PCB assembly cost influencing factors and price assessment

When we assemble a PCB, the cost must be an issue we need to consider. Cost determines whether our project can achieve profitability. As a PCB assembly and processing company, it is also our responsibility to control the cost of production for customers. There are many factors that affect PCB assembly costs, including raw materials, electronic components, installation and paste technology, testing, etc. We can consider the following factors.

Analysis of PCB assembly cost factors

PCB assembly costs. Every electronic engineer or designer wants to know how to get the best PCB assembly quote and how the price affects PCB assembly costs. There are some tips here to guide you on how to control PCB assembly prices.

First, clearly understand the attributes of PCB assembly costs. Some of the biggest cost drivers include:

(1) Pretending surface sticker type (SMT) (SMD component) Tongtong (DIP) mix (two)

(2) Placement of components only requests top-level component request DOULBE double-sided assembly

(3) Total number of components (SMD+DIP)

(4) Component packing size 1206 0804 0603 0402 020101005

(5) Component packaging (roll priority) Roll tube pallet or loose cut-off packaging bag

(6) The required process SMT Patching Pole Pole Automatically Insert Pole Sliding Welding Welding Automatic Optical Detection (AOI), X-ray selective welding manual welding assembly

(7) Quantity and batch size

(8) Preparation requirements for special parts (i.e. lead length, minimum/maximum value, and spacing)

(9) Total cost of the complete list of materials (BOM)

(10) Number of layers (PCB) and materials used

The cost of flexible PCB components is higher than rigid PCB boards.

(11) Coating requirements (medical or military usually require full coating or selective coating) spray or brush coating number – the coating area specified by the coating tolerance

(12) Requirements (if any)

(13) Configuration compliance requirements ROHS (lead) non-ROHS (including lead) IPC-A-610D I, II or III ITAR

(14) Test requirements (Rayming is willing to test all PCBA boards before shipping, we hope you can tell us how to test) Lairel power circuit test (ICT) cycling without testing (only visual inspection).

(15) Transport requirements ESD (electrostatic discharge) bag non-standard/special container

(16) Delivery (Rayming provides fast rotating PCB assembly services)

These 16 tips will affect the PCB assembly price, so you can choose the best one to save costs. When purchasing parts, you can provide multiple source components for each component, which makes it easy to control some costs, not only from Digikey, but also from Digikey. Some agents also have a high price to support a component to reduce the source of cost faster.

How to evaluate the price of PCB assembly

You know the following information, then you can quickly evaluate the cost of assembling a complete PCB, as follows:

PCB circuit board panel size

The basic raw materials for PCB circuit boards are panels. The total size of the panel for specific PCB projects will affect the final cost. The larger the panel size, the higher the initial cost.

Order delivery time

This is an important consideration when estimating PCB manufacturing and assembly costs. Additional costs that need to be completed in a shorter delivery cycle will result in additional costs.

Number of layers to be manufactured

The cost of making single-sided and double-sided PCBs is similar. However, because multi-layered raw materials and more complex manufacturing processes need to be purchased, more raw materials need to be purchased.

testing cost

The final PCB has undergone strict quality inspection to ensure the quality and electrical function of the device. In addition to electrical testing, manufacturers can also perform impedance testing, ion testing, etc. before the product is delivered to the final customer. These inspections can add 10% to 15% to the project cost.

Surface smoothness

Considering the erosion of the PCB application area, the circuit board is protected by corrosion-resistant surface treatment. Highly professional surface treatment, coating and paint options can be used to enhance the durability of PCB components. Depending on the requirements, manufacturers can use several types of gold and silver noodles to achieve enhanced protection in industrial applications required for harsh industrial applications. The cost depends on the type of surface smoothness you choose.

Size and quantity of drilling

Another important cost determining factor in PCB manufacturing is the size and quantity of drilling. For projects that require less than 0.012, additional costs will be incurred. This is because manufacturers may need advanced laser drilling technology to drill. Manufacturers need to adjust their manufacturing technology and techniques to drill more and smaller holes, which in turn increases the total project cost by 10% to 20%.

Type and size of raw materials

Polyorne benzene is manufactured using several materials with excellent abrasion resistance and corrosion resistance. Some materials for manufacturing include polytide, copper foil and glass fiber. Compared to manufacturing single-layer PCBs, manufacturers need more raw materials to produce multi-layer PCB components. Smaller and thinner circuit boards also require similar components. Compared with bulky products, the cost of smaller products is much higher. The machining machine used also requires higher precision to handle such components. Therefore, the type and size of the raw materials will significantly affect the final assembly price.

Pellet

Pole holes in PCBs are usually not fully filled. However, for some special projects, the customer requires that they be completely filled in. In this case, manufacturers use specialized non-conductive or conductive materials to complete the work. This process will increase PCB costs by 10% or more.

Additional component

Some projects need to be built on a standard circuit board. Customers may have special requirements, such as buried head holes, buried head holes, complex wiring, and deep drilling of the final assembly. All these processes require additional manufacturing operations, advanced technology and cutting-edge tools. This additional manufacturing will increase PCB costs by at least 5% to 10% or more.

How to Reduce PCB Project Costs

As a hardware designer, the job is to develop PCBs on time and within budget, and they need them to work properly! In this article, the problem of considering the circuit board when designing the circuit board will be explained in order to make the circuit board cost lower without affecting performance. Keep in mind that many of the following techniques may not meet your actual needs, but if the situation permits, they are a good way to reduce costs.

1. keep all surface mount (SMT) components on one side of the circuit board.

If there is enough space, you can place all SMT components on the side of the circuit board. In this way, the circuit board only needs to go through the SMT manufacturing process. If there are components on both sides of the circuit board, it must be twice. By eliminating the second SMT operation, manufacturing time and cost can be saved.

2. When selecting components that are easy to replace, select components that are easy to replace.

Although this does not save any actual manufacturing costs, even if the replaceable parts are out of stock, there is no need to redesign and redesign the circuit board. As most engineers know, avoid redesigning for everyone’s best interests!

3. Select components with size 0402 or greater

Choosing a smaller component can save valuable board space, but there is a downside to this design choice. They need more time and energy to be properly placed. This will lead to higher manufacturing costs.

4. Understand and follow the manufacturer’s production standards

Follow the standards given by the manufacturer. It will maintain a lower cost. Complex projects usually have higher manufacturing costs.

5. Try to use the surface mount (SMT) as much as possible to use the SMT component instead of the hole. This will not only reduce the cost of making circuit boards, but also reduce delivery time. SMT and THT components are almost completely considered independent manufacturing processes.