A PCB or printed circuit board is one of the most used components in the electronics industry. As a matter of fact, manufacturing any electronic device, gadget, or machine isn’t possible without PCBs. As a result, if you are in the electronics industry and deal with electronic products, you need to employ a dependable printed circuit board manufacturer.
No doubt, you can’t do all the things in-house, if you want to concentrate on your indispensable things. You should outsource things that you can in order to become a successful business owner in the industry.
A printed circuit board offers mechanical support and electrically connects the electronic parts making use of a conductive pathway made by etching copper clad. If the PCB does not have components it is known as raw PCB and if the PCB has components assembled on it, it is known as printed circuit board assembly.
In the present time because of the growing competition in the market and technological enhancements, single-layered PCBs and double-layered PCBs have become very inexpensive. However, the prices of multilayered PCBs are still high owing to the costly setup.
As the name suggests, single layered PCBs has just 1 layer which is made of copper. In the same way, double-layered PCBs have 2 layers made of copper. And multilayered PCBs have 3 or more than 3 layers made of copper.
The material used for PCB conductive layer is more often than not is of thin copper foil. Further, the base is created of glass epoxy i.e. an insulating material.
You will find a lot of material types in the market, some of them are given below:
- FR2
- FR4
- FR6
- Rogers 4350
- Nelco
- Taconic & more…
The most used methods to manufacture PCBs are given below:
- Copper etching
- Printed circuit board milling
- Screen printing
Let’s discuss some important factors about these manufacturing methods:
- Copper etching and screen printing are methods utilized for producing PCB in bulk.
- PCB milling is used for prototype manufacturing of PCB. If you do know what prototype means, then you should know that it is used for research and development objective of a new product or present product customization. Typically, the prototypes are produced in limited numbers.
- More often than not, the large scale PCB providers use the copper etching process.
- When it comes to manufacturing low-cost PCBs, companies generally make use of the screen printing method. This method saves dollars. However, the downside with this method is that it does not provide high-quality boards.
- When we talk about the PCB milling method, it is not so common with bulk production of PCBs. But, this method offers high quality printed circuit boards. Further, when you want quick turn PCBs, you can make use of this method. PCB milling method saves you a lot of time.
Some Considerations When Choosing a Printed Circuit Board Manufacturer
You need to consider a few things when it comes to choosing a trustworthy printed circuit board manufacturer.
1. Core Competencies and Capabilities
Foremost, find out the core competencies and capabilities of the manufacturer. Make sure they can fulfill your requirements. For instance, if you are looking for multilayered layer PCBs, then check whether the manufacturer deals in multilayered boards.
2. Facilities and Equipment
The printed circuit board manufacturer you are thinking to zero down your search on should have state of the art facilities and equipment. Make sure they have all the right and latest machines and equipment in place to provide you with best in class services.
3. Manpower
Make certain the printed circuit board manufacturer has skilled and trained manpower that can provide you with high quality products and services along with timely completion of your project.
4. High Quality
Not to mention, quality is one of the most things to look for when it comes to a choosing printed circuit board manufacturer. A fine and easy to find out whether you are going to get high quality products and services is by checking the manufacturer’s QMS or also known as a quality management system.
Other factors to determine the manufacturer’s quality is staff training, preventive measures, quality policy and manual, and more.
5. Timely Delivery
Another factor to look for is timely delivery. Not all PCB manufacturers can fulfill the needs of their clients on time. Therefore, get in touch with their former and present clients and note down what they have to say about the manufacturing company you are planning to zero down your search upon.
Without a doubt, the success of your project greatly depends on the timely delivery. As a result, it is not considered wise to disregard this crucial factor. Make sure the manufacturer has a long and successful history of accomplishing projects within the estimated time.
6. Price
You can either go for an international manufacturer or a local manufacturer depending upon your budget and convenience. Each type of manufacturer has its own pros and cons. If you go for an international manufacturer, you may get inexpensive services, but then you have to confront issues such as poor communication and high shipping charges.
If you go for a domestic printed circuit board manufacturer you may get costly services. Nevertheless, you do not have to pay for costly shipping charges. Further, there will be no such thing as poor communication. You can also visit the manufacturer when you want. These benefits are not possible with hiring an international PCB manufacturer.
7. Testing
Make sure that the printed circuit board manufacturer does provide testing services. Testing is an important step in making sure that the final product you are going to get is fault-free.
8. ISO certifications
Last but not the least, check the certifications of the printed circuit board manufacturer like Optima Technology is certified company. Make sure they do have certifications such as ISO 9001:2008. If the manufacturer is ISO certified, you can be certain that it has at least a fundamental quality management system.
The aforementioned 8 pointers can surely help you get a dependable PCB manufacturer.