As an electronics business, your goal is to provide your customers with superior devices, powered by efficient and highly-functional PC boards. You want to keep buyers happy with boards that will continue to support your products for many years.  But despite your best efforts, there's always the chance that something will go wrong with one of your devices. How do you handle it when there's trouble with one of your units? Do you simply cut your losses and ship a warranty replacement unit?

For many small to mid-sized companies, this may seem like the simplest solution, but is it really worth it? In many cases, the problems associated with a faulty device can be traced right back to the PC board. Through troubleshooting, you might find that the issue really boils down to one or two components that may need to be replaced, or another quick fix. Ultimately, taking the time to make these adjustments can save you a significant amount of money.

When something goes wrong with one of your electronic devices, how do you handle the problem? For many businesses, protocol is to simply replace the entire unit, when it's under warranty. Although this certainly is a quick fix and provides customers with a functioning devices, this may not always be the smartest course of action. Do you know when to repair and when to replace? This post will explore the answer to this question, the benefits of PCB repair, and the ways in which a contract manufacturer can help you out in the process.

When to Repair vs When to Replace

It's not uncommon for small to midsize electronics companies to seek out the assistance of a contract manufacturing vendor as a means of reducing the time, costs, and other burdens associated with the production of PC boards. Contract manufacturing businesses exist all throughout the world, providing companies like yours with many options. Unfortunately, while many offshore contract manufacturers offer lower prices than their American competitors, the quality of their boards are often subpar. But what is it, exactly, that makes American businesses better and sets them apart? This post will take a deeper look at why you should only consider partnering with an American manufacturing service.

6 Reasons to Hire American Contractors

As a growing electronics company, new business is always welcome. You're constantly looking for ways to reach new customers and grow your client base. But what happens if a major client orders a large batch of boards that you simply don't have the time or means to fulfill before the required deadline? What if a small, new client with the potential for exciting growth in the future solicits your work, but you're unable to push current customer orders onto the back burner? Does this mean that you'll have to lose the opportunity to take on new business? We don't think so. 

A strong partnership with a contract manufacturer can help you manage orders and clients of all sizes so that you never miss out. Whether your CM is handling all of the PCB design and assembly on your behalf, or is only assisting you with a portion of the work, there's really no job that's too big or small. In fact, you'd be surprised at how much a good CM can do to help you to keep your PCB batch orders organized and to keep your customers happy and coming back for more.

The evolution of our world's technology is truly astounding. In the past decades, we've made great leaps and bounds in terms of what our electronic devices are capable of accomplishing, and things are only getting better. Technological engineers and electronics designers are continuously dreaming up new ways to improve existing products, as well as completely original ideas for simplifying every day life and tasks. But how does this process occur, exactly? 

Every bit of technology - from the smallest, consumer electronic gadget to complex healthcare and aerospace units - begins with an idea. From here, plans can be made to develop a working prototype in order to test the capabilities of the device and to determine whether the idea is worth investing in, or how it can be further expounded upon in order to make it more operable, functional, and efficient. Every step in designing and assembling the prototype is essential to enabling the simple dream to become a reality. To give you a better idea of the process, this post will walk you through the life cycle of a prototype.

After countless hours of hard work, there's nothing more frustrating than discovering that your PC board design is flawed. A slight miscalculation can require you to backtrack as a result of sizing constraints. Even if all components fit, an error could cause the board to have operational deficiencies, and finding the root cause can be expensive and time-consuming. Wouldn't it be a lot easier if there were a for you to increase the odds of getting your design "just right" during your first go at it? Because we want to help you succeed, we've put together these tips and tricks for avoiding potential design iterations and expensive PCB re-spins.  

1. Begin With a Space Study  

The electronics industry is one of the most competitive out there. As the years go by, technology is playing a bigger and bigger role in all of our lives, affecting the way that we work, learn, and communicate with one another. As a result, there is a huge demand for faster and better electronic devices and gadgets to meet consumer needs. In addition to wanting more features and higher levels of efficiency, though, these end-users are also looking for products that are smaller and lighter. In order to keep up with the market demand, electronic board design processes must evolve.

The smaller that electronics become, the more dense and compact PC boards need to be. This makes electronic board design significantly more complicated. Designers and engineers are given a very limited surface area to work with, and must overcome a number of obstacles in order to create boards that can function efficiently and serve their purpose. In some cases, this process can become too challenging for smaller electronics companies without the skills or tools required to do so. Is it time for you to seek out help from a third party? Here's a look at some of the most common scenarios in which you would benefit from having a contract manufacturer assist with your electronic board design.