What Northwest Engineering Solutions does

Northwest Engineering Solutions LLC (NWES) is a Portland, Oregon-based PCB design and engineering services bureau founded in 2017 by Zachariah Peterson. The firm delivers full-service PCB design and layout across multiple EDA platforms (Altium Designer, Cadence OrCAD/Allegro, Siemens Xpedition), covering high-speed digital (up to 224G+), RF/microwave (up to 244 GHz), HDI/UHDI with 15/15 µm linewidth capability, IC substrates, flex/rigid-flex, mixed-signal, FPGA, and power electronics design. NWES operates in-house signal integrity and electromagnetic simulation using Simbeor, CST Microwave Studio, OpenEMS, Ansys HFSS, and SIwave, and provides EMC consulting for EMI identification and remediation.

The company serves mil-aero OEMs, embedded systems/IoT companies, industrial electronics firms, and drone/robotics developers across military & aerospace, commercial space, and commercial technology segments. It maintains a network of certified manufacturing partners (ISO-9001, AS9100, ISO-13485, NADCAP, ITAR/JCP) and offers turnkey manufacturing coordination, BOM cleaning, and procurement so that clients can move from prototype to volume production without engaging separate supply chain resources. The firm is ITAR-compliant for defense electronics work and positions itself for IPC Class 3/3A-qualified programs.

NWES generates revenue primarily through hourly professional services for design, consulting, and training, plus managed manufacturing coordination (billed at a fixed rate with no markup on fabrication/assembly costs) and technical content marketing retainers. Its go-to-market is consultative and relationship-driven, anchored by the founder's published expertise and a content marketing engine producing 5,000+ pieces of content, 1M+ yearly views, 1,000+ engineers trained, and 2,000+ hours of coursework. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The company is privately held with no disclosed funding, no parent company, and headcount of 1-10.

Name

Northwest Engineering Solutions

Legal name

Northwest Engineering Solutions LLC

Website

https://nwengineeringllc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Northwest Engineering Solutions is a Portland, Oregon-based PCB design and engineering services bureau founded in 2017, delivering multi-platform EDA design, signal integrity, EMC consulting, UHDI/IC substrate design, training, and manufacturing coordination to mil-aero, embedded/IoT, industrial, and drone/robotics clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

PCB Design & Engineering Services

NAICS

Computer Systems Design Services (541512), Other Specialized Design Services (54149), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711), Printed Circuit Boards (3672)

akta.pro primary industry

System-Level, Multi-Physics & Package/PCB Co-Design (EDA) (HDAHAFAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

PCB Fabrication (Flex & Rigid-Flex PCBs) (HDAHAOAH), Industrial PCB & Substrate Components (Bare PCBs, rigid-flex, ceramic substrates, thick-film) (IMAGAJAM)

Keywords

• PCB design services
• Signal integrity consulting
• EMC consulting services
• IC substrate design
• Electronics engineering services

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. PCB Design and Layout Services: Hourly billing for PCB design and layout services using industry-standard design tools. Services include schematic capture, PCB layout, manufacturing documentation, and design review.
2. Consulting Services: Signal integrity consulting, EMC consulting, and technology research billed hourly or per engagement. Includes 3D electromagnetic simulation, design audits, and technical advisory.
3. PCB Manufacturing Services: Managed manufacturing services where the company passes cost savings to clients without markup. Fixed rate billing for managed manufacturing coordination, procurement, and supply chain management.
4. PCB Design Training: Online and in-person training sessions delivered via Zoom or Teams. Hour-long sessions recommended for up to 30 hours of training. Customized corporate seminars and Altium Designer training courses.
5. Technical Content Marketing: Content marketing services for electronics industry companies including technical articles, whitepapers, ebooks, design guides, video production, and managed posting across website and social platforms.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Northwest Engineering Solutions is a professional PCB design bureau and electronics engineering services firm. It delivers full-service PCB design and layout from concept to production, including schematic capture, component placement, routing, and manufacturing documentation across multiple EDA platforms. It also provides IC substrate and UHDI PCB design, signal integrity and EMC consulting using in-house 3D electromagnetic simulation, PCB design training, technical content marketing, technology research, and turnkey PCB manufacturing coordination through a certified partner network.

Product overview

Northwest Engineering Solutions is a PCB design and engineering services company offering a comprehensive portfolio of electronics design services. The core offerings include PCB Design & Layout Services (with software support for Altium Designer, Siemens Xpedition, and Cadence OrCAD/Allegro), IC Substrates & UHDI PCB Design, Signal Integrity Consulting, EMC Consulting, PCB Design Training, Technical Content Marketing, PCB Manufacturing Services, Technology Research, and PCB Design Review services. These services are organized by EDA software platform (Altium, Xpedition, Cadence) and by application area (High Speed, RF, HDI, FPGA, Mixed-Signal, Flex, IoT/Embedded, Power Electronics, Military-Grade). The company provides signal integrity analysis tools including Simbeor, CST Microwave Studio, and Ansys HFSS/SIwave, and offers training through online sessions and in-person seminars. The company operates from Portland, Oregon with offices at 111 SW 5th Ave. Suite 3150 and Jeffrey Center Lab at 1020 SW Taylor St. Suite 850.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PCB Design & Layout Services Full-service PCB design and layout bureau service delivered on industry-standard EDA tools (Altium Designer, Cadence OrCAD/Allegro, Siemens Xpedition). Includes schematic capture, component placement, routing, manufacturing documentation, and project handoff across high-speed digital, RF, HDI/UHDI, IC substrate, FPGA, mixed-signal, flex/rigid-flex, IoT/embedded, power electronics, and mil-aero designs. Sold to enterprise OEMs, SMBs, and startups via quote-based project engagements.
• IC Substrates & UHDI PCB Design Ultra-high density interconnect (UHDI) PCB and IC substrate design services including chip-on-board, system-in-package (SiP), and multi-chip module packaging, with linewidths down to 15/15 µm. Sold to companies requiring next-generation advanced packaging and substrate-like PCB capabilities.
• Signal Integrity Consulting 3D electromagnetic simulation and signal integrity analysis for high-speed digital (including 224G+) and RF PCB designs. Uses Simbeor, CST Microwave Studio, OpenEMS, Ansys HFSS & SIwave, and Polar Si9000 to solve impedance, loss, crosstalk, and eye-diagram compliance. Sold to engineering teams facing high-speed channel compliance challenges.
• EMC Consulting Services Electromagnetic compatibility analysis, EMI failure-point identification, and PCB redesign services for difficult EMI problems. Takes a holistic systems-level view covering PCBs, assemblies, multi-board systems, and harnesses, and coordinates with pre-compliance and formal EMC testing facilities.
• PCB Design Training Instructor-led PCB design training covering topics from basics to advanced high-speed digital and ultra-HDI design techniques. Delivered online (hour-long sessions, recommended up to 30 hours) and as customized 1- or 2-day in-person corporate seminars, including dedicated Altium Designer courses.
• Technical Content Marketing SEO-driven technical content creation and managed posting for electronics industry companies. Includes technical articles, whitepapers, ebooks, design guides, video production, and managed distribution across website, blog, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook Reels, Instagram, and YouTube Shorts.
• PCB Manufacturing Services Turnkey PCB manufacturing management including BOM cleaning, component sourcing, and procurement through a network of certified manufacturing partners (ISO-9001, AS9100, ISO-13485, NADCAP, ITAR/JCP). Covers quick-turn prototypes through volume production with capabilities including high layer count/HDI, high frequency, flex/rigid-flex, ceramics, and metal-core PCBs.
• Technology Research Applied science and engineering research covering UHDI signal integrity, mmWave designs, lasers and optics, sensors, and interconnect design optimization. Delivered by the firm's Principal Investigator.
• PCB Design Review Comprehensive review of customer PCB designs covering schematics, layout, library, BOM, and manufacturing files. Includes project constraint review, DFM conformance assessment, and detailed reports with recommendations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 250% average yearly ROI for technical content marketing clients
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and strategic.

• PCB Manufacturing PartnerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNetwork of certified manufacturing partners providing PCB fabrication and assembly services. Partners are ISO-9001, AS9100, ISO-13485, IPC-A-610, NADCAP, and/or ITAR/JCP certified. Includes quick-turn prototypes, high layer count/HDI, high frequency, flex/rigid-flex PCB manufacturing, and specialty designs like ceramics and metal-core.
• EMC Testing FacilitiessupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerReferrals to EMC testing facilities through partner network when clients are ready for product testing. Also provides referrals to pre-compliance testing consultants for additional assurance before formal EMC testing.
• EDA Software CompaniesstrategicTechnology or IntegrationWorks directly with EDA software companies providing design examples and strategic consulting on product roadmaps. Supports Altium Designer, Cadence OrCAD/Allegro, and Siemens Xpedition platforms.
• Simulation Software CompaniessupportingTechnology or IntegrationCollaborates with simulation software companies. Uses Simbeor for signal integrity, CST Microwave Studio, OpenEMS, and Ansys HFSS & SIwave for electromagnetic analysis.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• In-Circuit Design Pty Ltd: In-Circuit Design is an Australian PCB design bureau using Altium and Mentor Graphics, serving commercial, industrial, and mil-aero clients. It competes directly with NWES for the same kind of outsourced PCB layout and signal integrity engagements.
• Sunrise Electronic Design: Sunrise Electronic Design is a US-based electronics design services firm providing schematic capture, PCB layout, and FPGA design. It operates as a small specialist design bureau similar to NWES in scope and target customers.
• Mistral Solutions: Mistral Solutions is an India-based embedded systems and PCB design services firm serving defense, aerospace, and industrial customers. It is comparable to NWES as an offshore/regional alternative for outsourced electronic design and layout work.
• Impact Technology Group: Impact Technology Group provides PCB design, signal integrity, and EMC consulting services to OEMs in aerospace, defense, and commercial markets—an essentially direct overlay of NWES's service portfolio and customer verticals.
• Concept H.A. Cadence s.r.o. Concept H.A. is a European PCB design bureau specializing in advanced technology layouts (HDI, flex, RF) using Cadence Allegro. It is a directly comparable niche specialist competing for high-complexity PCB design engagements.
• Fidus Systems: Fidus Systems is a Canadian electronic design services firm offering PCB layout, signal integrity, and FPGA design across the same EDA platforms (Altium, Cadence, Mentor/Siemens). It is the closest scale-comparable peer in the niche PCB design bureau space, working with similar OEM clients in mil-aero and telecom.

Broad incumbents

• Cadence Design Systems: Cadence is a major EDA software vendor whose Allegro platform NWES supports, and it operates broader design services and IP offerings globally. As a strategic partner and adjacent incumbent, Cadence overlaps with NWES through its own services arm while supplying the core design tools NWES uses.
• Siemens EDA: Siemens EDA (formerly Mentor Graphics) provides the Xpedition PCB platform that NWES supports, and broader systems-level design and simulation tools. It is a strategic EDA partner and adjacent services provider rather than a layout services peer, but it sits in the same toolchain.
• TTM Technologies: TTM Technologies is a large US PCB fabrication and assembly company with mil-aero certifications. While NWES is a design bureau, TTM is part of the broader electronics supply chain NWES's clients ultimately purchase from, and the two intersect in the mil-aero commercial space.

Others

• Altium: Altium supplies the Altium Designer platform NWES uses daily and operates a partner directory that can channel customers to NWES. It is an EDA vendor and ecosystem partner rather than a direct competitor in services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/NWESPDX
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/northwest-engineering-solutions-llc

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Northwest Engineering Solutions