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Buying expensive production equipment isn’t feasible if you only want to run the PCB manufacturing and assembly of a couple of prototypes. Instead you probably want to outsource the prototype assembly to a reliable contract manufacturer. I am going to help you find a suitable vendor and give some tips as to what to look out for when choosing a supplier.

Some vendors will have an instant online quote system on their website which will save you save time when picking a vendor. This quote system should allow you to enter all of the board details. Such details include board thickness, material and any special manufacturing requirements such as milling. This will help you avoid any surprises in case of surcharges for special manufacturing requirements.

If you manufacture a small quantity of boards, the cost usually will be higher per board than the cost when manufacturing a larger quantity. This is because of the board production and assembly setup cost which is usually fixed. Some prototype manufacturers will combine boards from different customers to help distribute PCB Assembly the setup cost and lower the cost per board for small volumes. In the design phase of your product, you may want to start out with a smaller quantity of boards first. Then you can work out the issues with your design. Finally you will be able to ramp up the build quantity

If you are manufacturing a prototype board then vendors will typically only offer certain types of standard materials and thicknesses because they are looking to combine production of your boards with other customer boards. Most vendors will charge differently depending on how fast you want them to complete the production. A longer lead time will give the vendor more freedom to slot the assembly. Also, they can more easily combine your order with other customer’s orders. You should find that the quote will change depending on the lead time when you enter your details in the instant quote section.

Check that your vendor can read your production files which typically would be Gerber files for circuit boards but can also be software-specific files in some cases. If you pick a manufacturer which also offers circuit board design services then you can rest assured that there won’t be any long delays in case your board files have a problem that needs to be corrected.

When subcontracting PCB assembly, ensure that your vendor can assemble all of the package types that your board uses. Some vendors cannot assemble certain type of IC packages such as BGA, chip-scale packages or very small component types. If in doubt be sure to contact your vendor ahead of time.

Some contract manufacturers will carry an inventory of standard SMT and through-hole components. You will save time if you can pull from your vendor’s inventory rather than purchasing each component yourself. Make sure to specify which components you wish to consign yourself when you upload your bill of materials.

Most vendors will also offer manufacture of the SMT stencil which is required for PCB assembly. Be sure to order the stencil right away when ordering the circuit boards themselves to avoid delays.

To ensure quality, be sure that your vendor carries the usual quality approvals. Also, if your board requires special testing, make sure your vendor has appropriate testing equipment. Some testing will require additional time and cost.

Brian Fuller has been involved with circuit board assembly and other electronic devices for over a decade. You can get further information about pcb circuit by clicking at this link.