Electronics R&D and PCB Design Services, New Zealand
Full-stack hardware engineering from R&D through to volume manufacturing.
A schematic that works on paper and a PCB that works in a customer's hands are two different engineering problems. The gap between them is where most hardware R&D budgets actually get spent, in layout decisions, sourcing constraints, and compliance requirements that only surface once real silicon is on a real board.
MicroCore provides electronics R&D and PCB design services for New Zealand teams building products that have to leave the lab and stay working. We specialise in multi-layer PCB layout, high-speed signalling, and power electronics, with a workflow that integrates requirement mapping and circuit simulation with strategic component sourcing from the outset, not bolted on after the first prototype fails.
R&D and PCB Design Services
Each service below maps to a specific stage between concept and a manufacturable board.
Multi-Layer PCB Layout
Schematic capture through to production-ready Gerbers in KiCad or Altium Designer. Stack-up planning, controlled impedance, and thermal relief handled at layout time, not fixed in a respin.
High-Speed Signalling
Trace routing and stack-up design for signal integrity at speed, differential pairs, length matching, and termination strategy for interfaces that don't tolerate reflections or crosstalk.
Power Electronics Design
Switch-mode and linear power architectures sized against real load profiles, not datasheet best-case. Thermal budget, efficiency, and protection circuitry designed together, not as an afterthought.
EMC/EMI and AEC-Q Compliance
Compliance considered at schematic and layout stage, grounding strategy, filtering, and component qualification, so EMC testing confirms a design decision instead of triggering a redesign.
From Prototype to Production
The same design standards apply to client work and to MicroCore's own product line.
Ruggedised systems do not happen by adding margin at the end. They happen when EMC, thermal, and mechanical constraints are part of the schematic from the first draft. That is how we approach every custom electronics project, whether it is a first prototype or a design already in the field that needs a second-generation respin for volume manufacturing.
Hardware built for MicroCore's own product line goes through the identical process: an IP67 marine MPPT controller and a wireless CAN-FD bridge, both in design and working through EMC, thermal, and enclosure constraints now. The engineering judgements we make on a client board are the ones we are applying to our own.
Start a Hardware Design Project
New board, second-generation respin, or a design that failed compliance.
The scoping form asks nine questions about the product, the environment it has to survive, and the volumes you are planning for. Existing schematics and test reports are welcome. We reply within two working days.
We design from Auckland and work remotely with teams in Australia and further afield, including the manufacturing coordination that follows a board into volume.