services firm founded in 2006 and headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, on Florida's Space Coast. The company provides specialized FPGA design, hardware engineering, embedded software development, and PCB layout services to enterprise customers across defense and aerospace, broadcasting, energy, entertainment, scientific instruments, and industrial technology. It markets itself as a niche firm with approximately 18 years of experience and a staff in the 11–50 employee range, led by President & CEO (and founder) John K. Davis, CTO Wayne Duello, and Project Manager Sarah Dupont.

The technical core is FPGA and digital/analog/RF electronics design, with explicit expertise in Xilinx/AMD platforms including Zynq SoC, and capabilities spanning DDR4, PCIe Gen 3, USB 3.0, and SERDES interfaces up to 12.5 Gbps. Engineering services cover digital signal processing, system on a chip (SoC) implementation, video interfaces, modulation/demodulation, and high-speed communications, paired with embedded software for microcontrollers, Linux, device drivers, and board support packages. The firm operates in close partnership with AMD Xilinx and delivers work remotely or on-site for both domestic US and international clients, with named customers including L3Harris, Thales, Raytheon, DRS Technologies, SAIC, Disney Imagineering, Gates Air, Ergon Energy, Oxford Instruments, and Globe Tracker.

The business model is professional services revenue, with quote-based pricing and no publicly disclosed rate cards. Engagements range from supplementary workforce augmentation to complete end-to-end product development, and marketing is conducted through the company's technical blog, social media, and inbound quote requests rather than through channel partners or resellers. There is no public information on revenue, funding, ownership structure beyond founder leadership, or external institutional investment, and the firm has no disclosed AI/ML or SaaS product offerings.

Name

Rapid Automation Design

Legal name

Rapid Automation Design

Website

https://rapid-automation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rapid Automation Design is a Florida-based, privately held engineering services firm providing FPGA design, hardware/PCB layout, and embedded software development to enterprise customers across defense, aerospace, broadcasting, energy, entertainment, and scientific instruments.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Electronics Engineering Services

NAICS

Computer Systems Design Services (541512), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

EDA Cloud/SaaS, Design Data Management & Collaboration (HDAHAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Real-Time & Industrial Control Processors (RT MCUs/PLC-class SoCs) (HDAHAJAL)

Keywords

• FPGA design services
• Hardware engineering
• PCB layout services
• Embedded software development
• Systems engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Engineering Services: The company generates revenue through professional engineering services contracts, providing FPGA design, hardware engineering, software development, and PCB layout services on a project or staff augmentation basis. Revenue is derived from consulting fees for engineering expertise delivered remotely or on-site, with engagement models ranging from supplemental team support to complete product development.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Rapid Automation Design is an engineering services firm that provides FPGA design, hardware engineering, PCB layout, embedded software development, and systems engineering services. The company supports both commercial and military customers with capabilities spanning digital signal processing, System on a Chip (SoC) design, high-speed communications interfaces, and complete product lifecycle development. Services are delivered as staff augmentation, discrete projects, or full end-to-end product development, both remotely and on-site.

Product overview

Rapid Automation Design is an engineering services company offering a comprehensive suite of product development capabilities. The company operates as a single unified offering with four interconnected service lines: FPGA Design Services (digital signal processing, System on a Chip, high-speed communications, video interfaces, PCIe, USB), Hardware Design & PCB Layout (digital/analog/RF electronics, complex PCBs with DDR4/PCIe Gen 3/USB 3.0/SERDES), Software Engineering (embedded processors, microcontrollers, Linux, device drivers, SoC), and Systems Engineering. The company also specializes in AMD Xilinx FPGA products. Services can be delivered as complete end-to-end product development or as workforce augmentation to supplement client engineering teams.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FPGA Design Services Expert FPGA consulting and design services including digital signal processing, System on a Chip, high-speed communications, processor interfaces, and data acquisition. Capabilities cover video interfaces, PCIe, USB, and modulation/demodulation for commercial and military applications.
• Hardware Design & PCB Layout Hardware engineering services for digital, analog, and RF electronics design, including complex PCB layouts supporting DDR4, PCIe Gen 3, USB 3.0, and SERDES interfaces up to 12.5Gbps. Spans applications from sensitive instrumentation to TV broadcast and fiber-optics.
• Software Engineering Software development services covering embedded processors, microcontrollers, Linux development, device drivers, System on a Chip implementations, and board support packages. Delivered as quality-focused code for commercial and military applications.
• Systems Engineering Systems engineering services with expertise across a wide variety of fields to support product development and requirements verification, including workforce augmentation to supplement client engineering teams.
• AMD Xilinx FPGA Design Services Expert FPGA design services utilizing AMD Xilinx technology, covering the full range of Xilinx FPGA products for commercial and military applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Accelerated time-to-market through expert engineering support
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AMD XilinxcoreTechnology or Integration

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Nuvation Engineering: US-based electronic product design and engineering services firm offering FPGA, embedded, hardware, and software development. Most directly comparable to Rapid Automation Design in size, full-stack service offering, and customer mix.
• DornerWorks: Embedded systems and FPGA design services firm specializing in hardware, FPGA, and firmware development for medical, defense, and industrial customers. Directly comparable niche engineering services profile and customer type.
• Mistral Solutions: Embedded product design services company delivering FPGA, hardware, and software engineering for defense and commercial clients. Closely comparable in service mix and end-market exposure to Rapid Automation Design.

Broad incumbents

• Aldec: Established EDA vendor with deep FPGA simulation and verification tooling that also offers design services. Overlaps Rapid Automation's FPGA design and verification work but from a tooling-led position with broader product portfolio.
• Synopsys: Global EDA and semiconductor IP leader whose professional services division performs FPGA and ASIC design work for large customers. Competes for the same pool of FPGA design services spend but with vastly larger scale and tooling integration.
• Cadence Design Systems: Major EDA vendor with design services capabilities across FPGA, SoC, and verification. Comparable on the FPGA design services dimension but operates as a multi-billion-dollar platform with broader IP and tooling offerings.
• Curtiss-Wright: Defense electronics and engineering services provider serving similar prime customers (including several of Rapid Automation's named accounts). Overlaps on ruggedized FPGA and embedded hardware for defense and aerospace but at substantially greater scale.
• Mercury Systems: Defense-focused mission-critical electronics company with FPGA, RF, and embedded design capabilities. Comparable end-market and FPGA design services overlap but with much larger headcount and integrated product offerings.

Emerging players

• Blue Pearl Software: FPGA and ASIC verification tools and services provider focused on RTL analysis and design quality. Niche overlap with Rapid Automation's FPGA design and verification workflow from a tooling-and-services angle.
• Verific Design Automation: Provider of SystemVerilog, Verilog, and VHDL parsers and elaboration platforms used throughout the FPGA design flow. Adjacent to Rapid Automation's FPGA and SoC work as an enabling infrastructure provider in the same design ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/5148171

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rapid Automation Design