The ECL group, which debuted here this week at the Embedded Systems Conference, said it will use a uniform set of criteria to evaluate the compiler quality, documentation, support and ease of use of developer kits.

A spin-off of the non-profit EEMBC (EDN Embedded Microprocessor Benchmark Consortium), ECL will be a for-profit organization. One of its services, called ECL First Impressions, will cost $20,000 and take from 10 to 12 weeks to complete. First Impressions is a one-time product analysis that identifies bugs and other areas needing improvement in hardware and software used for programming and evaluating chips. A more in-depth service, called Deep Impressions, costs from $10,000 to $12,000 per month, and is expected to take roughly nine months to complete.

ECL provides a detailed report to users of the services. BOPS, Improv Systems, Texas Instruments, TriMedia Technologies and Wind River Systems have already used the First Impressions service, ECL said.

As ECL gains more participants, it plans to create a ranking of companies whose products have been evaluated, said Alan R. Weiss, ECL chairman and chief technology officer. The group is now accepting reservations for its First Impressions program, Weiss said.