About MCG LLC

Engineers Working With Engineers

MCG LLC provides engineering services for hardware development - from concept through production. We're not a design agency with project managers between you and the work. You communicate directly with the engineers doing the design, layout, and production coordination. We speak your language, understand your constraints, and deliver hardware that works.

Team & Expertise

Bil Herd - Principal Engineer

Background:

Former Commodore engineer (C128, TED, Plus/4)
40+ years hardware design experience
Mixed-signal, high-speed digital, embedded systems
Speaker, educator, technical contributor

Specialties:

System architecture and component selection
Analog signal conditioning and data acquisition
Power distribution and thermal management
Design for manufacturing and cost optimization

Watch Bil's Hackaday Videos →

Core Capabilities

Hardware Design:

ARM Cortex-M microcontrollers
FPGA/CPLD (Xilinx, Altera/Intel, Lattice)
Power management (buck, boost, LDO)
Precision analog (instrumentation amps, ADCs)

PCB Design:

High-speed digital (DDR3/4, USB 3.x, PCIe)
Mixed-signal layout (analog/digital separation)
Impedance-controlled routing
4-12 layer designs, HDI when needed

Design Tools

CAD/EDA:

Altium Designer (primary platform)
OrCAD / Cadence (legacy support)
KiCad (open-source projects)
LTspice for circuit simulation

Analysis:

Signal integrity simulation
Power integrity analysis
Thermal modeling and CFD
SPICE circuit simulation

3D Printing Capabilities

Equipment:

Multiple industrial FDM printers
Heated chambers (up to 65°C standard)
All-metal hotends (350°C capable)
Build volumes up to 256×256×256mm

Materials Inventory:

Engineering nylons (PA6, PA12, PPA)
Carbon/glass composites (PETG-CF, ABS-CF)
High-temp polymers (PC, ASA)
Climate-controlled dry storage

Our Approach

Design for Manufacturing

Every prototype is designed with production in mind.

Component selection considers availability and lifecycle
PCB layouts optimized for assembly yield
DFM review before fabrication
Manufacturing cost analysis during design
Second-source alternatives identified upfront
Test access and debugging built into layout

Technical Communication

Direct access to the engineers doing the work.

No project managers or account executives in the way
Technical discussions with people who understand the trade-offs
Design reviews with meaningful feedback
Documentation that engineers actually use
Honest assessment of timelines and risks
We speak your language (literally and figuratively)

Engineering Rigor

Analysis and simulation before fabrication.

Power budget calculations before component selection
Thermal analysis for high-power designs
Signal integrity simulation for high-speed interfaces
Impedance calculations and stackup design
Worst-case analysis for critical parameters
Design rule checking before release

Practical Experience

We've made the mistakes so you don't have to.

40+ years of hardware design experience
Debugged designs in production environments
Seen what works (and what doesn't) at scale
Real-world constraints: cost, timeline, manufacturability
Commodity to Commodore to modern embedded systems
Learn from our failures, benefit from our experience

Get in Touch

Project Inquiries

For new projects or general questions:

Email: info@mcgllc.com

Include your project requirements, timeline, and any specific constraints. We'll get back to you within 1-2 business days with an assessment and quote.

Technical Questions

Have a specific technical question?

We're happy to provide brief technical guidance or feasibility feedback. For detailed consultation or analysis, we can discuss a consulting arrangement.

3D Printing Quotes

For 3D printing services:

Send STL files along with material requirements, quantity, and timeline. We'll provide same-day quotes for most requests.

Materials Guide

Looking for material properties?

Check our comprehensive Materials Selection Guide for engineering polymers, thermal properties, and application guidelines.