Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works: full comparison for 2026
Quick verdict
Lemberg Solutions (4.8/5) edges ahead of DE Design Works (4.4/5) overall. Lemberg Solutions is the better choice for RTOS and secure-firmware projects needing chip-vendor partnerships. DE Design Works is the stronger option for combined electronics and firmware design for small to mid-size OEM programs. The right choice depends on your project size, budget, and required tech stack.
Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works: head-to-head summary
| Criterion | Lemberg Solutions | DE Design Works |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2007 | 2002 |
| HQ | Lviv, Ukraine (offices in Hamburg, Germany; London, UK; Kraków, Poland) | Chesterfield, MO, USA |
| Team size | 200+ | 11–50 |
| Rating | 4.8 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Primary differentiator | Direct NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip partner status combined with an in-house hardware lab for board bring-up | Firmware as a core service for more than 20 years rather than a capability added onto product design |
| Pricing model | Firmware consulting, design-phase engagement, full development lifecycle, or staff augmentation | Project-based electronics and firmware engagements |
| Min. engagement | Not published | Not published |
| Primary tech stack | MISRA C, FreeRTOS, Zephyr | C, C++, Embedded Linux |
| Industries served | Healthcare (FDA, HIPAA, IEC 62304, ISO 13485), Energy (battery management, EV charging, OCPP), Transportation & Logistics (ISO 26262, IEC 61508), Manufacturing & Industrial IoT (IEC 62443), Consumer Electronics (FCC, CE/RED), Automotive (ISO 26262, ASPICE, ISO/SAE 21434) | Industrial, Consumer electronics, Commercial products |
Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works: overview
Lemberg Solutions
Lemberg Solutions was founded in Lviv in 2007 and has grown to a 200+ person team with additional offices in Hamburg, London, and Kraków. Its firmware practice covers RTOS and bare-metal architecture on FreeRTOS, Zephyr, and Azure RTOS, secure boot and OTA update design, MCU and platform migration, and embedded GUI work in Qt, LVGL, and TouchGFX, backed by direct partnership status with NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip. An in-house lab with oscilloscopes, evaluation kits, and hardware-in-the-loop testing lets the team validate board bring-up rather than outsource it. ISO 9001, ISO 27001, and ISO 13485 certifications, plus MISRA-aware testing, support regulated healthcare, automotive, and industrial clients, and the company transfers full IP and source code rights to the client on delivery.
DE Design Works
DE Design Works was founded in 2002 and operates out of Chesterfield, Missouri with a team in the 11 to 50 employee range. Embedded software and firmware design has been a core service since the company's founding rather than an addition to a broader product-design practice, spanning bootloaders, secure OTA update signing and rollback, and embedded Linux board support package bring-up. The firm also does electronics engineering, PCB design, and prototyping, so a client can source firmware and the surrounding hardware from the same team.
Services and capabilities: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
| Capability | Lemberg Solutions | DE Design Works |
|---|---|---|
| RTOS firmware development | ✓ | ✓ |
| Bare-metal & driver development | ✓ | ✓ |
| Secure boot / OTA firmware updates | ✓ | ✓ |
| MCU & platform migration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Connectivity & IoT protocols | ✓ | ✗ |
| Functional safety / compliance | ✓ | ✗ |
| Embedded AI / on-device inference | ✓ | ✗ |
| Firmware GUI development | ✓ | ✗ |
| Hardware co-design / board bring-up | ✓ | ✓ |
| Staff augmentation | ✓ | ✗ |
Tech stack comparison: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
| Framework / platform | Lemberg Solutions | DE Design Works |
|---|---|---|
| FreeRTOS | ✓ | N/A |
| Zephyr | ✓ | N/A |
| STM32 | ✓ | N/A |
| ARM Cortex-M | ✓ | N/A |
| Embedded Linux | ✓ | ✓ |
| BLE | N/A | N/A |
| MISRA | ✓ | N/A |
| Secure Boot | N/A | ✓ |
| AWS IoT | ✓ | N/A |
| RISC-V | ✓ | N/A |
Pricing comparison: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
| Criterion | Lemberg Solutions | DE Design Works |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum engagement | Not published | Not published |
| Engagement models | Firmware consulting, Design-phase engagement, Full development lifecycle, Staff augmentation | Project-based engineering |
| Rate transparency | Not public | Not public |
| Price tier | Mid-market | Mid-market |
Target audience comparison: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
| Dimension | Lemberg Solutions | DE Design Works |
|---|---|---|
| Best company size | Startup to mid-market | Startup to mid-market |
| Best industries | Healthcare (FDA, HIPAA, IEC 62304, ISO 13485), Energy (battery management, EV charging, OCPP), Transportation & Logistics (ISO 26262, IEC 61508) | Industrial, Consumer electronics, Commercial products |
| Best use cases | OCPP-compliant control firmware for an EV charging station rollout, Firmware code audit of a fielded product ahead of a security certification | Secure OTA update system with signing and rollback for a fielded industrial product, Embedded Linux board support package bring-up for a new hardware revision |
| Typical project type | Firmware consulting | Project-based engineering |
Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works: pros and cons
| Lemberg Solutions | |
|---|---|
| + | Direct partner status with NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip gives chip-level support most firmware vendors have to route through a distributor |
| + | In-house lab with oscilloscopes, evaluation kits, and HIL testing covers board bring-up work that many pure-software firms outsource |
| + | ISO 27001, ISO 9001, and ISO 13485 certifications plus MISRA-aware testing fit regulated medical and industrial clients |
| + | Embedded GUI capability across Qt, LVGL, and TouchGFX is broader than most competitors that only support one framework |
| + | Full IP and source code rights transfer to the client on every engagement |
| - | Does not run mass production in-house, so device manufacturing still requires a separate partner |
| - | Does not handle regulatory certification submissions on the client's behalf, only the supporting technical documentation |
| - | No published minimum engagement figure, so smaller teams need a scoping call before knowing if budget fits |
| DE Design Works | |
|---|---|
| + | Firmware design has been a stated core competency since the company's 2002 founding, not a later add-on service |
| + | Secure OTA update work covering signing, staging, and rollback is a specific, verifiable technical capability |
| + | In-house electronics and PCB design means firmware and hardware decisions happen inside one team |
| + | 23 years of operating history gives a long track record for a firm of its size |
| - | 11 to 50 employees limits concurrent capacity compared to larger regional or global firmware vendors |
| - | Public case studies are limited, so verifying specific past client work requires direct outreach |
| - | No published pricing or minimum engagement threshold |
Who should choose Lemberg Solutions?
A typical fit: OCPP-compliant control firmware for an EV charging station rollout.
Direct NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip partner status combined with an in-house hardware lab for board bring-up. Minimum engagement is not publicly disclosed. Works best with clients in Healthcare (FDA, HIPAA, IEC 62304, ISO 13485), Energy (battery management, EV charging, OCPP), Transportation & Logistics (ISO 26262, IEC 61508), Manufacturing & Industrial IoT (IEC 62443), Consumer Electronics (FCC, CE/RED), Automotive (ISO 26262, ASPICE, ISO/SAE 21434).
Who should choose DE Design Works?
A typical fit: secure OTA update system with signing and rollback for a fielded industrial product.
Firmware as a core service for more than 20 years rather than a capability added onto product design. Minimum engagement is not publicly disclosed. Works best with clients in Industrial, Consumer electronics, Commercial products.
Decision matrix: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
| Your situation | Recommended choice |
|---|---|
| You need full-ownership delivery on a defined project scope | Both offer fixed-price models |
| You need a large dedicated team for an ongoing programme | Check each company's engagement model |
| Your budget is at the lower end | Compare: Lemberg Solutions (Not published) vs DE Design Works (Not published) |
| You need specialist depth in a specific vertical | Lemberg Solutions |
| You need staff augmentation or team extension | Lemberg Solutions |
| You need consulting before committing to a build | Lemberg Solutions |
Use case fit: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
| Use case | Lemberg Solutions fit | DE Design Works fit | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| OCPP-compliant control firmware for an EV charging station rollout | Strong | Limited | Lemberg Solutions |
| Firmware code audit of a fielded product ahead of a security certification | Strong | Strong | Both equally |
| Secure OTA update system with signing and rollback for a fielded industrial product | Limited | Strong | DE Design Works |
| Embedded Linux board support package bring-up for a new hardware revision | Strong | Strong | Both equally |
| Fixed-price build | Limited | Limited | Both equally |
| Staff augmentation | Limited | Limited | Both equally |
Verdict: Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works
Lemberg Solutions (4.8/5) is the stronger overall choice for most Firmware Development projects. Direct NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip partner status combined with an in-house hardware lab for board bring-up.
DE Design Works (4.4/5) is worth a look if you need embedded Linux board support package bring-up for a new hardware revision. If your situation matches that, DE Design Works is a competitive option.
Related comparisons
Lemberg Solutions vs DE Design Works FAQ
Is Lemberg Solutions better than DE Design Works?
Lemberg Solutions (4.8/5) scores higher overall, but "better" depends on your use case. Lemberg Solutions's strongest advantage: direct partner status with NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip gives chip-level support most firmware vendors have to route through a distributor. DE Design Works's strongest advantage: firmware design has been a stated core competency since the company's 2002 founding, not a later add-on service.
How do Lemberg Solutions and DE Design Works differ in pricing?
Lemberg Solutions uses firmware consulting, design-phase engagement, full development lifecycle, or staff augmentation pricing. DE Design Works uses project-based electronics and firmware engagements pricing. Neither firm publishes a full rate card; a discovery call is required for project-specific quotes.
Which is better for enterprise: Lemberg Solutions or DE Design Works?
DE Design Works is the larger team and typically the better enterprise-scale choice. For very large programmes, verify team size and compliance coverage directly with each company before shortlisting.
What are the main differences between Lemberg Solutions and DE Design Works?
Lemberg Solutions's primary differentiator is: direct NXP, STMicroelectronics, and Microchip partner status combined with an in-house hardware lab for board bring-up. DE Design Works's primary differentiator is: firmware as a core service for more than 20 years rather than a capability added onto product design. They also differ in team size (200+ vs 11–50), minimum engagement (Not published vs Not published), and primary industries served (Healthcare (FDA, HIPAA, IEC 62304, ISO 13485), Energy (battery management, EV charging, OCPP) vs Industrial, Consumer electronics).
Verify all details directly with each company before making a decision.