Procurement departments can contribute to the financial success of their organization by minimizing their purchases’ total cost. In terms of decreasing the cost of a printed circuit board (PBC) assembly project, it’s important to take some steps. Reducing the cost of led PCB fabrication and assembly is important for turnkey PCB orders. A good PCB manufacturer should help you reduce the assembly and fabrication costs without sacrificing the quality of the end products. They must approach each project from an engineering point of view by assessing every circuit board design individually. This can help them in determining the features that could impact the production cost and how these features can be changed without sacrificing the final PCBs’ functionality. Here are some ways to reduce the PCB assembly and fabrication cost.

Ensure Components can Be Taken from Various Sources

Multiple component options allow for greater availability of parts in distribution. Also, there is leverage in the cost of these components. And in case parts can have problems, it is possible to pick another source right away. Single sourcing can impede PBC manufacturing as parts must be ordered from the factory.

Examine Different Design Choices

These choices include vias on pads, blind/buried vias, panelization options and board material. Removing blind/buried vias on SMT component pas can minimize PCB fabrication costs. Also, panelization can optimize the project when it comes to the cost. If you order multiple designs, your manufacturer will look at panelizing such designs together to minimize the overall setup and tooling costs. Moreover, clients are encouraged to consider ENIG surface finish for their circuit boards since this comes standard within most fabrication pricing models.

Some people think that decreasing the costs of PCB fabrication is based on the board’s size and reducing the board size can reduce the overall cost. While this can be true for medium and large printed circuit boards, decreasing the size of a small board is likely to increase the cost as it requires more precise manufacturing to build. Likewise, reducing the board material used can also increase the cost. Adding big numbers of slots and drill holes will require more tooling time to produce the board, increasing the price of PCBs significantly.

Reduce Component Cost

For full turnkey PCB orders, manufactures examine the Bill of Materials of their clients thoroughly. They will concentrate on the priciest components in the BoM to identify the possibility of getting the parts from their authorized vendor for a lower price. The manufacturer will discuss with their clients if there are more affordable substitute components they can use that could reduce the LED PCB assembly cost. PCB manufactures make use of their network of partnerships to provide lower prices for PCB components. Also, in case their clients have made an arrangement with their own vendors, the manufacturer can buy them on behalf of their clients or accept the components as consigned parts.

Swap Components

PCB assembly costs can be reduced by eliminating very small passive packages. Also, lead-less package types require additional care during assembly to guarantee their accurate alignment with their footprints. Swapping these components with parts that have extending leads can reduce the overall assembly cost.