Wasatch Technical Consulting
About us
Mark Higginbottom, Owner, Chief Consultant
Mark Higginbottom is an accomplished engineer and the owner and chief consultant at his firm. His extensive experience in power and analog semiconductor new product development empowers him to effectively realize your company's vision. With a knack for analyzing complex challenges, he strategically defines objectives, assesses team capabilities, and successfully executes technical projects. His broad engineering expertise facilitates the formation of multi-disciplined teams, often comprising product, project, and test engineers. Through his proven track record, Mark has demonstrated an ability to transform these teams into problem-solving units, adept at tackling the intricate challenges of semiconductor development and manufacturing. Furthermore, he excels in integrating complex operations following mergers and acquisitions, ensuring seamless continuity and enhanced performance.
In his consulting role, Mark aims to help revitalize domestic expertise that has waned over the decades in the semiconductor and electronic manufacturing industry in America. This field has experienced remarkable growth over the last few decades, enabling the production of a diverse array of devices that have transformed our daily lives. The offshoring strategies used by almost all significant companies has created a scarcity of resources with substantial knowledge and firsthand manufacturing experience. This presents a significant challenge to achieving fast development cycle times with excellent quality levels and stable yields. .
Mark's approach focuses on leveraging the agility of a small company, which can adapt to customers' timelines and budgetary constraints more effectively than larger corporations bogged down by bureaucracy. By cultivating this expertise and offering tailored solutions, Mark seeks to bridge the gap left by the industry's evolution, ensuring that innovation continues to flourish domestically and meets the demands of a rapidly changing market.
Through extensive industry contacts and relationships, Mark has the ability to scale up resources required for your product as needed.
Key professional experiences
Director New Product Development; Discrete Power Solutions Group/Power MOSFET division
Built and managed diverse teams of Engineering Managers, Product Engineers, Test Engineers and Project Managers, in six countries, to develop and ramp into production Power Discrete, Module and Power IC devices for the automotive, commercial and Industrial markets. ON purchased Fairchild, Responsibility size >$1B.
Managed successful integration of key divisions into the ON structure, including integration and growth of engineering teams located in US, Korea, China, Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam. Power MOSFET division. Largest part of FCS acquisition.
Seamlessly integrated all Power MOSFET and Silicon Carbide (SiC) products into ON infrastructure while simultaneously releasing several key new technologies across multiple product families.
Product lines achieved and sustained certifications to ISO9001, Automotive TS16949 standards.
Designed scalable product development and business practices which resulted in release of multiple new technologies including Power MOSFET, IGBT, Rectifiers including SiC, GaN and in both discrete and module platforms. Deliverable Management System (FCS), Agile optimized for ON.
Developed and implemented power production test development and characterization strategies enabling consistent and accurate data sheets enabling customers to understand our products and accurately compare to competition.
Managed multiple package developments including installing new production lines and driving equipment acquisition processes. Developed and implemented fast prototyping process.
Software programming expertise, C++ and SQL primarily. MS suite of programs; XL, Project, Access.
Example products; Power MOSFET, Ignition IGBT, Rectifiers, IGBT, Power modules, Complex power modules, SiC Diodes, SiC transistors, GaN Transistors, Gate drivers, High side switches.
Fairchild/ON Semiconductor, San Jose Ca, Phoenix Az, 2009 - 2019,
Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX . 1999 - 2009
TI, Branch Manager High Performance Linear Group. 2004 - 2009
Product engineering leader focused on Analog Test strategy and new product development, Managed engineering integration of Burr-Brown and Chipcon acquisitions, transitioning older legacy processes and methodologies into scalable strategies and flexible engineering teams, enabling volume growth of 5x over last three years and reducing customer delinquencies by >90% in the last year. Responsibility size >$1B.
· Conceived of and developed offshore product teams with dozens of engineers in Malaysia, Taiwan, Philippines to support business needs outside of factory priorities, achieving consistent and predictable success improvements in a fast ramp and offload environment.
· Released several thousands of product test solutions, both new product and legacy conversions, covering multiple power and analog technologies.
Transferred 75% of group product lines to scalable test platforms alleviating crippling supply-chain bottlenecks.
· Developed and implemented first ever internal Web based product engineering acceleration training program delivered to more than 100 new engineers in year one.
· Developed and implemented cost savings execution tools to define detailed cost attributes for every device in division resulting in 90% analysis time savings creating improved project accountability.
· Developed strategy and managed engineering teams to convert legacy un-scalable laser probe test solutions to new roadmap Eagle-ESI-Electroglass probe solutions, resulting in 3-10x throughput improvements and significant cost reductions. BIPOLAR, BICMOS and CMOS thin film wafer technologies.
· Developed application, cost and yield systems enabling accurate tracking of capacity impacts and cost for large numbers of simultaneous projects. Well managed projects with clear data resulted in 40-90% real savings to product cost.
· Managed multiple offloads of Fab processes, assembly and test site moves always meeting goals for schedule and continuity of supply.
· Sample product lines; Op-Amps, Instrumentation Amplifiers, Buffers, ADC, DAC, Audio Amps, Temp Sensors, LDO, DC-DC convertors.
TI, Branch Manager System Power/Portable Power Groups. 2000 - 2004
Managed PE integration of Unitrode and Benchmarq acquisitions including assembly offloads to internal factories and Merrimac Fab shutdown and relocation of product lines, technologies and probe solutions to Sherman, TX resulting in continuity of supply, lower costs and increased volume output. Responsibility size >$400M.
Championed and drove acceptance of new analog test platform. Managed test platform shootouts to determine best analog strategy. Developed first multisite Eagle solutions, set programming and hardware standards, created user groups and best practice sharing.
Developed new tools including product compliance and applications workbook process to manage up to hundreds of test conversion projects simultaneously. Achieved typical cost reductions of 60-95% and throughput improvements of 3-20 times.
TI, Product Test Engineer, Power Management Products. 1999 - 2000
Led new Si product development team and developed new test solution for high current LDO.
Sr. Product Engineer, Automotive Products
Developed new products for automotive applications including large scale ramp-ups and production runs utilizing both domestic and international fabrication, assembly and test sites. Supervised and trained technicians and engineers. Responsibility size >$250M.
· Leader and key contributor to teams which qualified and implemented several generations of power analog BICMOS, CMOS technologies including Fab transfers, characterizations, reliability and capability analysis. Power SMARTMOS IC’s, BICMOS, CMOS, BIPOLAR.
· Led and was a key contributor to teams which managed several assembly technology implementations and developments including several custom package and flip chip manufacturing line start-ups including reliability studies, qualifications yield enhancements and optimizations.
· Designed and implemented probe and final test screening flows in domestic and international sites to optimize quality improve yields and eliminate expensive 100% burn in and tri temp testing of IC’s.
· Led development team which replaced Au wire with Cu wire for automotive power IC products for significant cost savings.
· Directly supervised and trained technicians and engineers.
Motorola, Tempe, AZ 1994 – 1999
International Rectifier El Segundo, CA. 1989 – 1994
Senior Product Engineer, Government and Space Products
Held product engineering responsibilities for custom power semiconductor lines (HEXFET, IGBT, and Rectifiers) for military and space applications. Directly supervised and trained technicians and engineers. Responsibility size >$100M.
· Qualified and put in production first JANS RAD HARD power MOSFETs with total dose and SEGR capability. This project included characterization and design studies utilizing particle accelerators at Berkeley, CA. and Brookhaven, NY and test facilities at Rockwell in Fullerton, CA.
· Provided support functions for assembly and test areas including operator and technician training, process optimizations and productivity enhancements for discrete hermetic power products.
· Developed with package vendors multiple industry standard military packages ex; T0254, TO258 ….
· Chairman of Jedec Council 25 Power Discrete Semiconductors. Wrote and published several Jedec test methods and DESC product slash sheets. Qualified lines for compliance to ISO9000, MIL-S-19500,
Product Engineer Military Products
Held product engineering responsibilities for JANTX/TXV or S level devices power rectifier, TVS semiconductor lines for military and space applications. Responsibility size >$100k.
· Released multiple devices and qualified new processes to Mil-S-19500.
· Responsible for NPO/X7R Ceramic Capacitor assembly line, lead attach, mold, mark, test supervising operators and technicians, owned all process control.
Semtech, Newbury Park, CA. 1987-89
Bachelor of Science. Electrical Engineering 1987
California State University, Fullerton, CA
United States Citizen, Security clearance capable.