End of Life Converters | Obsolete Integrated Circuits

Avoid Full Redesigns with End of Life Converters for Integrated Circuits

When a chip reaches its end of life, it doesn’t have to take your entire system with it. End of life converters (EOL converters) offer a practical way to keep your legacy hardware running without reengineering your entire board. These compact adapter solutions can bridge the gap between discontinued components and what’s available on the market now.

As processing power continues to double roughly every two years, manufacturers retire older chips at a faster pace. This trend, known as Moore’s Law, drives innovation but also shortens the commercial lifespan of many integrated circuits. For engineers managing long-life systems, that means more frequent component obsolescence and increased pressure to find workable replacements. At Summit Electronics, we help engineers, procurement teams, and manufacturers avoid redesigns by offering solutions tailored to obsolete integrated circuits. From footprint adapters to logic signal converters, we provide a path forward that avoids delays, cost overruns, and wasted resources.

Why Redesigns Are Often Avoidable

Redesigning a circuit board takes time, budget, and resources that many companies can’t spare. For long-life systems in defense, aerospace, and other industries, modifying a design can also create new problems with certification or safety compliance. What often triggers a redesign isn’t the system; it’s a single chip. When that chip becomes unavailable, engineers are forced to either find a modern equivalent or build a workaround. The challenge is that the new chip doesn’t always match the old one in footprint or electrical behavior. That’s where the EOL converters we offer come into play.

How End of Life Converters Work

These converters serve as a bridge between the past and the present.

Footprint Conversion: An adapter board changes the pin layout of a discontinued chip to match a new one, letting it drop into the existing circuit.
Signal Logic Conversion: Some converters also translate signal levels, voltages, or logic types to ensure compatibility.

The result is a clean swap that avoids changes to the surrounding board layout. It keeps the form, fit, and function of the original design intact without months of engineering rework.

Obsolete Integrated Circuits and System Longevity

Obsolete ICs are a constant challenge in industries that rely on long-lasting systems. As chip manufacturers shift to newer technologies, older components are discontinued, often with little notice. That leaves engineers scrambling for replacements to avoid production delays or system failures.

Our EOL IC converters provide a reliable solution. They allow newer, available components to function in place of retired ones without altering the surrounding hardware. This keeps established designs in service, protects certified systems from forced redesign, and helps companies avoid major disruptions.

For any operation built around legacy components, maintaining performance over time requires access to solutions like these. End of life converters extend system longevity and give you more control over your supply chain.

Use Cases in Aerospace, Defense, and Industrial Electronics

In many industries, redesign is not just expensive, it’s unrealistic.

Military hardware must meet strict form and function specs
Aerospace systems go through years of testing and certification
Industrial automation gear often stays in service for decades

When a component reaches end of life, ripping and replacing the entire board isn’t feasible. That’s why engineers rely on our end of life converters to extend the life of critical systems. These adapters make it possible to use widely available chips in specialized or certified equipment.

Choose Summit Electronics to Keep Your Systems Running

We don’t just supply components, we help you solve problems.

We specialize in sourcing obsolete integrated circuits and providing the hardware solutions that make them usable again. Our adapter options include footprint converters, signal logic adapters, and drop-in replacements for discontinued chips.

We back everything with a global supplier network, full traceability, and quality control standards that meet industry requirements. Whether you’re supporting an aerospace control board or a factory automation module, our team can help you keep it running.

We also work directly with engineers to create custom converter solutions when needed. That’s part of why we’re trusted across defense, industrial, and transportation sectors.

FAQs: End of Life Converters

What are EOL IC converters?

They are adapter boards that allow modern ICs to replace discontinued ones without changing the original circuit design.

Are they compatible with all circuit board types?

Most standard PCBs can accommodate converters, but exact compatibility depends on layout and available space.

Do they require testing or certifications?

Converters should be tested like any new component integration. In regulated industries, they may also require validation.

Can you help source obsolete ICs?

Yes. We specialize in hard-to-find, end-of-life, and legacy components and can supply them directly or provide alternatives.

Let Us Keep Your Systems Running

You don’t have to redesign your circuit to deal with a discontinued chip. End of life converters give you a fast, reliable way to adapt without compromise.

Contact Summit Electronics today to discuss your application, get sourcing support, or explore adapter solutions for your legacy components. Click here or give us a call toll-free at (800) 226-6960.

About Summit Electronics

Summit Electronics is a global distributor of current, allocated, and obsolete electronic components. We specialize in hard-to-find parts like IGBT transistors, MOSFETs, capacitors, and integrated circuits used in critical systems across aerospace, defense, oil and gas, rail, and manufacturing. For over 20 years, we’ve been the trusted source for engineers and buyers needing fast, reliable access to legacy electronic parts.