Nial Stewart Developments provides FPGA design and development services from early architecture definition through to RTL implementation, verification, board bring-up and integration support. We work on both complete systems and focused module-level developments, helping clients define practical specifications, choose the right device family and deliver robust designs that can be maintained and extended.
Our recent work spans Intel, AMD/Xilinx and Efinix FPGAs, with experience ranging from low-cost devices through to higher-performance parts used in communications, control and defence systems. We support projects that require a mixture of high-speed digital design, interface development and close hardware/software integration.
We have particular experience in high-speed communications and interface design, including JESD204B, PCIe, Aurora-compatible 64B/66B links, 8B/10B and 64B/66B proprietary protocols, LVDS custom links, and transceiver-based interfaces running at up to 10 Gbps. We also develop custom protocol wrappers and bridging solutions between different FPGA vendors, including Intel/Xilinx and Efinix/Xilinx interoperability.
We have developed FPGA subsystems around Xilinx Ultrascale+ MPSOC embedded processors, including AXI-based designs, Zynq platforms, Remote Configuration and Flash Update mechanisms, and interfaces to ADCs, DACs, temperature and vibration sensors, I2C, SPI and parallel peripherals.
Where appropriate, we can supply development as custom project work or as reusable IP blocks. Recent NSD IP includes the Aurora 64b/66b interface, initially targeted at Efinix devices, and the FPGA Lock IP, a compact security core for protecting FPGA designs and hardware against cloning or overbuild.
We are used to delivering clean, transferable design packages including RTL, testbenches, build scripts and supporting documentation, and we can tailor coding style, project structure and handover format to match customer requirements. Support can range from a self-contained design drop for smaller developments through to staged deliveries and integration support for larger projects.
If you are still defining requirements, we can also help at the specification stage — from deciding whether an FPGA is the right solution, through to partitioning the system architecture and identifying the most suitable implementation approach.
Often clients don’t just need FPGA development resources, we are able to provide associated Hardware Design too.
