What Is The Most Important Factor In Outsourcing Printed Circuit Board Assemblies?

Printed circuit board assemblies are among the most complex and sensitive products you could need to make your commercial offerings successful. Producing your own PCBs will require a dedicated team of experienced professionals with specialized knowledge.

Of course, any business owner knows payroll has a tendency to be the largest expense category when it comes to enterprises of virtually any size. If you want to control payroll while achieving PCB excellence, the obvious approach is to outsource every aspect of the process you can.

However, appropriate outsourcing of contract electronics manufacturing can be a complex task. To get the right deal for your enterprise, it is a good idea to make a firm commitment to certain high quality factors — so you can quickly understand whether a business is right for you or not.

It’s hard to say whether there is any single “most important factor” in outsourcing — the answer will depend on your needs. However, most decision-makers find that there is a complex of issues they should review before making the decision to bring on a contractor.

Important Issues To Consider When It’s Time To Ink A PCB Assembly Contract

Printed circuit board assemblies are crucial to what you do, so you need a partner that will work as hard as you would when it comes to delivering great results. Keep these factors in mind when you are making those tough decisions and entering into negotiations.

Versatile Production Equipment Is Key To Meeting Changing Requirements

Make sure that your potential contract electronic manufacturing services has a wide variety of manufacturing equipment that can meet your needs not only now, but in the future. Leaded and lead-free soldering must be possible along with a number of surface mount technology (SMT) lines and top thru-hole equipment.

International And Industry Standards Should Be Met Or Exceeded

IPC-610 standards are an international benchmark of excellence when it comes to printed circuit board assemblies. All production facilities intending to create reliable PCBs should have a range of personnel trained in these standards. Likewise, UL approval also shows dedication to quality.

Clear Experience And Foresight In Manufacturing Improvements Should Be Noted

Smaller “upstart” companies can be effective in many other industries. When it comes to printed circuit boards, however, it’s a good idea to go with the sure thing. Less than three decades of experience should be considered a red flag if you want to attain the highest quality standards.

Contract Partners Should Help Fill The Gaps In Your Own Supply Chain

You should take an active interest in the enterprises that your contract partners use to fill their own supply chain — companies that service them indirectly service you! Although the company you work with may be domestic, it most probably has a variety of international ties.

When It Comes To Printed Circuit Board Assemblies, Innovation Is The Watchword

As a last thought, remember that an innovation mindset can only help you to achieve better results from a partnership. An effective company should always be moving forward to better manufacturing materials, processes, and equipment — to better serve you as time goes on!

Electronic Manufacturing Services And The Importance Of Customer Care

When you are looking at an contract electronics manufacturing partner for long-term work with your enterprise, there are many things to consider. Most people begin by closely evaluating the kinds of facilities that a potential partner company has.

After ensuring that the facilities meet a high standard of quality, leaders dealing with “due diligence” will often review the supply chain that the partner company has developed. It is important to ensure that no “weak links” will mar the quality of the final product.

However, there is one matter that most people do not really consider a top priority in contract electronic manufacturing services — an issue that can make a tremendous difference, yet one that is often seen as a secondary consideration. That issue is customer service.

Customer Service Can Be A Key Indicator Of Quality For Manufacturing Firms

With the huge proliferation of manufacturing firms out there, both throughout the United States and across various fast-growing off-shore regions, it makes sense to consider customer service. Clear customer service expectations can make a tremendous difference in business outcomes.

There are several different factors that can act as predictors of good customer service:

1) Experience

The more experienced an electronic manufacturing service is, the more likely it is to focus on good customer service and quality relationships. This is key to business development for a firm that wants to forge strong commercial ties and keep top customers coming back — so a longer record shows that something important is being done right.

2) Domestic Focus

One way to amplify communication between your company and a partner company is to ensure that the partner firm is based domestically. Certainly, its supply chain may stretch all over the globe. However, when you need immediate service, time zones and cultural differences can make things very difficult. That compounds problems and can lead to further issues.

3) Relationship Building

The best manufacturing firms are those that truly focus on expanding the relationship they have with you and exceeding your expectations in every possible way. Relationship building does not mean cross-selling and up-selling, but rather taking a genuine interest in how the business can do more for you. That often deepens your profit as well as what the firm can realistically charge.

Don’t Settle For Second Best When It Comes To Customer Service

If there is an error in your production run or some problem with your circuit board prototypes, then an immediate fix can make the difference between a temporary “hiccup” and a long-term disaster.

Ensuring that you have someone you can make contact with at the company right away is key. That person may be a dedicated account manager, or you may have a special hotline that you can call, understanding that you can “escalate” as needed.

Companies that don’t prioritize customer service may have other practices and policies that are counterproductive for you. That being the case, you should always expect a “customer first” ideology to be part of every manufacturing relationship that you ignite.