Before going straight into production you must make sure that your printed circuit board (PCB) is functioning properly. Regardless of how carefully it is designed, small mistakes and invisible problems always pose a threat to the functionality of the final product. Because PCBs are at the heart of the many different electronic devices that we use every day, if those small mistakes and invisible problems are not caught before full-scale manufacturing, it can be extraordinarily costly. Prototyping your PCB beforehand is a must to avoid such a situation.
Prototyping is one of the essential services we offer at Advanced Technology & Manufacturing (AT&M), but what is their importance to product quality? Let’s find out!
Benefits of Prototyping PCBs
If you are developing a new product or redesigning, you will benefit from prototyping PCBs. Prototyping enables you to catch and correct design flaws or inefficiencies in your PCB design early in the product development process. This creates several advantages, including (but not limited to):
● Fast turnaround time: With guesswork out of the equation and minimized rework, prototypes can be turned around much more quickly than standard production PCBs. This quick turnaround results in a faster overall design and manufacturing process.
● Efficient project completion: Making engineering changes to a version of your final product can help you avoid reworking the entire project later, which would be much more expensive and could substantially extend a project’s time frame.
● Ability to test components individually: Prototypes can be used to test single functions of a more complex product that contains multiple PCB-based components. Validating the functionality of each component independently before it goes further into the design process enables you to pinpoint where any issues might be occurring. It also helps you get an accurate portrayal of how your final production component will perform.
● Improved final product: Having an accurate, reliable PCB prototype makes it much easier to avoid any undetected malfunctions (including excessive input, design blind spots and design-rule-check) that could show up in final products and cause more significant problems further down the line. This, in turn, results in a higher-quality design.
We are the one-stop-shop for all of your PCB prototyping needs.
The time and cost-saving benefits of prototyping PCBs are maximized when you work with a reputed PCB supplier. At AT&M, we create high-quality prototypes that align with how the final product will function. As one of Australia’s premier contract electronics manufacturers, we can complete every part of the prototyping process — from component procurement to fabrication and assembly to quality control. This saves you from having to work with multiple suppliers and makes the process more efficient and economical. AT&M provides a prototype report that identifies any footprint/production issues. This enables you to fine tune your design to achieve higher reliability and cost effectiveness.
If you are interested in using PCB prototype services for your next project, contact AT&M today.