They should get quality work with a quick turnaround time while having someone they can talk to who helps ensure they stay competitive against other companies. However, knowing what they need from the PCBs for their circuit designs doesn’t always mean it’s easy to immediately find the right company to step into their corner. We’ll share a few tips to make that process easier.

Know the Right Questions That Should Be Asked

When a person chooses someone to create their PCBs, it’s essential to ask them questions to be sure they can handle their needs. Sometimes the answers to the questions can be found on company websites and reviews. Other times individuals might need to contact the company on their own and ask the questions that are important to them. Having answers will provide peace of mind that they’re choosing the right company for their needs.

How Much Experience Does the Company Have?

Experience is important for any product or service that someone chooses to pay for, whether that’s a car repair or PCBs to fit their circuit designs. When it comes to printed circuit boards, a manufacturer’s experience is essential to ensure customers get boards that are right for their needs. Knowing how much experience a company has will give insight into how many resources they have and what amount of knowledge is available. It also shows competence if a PCB company has been in business for a long time. That means they have adapted to the times and continuously put out great products.

What Certifications Does the Company Have?

This is another question that can speak to how qualified a company is with PCBs for a person’s circuit design. Certifications typically require a third party to verify that the company complies with certain standards or requirements. For example, IPC creates standards with regards to PCBs and industries related to electronics manufacturing. Any company someone decides to work with should be capable of meeting the standard required by their products and industry. This includes broad regulations as well as those that apply only to their industry. The best choice is a company that has experience working with other people in the same industry.

How Does the Company Stand Out?

This might seem like a broad question that could have any number of answers, but it can help people narrow down the right business to help with their product. This is especially the case when they have a few options for companies that offer all the services and products that they need. This question can be as simple as asking what makes the business different from others or can delve into what value-added services are provided. For example, Advanced Circuits can help with their circuit designs by providing free PCB design and file check software which will save customers money and time.

Important Considerations When Choosing a PCB Company

The reality is that there are tons of companies that provide PCBs and many of them also have services to assemble and create circuit boards that match specific needs. This can make it a challenge to choose between them since some companies may appear to be quite similar. However, there are a few things people can look at early in the search to get a grasp on which company may best fit their needs.

Types of Products Provided

The first thing for people to check is what products are offered by a company to be sure they even provide what is needed. If the company specializes in the needed products, that’s even better. Once they know the products exist, they can find out more about the pricing and quality of the products.

For instance, what kind of PCBs are available? These can range from rigid to flexible and rigid-flex. They might be metal core, aluminum backed, or hybrid board. People can ask about which substrates are used in the board. They can also look into the quality and consider the prices and how they stack up to the competitors. All of these things can help with the decision.

Services Available

In addition to products, people should consider services that they might need. If the company offers everything they need, they won’t have to go between businesses to get their product ready. Some of the services that should be considered are:

• Prototyping – Ability to create prototype PCBs before moving into production so customers can reduce costs and timeframe through thorough testing.

• Layout and Design Services – These can speed up their production by offering a complete design or providing software to make someone’s own designs.

• File Review – File reviews can help by ensuring a design is free of errors and that the company has all of the needed components to start creating its PCBs.

• SMT Prototype Stencils – Stencils are laser cut and made of stainless steel foil to ensure the solder is placed in the right areas of the PCB. The stencil helps with accurate circuit designs.

Other services that can be helpful include DXF to Gerber conversion, panelization, and PCB design for manufacturing services.

Accessible Capabilities

It’s also important to be sure the company is capable of offering what is needed for a customer’s PCBs. This includes everything from being capable of handling the size of their order to having a certain lead time and offering the right layers on a PCB. Other things to consider are the surface finish options available, the via options, specs and tolerances, and other things that they prioritize with their circuit designs. It might take some time to get answers to all these things, but once someone does, they will know whether a company is right for them.

Advanced Circuits is the third-largest manufacturer of printed circuit boards in the United States and offers excellent customer service and reliability. The company also offers a variety of services to customers like free PCB layout software (PCB Artist) and a free PCB file check. Those who want a streamlined PCB company in their corner can get in touch with us to learn more.

Printed circuit board (PCB) designers are tasked with creating innovative, functional, and efficient designs for boards to be utilized in a myriad number of products. Some may be very basic designs such as for simple appliances or standard calculators, while others may be significant technological masterpieces that become part of rocket guidance systems, automotive controls, or leading-edge smartphone components.

Whatever the PCB design project, the end result of the design phase is most often a series of Gerber files, that will be utilized by the manufacturer of the board to actually complete the fabrication. Those Gerber files must be complete and accurate to enable the board providers to manufacture boards that perform as the designer intended without failures or design flaws. These problems could result in the inability to fabricate the board without going back to the designer with questions or to work out basic design problems.

Gerber files are the ‘gold standard’ in PCB design for passing manufacturing information details to the fabricator of the boards. Multiple Gerber files are typically required for a single PCB, with separate files for describing individual board layers, silkscreen details, and much more.

Problems with Gerber Files

Once PCB design is completed and Gerber files have been generated for the manufacturer, there are a number of potential problems inherent in the process:

Missing files – CAD programs are not all created equal. Some create individual files for every type of data and every board layer. It is the designer’s responsibility to ensure that every file needed to manufacture the board to design specifications is prepared for the manufacturer. Not only does the designer need to make sure all files needed for fabrication are provided, it has been known to happen that designers neglect to send Gerber files at all. Be sure to supply manufacturers with the full complement of files needed to produce the boards successfully.

Zero byte files – Gerber files could be created that do not contain the information needed for fabrication. This is easily checked by the designer through validating the file sizes in the file directory. Zero-length files are a give-away that something is missing from the creation of the Gerber files.

Formats – Gerber files can be generated in 274D and 274X formats. The preferred format is 274X as it includes embedded aperture information within the file contents. 274D requires a manual step by the fabricator to enter aperture information, creating an opportunity for errors in manufacturing.

File labeling – incomplete or confusing file naming can generate confusion for the manufacturer, resulting in production delays or even mistakes in the board produced. This can be costly and time-consuming. Detailed labeling can avoid such confusion and delays.

Missing aperture lists – when 274X format is utilized the aperture information is contained within the Gerber files. But using 274D requires that the designer supply aperture list information in order for the manufacturer to understand the designer’s specifications.

Missing Excellon drill file or tool list – this information is critical to the fabricator to understand where the PCB holes should be placed, sizes of the holes, and specifically what tool should be used to drill them. Tool information can be included within the drill file, but could also be provided on a separate file. Providing this information eliminates the need for guesswork, manual entry, or delays in manufacturing.

Inner clearances that are not sufficient – providing sufficient clearances can help ensure that drilling will not will not cause shorts to inner copper layers of the board by exceeding the minimum clearance between a drill hole and the adjacent inner layer copper.

Not designing for manufacturing – the most creative and technically innovative PCB design is of no use if it cannot be manufactured. Consideration for fabrication techniques and capabilities is an integral part of successful PCB design.

Avoiding Gerber File Problems

There are a number of steps PCB design individuals and firms can take to avoid or at least minimize problems with Gerber files:

• Document and implement best practices that include checking for file lengths, completeness of information being sent to fabricators, and any documentation the supplier requires. Peer reviews are useful in catching some problems or omissions, as well.

• Utilize sophisticated computer aided design (CAD) software in the design process. This will catch any obvious errors in design even before the Gerber files are created.

• Validate files with a Gerber file viewer. This allows the designer to validate the actual size of the final board, check pin outs to verify pin orderings, and even print the board to scale for size confirmation.

• CAD software – utilize up-to-date software that provides at least basic analysis of the design before creating Gerber files for fabrication.

• PCB layout – software is available at economical prices (even at no charge) that is specifically designed for printed circuit board design. Such tools streamline layout design and help avoid errors in manufacturing.

• Design for Manufacturing (DFM) – DFM tools can help PCB designers ensure that their designs will be compatible with computer aided manufacturing (CAM) software utilized in the actual fabrication of the boards.

Streamlining the PCB Creation Process

By combining the use of design best practices and self-checks of Gerber files before sending them to manufacturers, designers can speed the process and avoid many delays. By implementing sophisticated tools such as CAD, PCB layout software, and DFM products, designers greatly reduce the potential for manufacturing errors and delays.

Electronics are taking center stage in a continuously growing variety of industries. From computers and high-performance servers that drive web sites and global enterprises to machine tools utilized throughout industrial sectors to smartphones and tablets, printed circuit boards (PCBs) have become critical elements of day-to-day living. Designers of PCBs are challenged on a daily basis to apply creativity and technology for developing boards that perform critical functions for products, while still controlling cost and meeting tight project schedules.

Designing PCBs is only one process in the development of the end product. Creation of a prototype that can confirm the desired functionality of the designer’s efforts is critical to the success of the end product. Only after a prototype has been thoroughly tested and subjected to all anticipated environments can the PCB be considered ready for production.

Manufacturing of the prototype and production models requires sourcing a manufacturer that can efficiently and cost-effectively manufacture the PCB to the desired specifications. With the growth of the PCB industry the number of manufacturers has also grown significantly in recent years. How does a PCB design find the right fabrication company to partner with?

What Are PCB Company Considerations?

When beginning the search for a PCB company, there are a many factors that contribute to the selection decision:

• Quality – what level of quality will the company provide? This may not be quite so critical for an initial prototype when only the conceptual function is to be validated, but if the plan is to utilize the same company for a final production version it will be essential to the success of the production PCB. Fabricators vary greatly in quality for quick-turn, low-cost PCBs and quality is often reflected in the results. The old adage “you get what you pay for” may very well be the message here.
• Testing – will the company perform complete testing of the fabricated PCB before shipping, or will they assume that responsibility falls to the designer? Testing by the PCB company should be considered part of their service.
• Responsiveness – does the manufacturer guarantee turn-around time for prototypes and finished products? This can be extremely important for tight project schedules when developing prototypes, and also for the end product when delivery schedules for customers are in the balance.
• Flexibility – PCB design specifications may include specific instructions for the fabrication process. Does the prospective manufacturer facilitate such detailed notifications for creating PCBs, or are they more locked into their specific fabrication techniques such that not all detailed written fabrication notes may be acceptable?
• Delivery schedules – can PCB companies deliver to your project schedules for prototypes and manufacture your anticipated production volumes on time? Off-shore manufacturing may be cost-effective, but delivery schedules can be impacted by time differences (inability to reach the person needed when necessary), shipping lead times, and language barriers.
• Experience – is the proposed fabricator experienced with the development tools utilized in designing the boards? Compatibility with the design tools will enhance the likelihood that the finished product will perform as designed.
• Certifications – along with experience with design technologies utilized and manufacturing techniques, can the PCB company certify the fabricated PCBs for any requirements that may be applicable such as UL 94V-0 fire resistance, if needed?
• Support – support is absolutely critical to the success of manufactured PCBs. Prospective manufacturers should have experienced engineers on their staffs to work with their customers’ designers in trouble-shooting design problems, often even before manufacturing begins.
• Technology – when a complex and advanced PCB design is being implemented, does the vendor have the manufacturing expertise to accommodate such PCB development? Not all fabricators utilize the same high levels manufacturing technology.
• Materials – verify with a fabricator that the materials to be used in building PCBs meet all specifications of the designer. Some could be utilizing low-cost components or may substitute lower-cost.
• Longevity – how long has the supplier been in business? This lends credence to the PCB company and its success in the market, including satisfied customers.

Making the Right PCB Company Selection

 Another issue worth considering is whether the manufacturer is familiar with the same file formats that the designer plans to furnish for the fabrication process. Familiarity with the file formats and technology used in the design phase provides additional assurance that the resulting PCBs will meet the designed functionality.

Taking each of these considerations into account before proceeding with selection of a PCB company will go a long way toward establishing a long-term relationship with a reliable supplier. Additionally, it pays to do a little research on the prospective company in the way of checking for complaints against the company or researching the company’s financial status.