{"id":17927,"date":"2022-12-12T10:53:35","date_gmt":"2022-12-12T15:53:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/verificationhorizons\/?p=17927"},"modified":"2026-03-27T08:50:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T12:50:31","slug":"part-8-the-2022-wilson-research-group-functional-verification-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/verificationhorizons\/2022\/12\/12\/part-8-the-2022-wilson-research-group-functional-verification-study\/","title":{"rendered":"Part 8: The 2022 Wilson Research Group Functional Verification Study"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

IC\/ASIC Resource Trends<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This blog is a continuation of a series of blogs related to the 2022 Wilson Research Group Functional Verification Study<\/a>. In my previous blog<\/a>, I presented trends related to various aspects of design to illustrate growing design complexity. In this blog, I plan to discuss the growing IC\/ASIC project resource trends resulting from growing design complexity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Percentage of Project Time Spent in Verification<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Figure 8-1 shows the percentage of total IC\/ASIC project time spent in verification. You can see two extremes in this graph. In general, projects that spend very little time in verification are typically working on designs with a good deal of existing pre-verified design IP, which is integrated to create a new product. On the other extreme, projects that spend a significant amount of time in verification often have a high percentage of newly developed design IP that must be verified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 8-1. Percentage of IC\/ASIC Project Time Spent in Verification<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Mean Peak Number of Engineers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps one of the biggest challenges today is to control cost and engineering headcount, which means identifying IC\/ASIC design and verification solutions that increase productivity. To illustrate the need for productivity improvement, we discuss the trend in terms of increasing engineering headcount. Fig. 8-2 shows the mean peak number of IC\/ASIC engineers working on a project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 8-2. Mean Number of Peak Engineers per IC\/ASIC Project<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While, on average, the demand for IC\/ASIC design engineers grew at about a 2.7 percent CAGR between 2007 and 2022, the demand for IC\/ASIC verification engineers grew at a 6.2 percent CAGR. Today, on average, across most market segments, we find about a one-to-one ratio in terms of mean peak number of verification and design engineers. However, in some market segments, such as processors, it is not unusual to find a 5-to-1 ratio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where Design Engineers Spend Their Time<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But verification engineers are not the only project stakeholders involved in the verification process. Design engineers spend a significant amount of their time in verification too, as shown in fig. 8-3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 8-3. Where IC\/ASIC Design Engineers Spend Their Time<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The percentage of time design engineers spend performing design versus verification activities has been consistent for the past six years. In 2022, design engineers spent on average 51 percent of their time involved in design activities and 49 percent of their time in verification. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where Verification Engineers Spend Their Time<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fig. 8-4 shows where verification engineers spend their time (on average) for various task. Our study found that IC\/ASIC verification engineers spend more of their time debugging than with any other activity. From a management perspective, this can be a significant challenge when planning future projects\u2019 effort and schedule based on previous projects\u2019 data since debugging is unpredictable and varies significantly between projects. Anything a project can do to optimize the debugging effort is a win for the organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 8-4. Where IC\/ASIC Verification Engineers Spend Their Time<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In my next blog I plan to discuss various IC\/ASIC verification technology adoption trends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quick links to the 2022 Wilson Research Group Study results<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n