| EDA
Consortium Export Group News
An Export
Control Success Story! All EDA software products are controlled
for export from the United States under the Export Administration Regulations,
administered by the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS).
The scope of controls and associated export licensing requirements depend on the
classification assigned the product by BIS, in coordination with other countries
that implement parallel export controls under a multinational framework known
as the Wassenaar Arrangement. Prior to 1991, EDA companies of that time
had to apply to BXA (as BIS was then known) for export licenses to ship software
to any foreign destination. In the early 1990s, BIS reclassified most EDA software
products from the restrictive Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) 3D003
to EAR99. Items classified EAR99 are termed "decontrolled", meaning
they can be exported freely with restrictions only to Terrorist Organization &
State destinations. This decontrol remained in place until 2001, when a
"clarification" approved by the Wassenaar Arrangements changed the language
of ECCN 3D003. Until that time, 3D003 controlled software "having design
rules". The new language stated that 3D003 controlled software "having
or using design rules." This change raised confusion and concerns about an
unintentional recontrol of EDA software. The EDA Consortium was made aware
of this issue in May, 2001, and within a week the EDAC Export Committee was born.
The Committee comprised employees of several companies who were knowledgeable
on export compliance matters, plus an attorney in Washington with experience representing
the EDA industry before BIS. Within 6 weeks, we were in Washington lobbying BIS
for a correction to this language, which would become law in January 2002. Our
lobbying effort encompassed two stages An initial stage entailed
educating licensing officials within BIS, and the Defense and State Departments
on the EDA industry, historical controls & decontrols on the industry, and
what levels of controls made sense. We obtained agreement at that time that the
new language was confusing. We also obtained a letter from BIS stating their intent
was not to recontrol EDA, however the new 3D003 language was implemented on schedule
in January 2002. Thus began the 2nd phase of lobbying. As classification
language is coordinated at annual meetings of the Wassenaar Arrangement, we successfully
lobbied the US officials to submit a re-written 3D003 classification to Wassenaar.
The new language updated what had been 12 year old technical terms ("schematic
capture", "pattern generation tape"), and clearly identified that
controls historically and rightly should be on "'Physics-based' simulation
"software" specially designed for the "development" of lithographic,
etching or deposition processes for translating masking patterns into specific
topographical patterns in conductors, dielectrics or semiconductor materials." "The
US delegation accepted our proposal and invited Committee members to pitch the
proposal directly to the Wassenaar Arrangement at their technical conferences
in April and September, 2003. Wassenaar approved the changes at their Plenary
session in December, and the new classification language became law in the US
on April 29, 2004! We cannot underestimate this achievement. Getting acceptance
and adoption in the first year of the process is an uncommon feat! Credit goes
to our attorney, Roz Thomsen (Thomsen & Burke, LLP, Baltimore, MD) for his
guidance in understanding the process and players; to Pam Parrish, Director of
the EDA Consortium, who coordinated the Committee members from Cadence, Synopsys
and Mentor Graphics to work across company boundaries, focusing on a result that
would have significant and positive impact for the entire industry. The
new 3D003 'Physics-based' simulation "software" specially
designed for the "development" of lithographic, etching or deposition
processes for translating masking patterns into specific topographical patterns
in conductors, dielectrics or semiconductor materials.
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Technical
Note: 'Physics-based' in 3.D.3. means using computations to determine a sequence
of physical cause and effect events based on physical properties (e.g., temperature,
pressure, diffusion constants and semiconductor materials properties). -
Note 1. Libraries, design attributes or associated data for the design of semiconductor
devices or integrated circuits are considered as "technology". What
this means The EDA industry produces "model based"
simulation software, not "Physic's Based" as controlled by 3D003. Most
products in our industry are now classified EAR99 or 3D991. These classifications
restrict exports only to Terrorist Organizations and States.
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