-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- design007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueLevel Up Your Design Skills
This month, our contributors discuss the PCB design classes available at IPC APEX EXPO 2024. As they explain, these courses cover everything from the basics of design through avoiding over-constraining high-speed boards, and so much more!
Opportunities and Challenges
In this issue, our expert contributors discuss the many opportunities and challenges in the PCB design community, and what can be done to grow the numbers of PCB designers—and design instructors.
Embedded Design Techniques
Our expert contributors provide the knowledge this month that designers need to be aware of to make intelligent, educated decisions about embedded design. Many design and manufacturing hurdles can trip up designers who are new to this technology.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - design007 Magazine
How to Successfully Purchase PCBs
June 8, 2015 | NCAB GroupEstimated reading time: 1 minute
How do you go about purchasing reliable and durable PCBs at the lowest possible cost? A key success factor is to provide the prospective suppliers with accurate and clear specifications, and to keep a close eye on the quality of the boards once they are in production. This in turn requires the parties involved to establish and maintain a close and efficient dialogue to ensure that the process builds on correct and relevant information.
PCBs are not standard components and thus not an easy product to purchase. The cost is determined to a large extent, by the complexity of the design.
”This means that factors determining the costs of a new PCB are established at a very early stage, long before the buyer has started asking for quotations from prospective suppliers. The major proportion of the cost is determined already at the engineering and design phase,”says Bo Andersson, technical manager at the NCAB Group. The best way of reducing costs is to think in terms of volume right from the start. You should start gathering appropriate data from the EMS and PCB suppliers at the design stage; this to enable the boards to be optimized for series production, taking into account what they are they going to be used for.
”There is a great deal to be gained by looking twice at such factors as the material and technical specifications, for example track and gap, tolerances and aspect ratios. It can, in some cases be extremely difficult and costly to put right design solutions that haven’t been optimised before they go into production. For example, an unnecessarily high aspect ratio affects so many parameters that it can be extremely time consuming to correct. I know of a case where it took a year to put right design shortcomings, since almost all the PCBs needed to be redesigned,” says Andersson.
”Issues that may lead to unnecessary costs can often be corrected. It is important to familiarize yourself with and get a firm grasp of the specific requirements, and then work to achieve those requirements,” he observes.
Suggested Items
Real Time with... IPC APEX EXPO 2024: IPC Government Relations Holds Lawmakers Accountable
04/16/2024 | Real Time with...IPC APEX EXPOThe IPC Government Relations team is constantly educating Congress and the executive branch about the importance of a robust domestic electronics manufacturing industry. As Richard Cappetto explains, the GR team is focused on proactive strategies, workforce policies, and sustainability, as well as the significance of apprenticeship programs, President Biden's executive order, and employer incentives. Also discussed is the PCB Act, its investment program, tax incentive, and DoD's understanding of supply chain risk.
Catching Up With Chasom Electronics
04/16/2024 | Dan Beaulieu, D.B. Management GroupI recently met with Chasom Electronics’ founding director Anil Kumar. Chasom offers a unique menu of services for companies looking to extend their technology capabilities on a short- or long-term basis. Read on to learn about this very unique service company.
Marcy's Musings: The Growing Industry
04/16/2024 | Marcy LaRont -- Column: Marcy's MusingsAfter decades of steady decline in the U.S. and Europe, the PCB industry is finally growing, especially in China Plus One countries. The U.S. for example, which seemed to have abdicated its title as the world leader in innovating high-technology cutting-edge manufacturing processes, is now in a race to regain what it lost and then some. The PCB fabrication industry is growing in the West, thanks to DoD funding, the CHIPS and Science Act, and hopefully, the passing of HR 3249, the Printed Circuit Board and Substrates Act.
PCB007 Magazine April 2024 — The Growing Industry Issue
04/15/2024 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamAfter more than two decades of steady decline in the U.S., the PCB industry is finally growing in the West thanks to the CHIPS and Science Act, DoD funding, and hopefully, the passing of HR 3249, the Printed Circuit Board and Substrates Act. The U.S. is now in a race to regain what was lost and then some. But what does “growing” look like for the organizations that have received DoD funding, and for the rest of us? How can we sustain this growth?
Dan’s Biz Bookshelf: Seeing the How
04/11/2024 | Dan Beaulieu -- Column: Dan's Biz BookshelfI might say this about a lot of books, but this one is a must-read. The author addresses a whole new way of doing business. It’s not like one day we woke up and there it was, a new way to get a ride (Uber), a new home away from home (Airbnb), a new way to get groceries (Instacart) and (DoorDash), and so on. The flood gates have opened, and there’s more to come.