Issue link: https://resources.pcb.cadence.com/i/1545328
When Your Component Is Unavailable: Alternates, Last Buys, and Counterfeits 9 www.cadence.com 4. Verify the result against the minimum order quantity on the LTB offer. If the MOQ exceeds the calculated requirement, negotiate where possible, but plan for the possibility that the MOQ reflects the manufacturer's minimum economical production run and may not be reducible. Storage life note: before committing to a multi-year last-time buy for moisture-sensitive components, confirm the storage life per J-STD-033. If the storage period exceeds the dry pack shelf life, factor in the cost of baking and re-bagging the components before use. Some components may require re-testing after extended storage to confirm electrical param- eters have not drifted. 3.4 When the LTB Window Closes Before You Are Ready If the last-time buy window closes before the quantity analysis is complete, the options narrow considerably. The secondary market, independent distributors and brokers, may carry remaining stock, but at a significant price premium and with the counterfeit risk covered in Section 4. For components where secondary market sourcing is unavoidable, the evaluation framework in Section 4.4 applies. For products in active production where the LTB miss forces an immediate redesign, prioritize the effort by the criticality of the component. A passthrough connector that has no alternate may require a PCB spin. A standard voltage regulator can often be replaced with a parametric equivalent from the same or a different manufacturer with minimal validation effort. Do not treat all components in the same EOL situation as requiring the same level of redesign response. 3.5 Instant Obsolescence: When There Is No LTB Window Approximately 35 percent of electronic components that reach obsolescence do so through instant obsolescence: the component transitions from active production to unavailable with no last-time buy window and no advance PCN. There is no final production run to order from. Source: Datalynq, Rising Obsolescence in Electronic Components, 2024. Figure 2: In approximately 35 percent of cases, components transition directly from active production to unavailable with no advance notice and no last time buy window. NRND status is the only actionable early warning in either path. Instant obsolescence is driven by semiconductor manufacturing economics. As AI, high-performance computing, and advanced node demand consume fab capacity, older node components become commercially unviable to continue producing. When demand falls below the threshold for a production run, some OCMs discontinue immediately rather than managing a transition. The AI-driven acceleration of semiconductor node transitions has made this increasingly common since 2022.