Embedded Systems Engineering Consultant, New Zealand
Architecture-level strategy and hands-on technical guidance for mixed-signal hardware, software, and firmware.
Most hardware problems that reach us didn't start as hardware problems, they started as architecture decisions made without the right expertise in the room. The MCU gets picked before the power budget is understood. A communication protocol gets chosen before anyone has asked what the field environment actually demands. By the time the prototype is on a bench, those early calls are locked into the PCB.
MicroCore works as an embedded systems engineering consultant for New Zealand teams who need that expertise without hiring a full-time engineer. We get involved from the first architecture conversation, MCU or MPU selection, power budgeting, communication network design, through to the technical decisions that determine whether a product survives its first year in the field.
Consultancy Services
Each engagement is scoped around a specific technical decision, not a broad retainer.
System Architecture Strategy
High-level technical direction before a single component is chosen. We map requirements against real-world constraints, thermal, power, ingress, compliance, and produce an architecture that survives contact with the field, not just the bench.
MCU / MPU Selection
Choosing between a microcontroller and a microprocessor is a decision with years of downstream consequences, toolchain, OS, power draw, cost at volume. We evaluate against your actual workload, not vendor marketing.
Power Budget Planning
Battery-powered and low-power field devices live or die on the power budget set at design time. We model current draw across every operating state and size the power system to match, not guess.
Communication Network Design
CAN bus, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or a mix, the right network topology depends on range, reliability, and what the device needs to talk to. We design the protocol stack and network architecture around the deployment environment, not a default assumption.
Who This Is For
Teams that need embedded expertise on a specific decision, not a headcount.
This service fits startups building their first hardware product without an in-house embedded engineer, and established manufacturers who need a second opinion before committing a design to production. If you're picking between an MCU or MPU, balancing a power budget, or designing a communication network and want the call made by someone who has shipped automotive, aerospace, and medical-grade hardware, this is the engagement.
You get the engineer on the call, in the design review, and on the other end of the support email. That keeps the feedback loop short when a decision needs revisiting mid-design.
Start an Architecture Conversation
Bring the constraints, not a finished spec. The earlier the call, the cheaper the decision.
The scoping form asks nine questions about the problem, the constraints, and where the project currently sits. Answering it takes a few minutes and means the first call starts on the engineering rather than on background. We reply within two working days.
We are based in Auckland and work remotely with teams in Australia and further afield. Most engagements run remotely, with on-site visits where the hardware needs hands on it.