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I just read an interesting article by Jason Bowden over on Planet Analog. In this article -- A Bad Case of Cost 'Frusfusion' -- Jason recounts his experiences of project costs increasing due to ineffective cost-cutting exercises by managers.

Some of Jason's stories leave you not knowing whether to laugh or cry. For example, paying more to have PCB layouts performed by third-party companies than it would cost to purchase a couple of Altium Designer licenses and do the work in-house. The thing to remember here that it's not just the original layout -- you also have to account for the amount of time (read "project delays") required to identify, communicate, and implement any desired re-spin modifications.

Another example Jason gives is when he was finally allowed to purchase a license for PCB layout software, but he wasn't permitted to pay to attend a two-week training course, which left him spending six months learning how to most effectively use the layout tool on his own.

Click here to see Jason's original article, then come back here to share any similar experiences you've had with weird, wonderful, and -- ultimately, expensive -- cost-cutting exercises foisted on you by managers who should know better.