Outsourcing services to experienced and talented teams, like ours at Quadra, will save you time and money. Our PCB prototyping services remove your frustrations and prevent feelings of stress as we guide you through the process as expertly as we can.
But what if you are an established manufacturer with a continuous production line, broad in-house capabilities to manufacture fully populated PCB’s and have the resources to create your own BOM and manage the process from start to finish?
You’ll still benefit, and here’s how.
Collaborating with us, and deploying our turn-key services, will ensure that your production line runs optimally and doesn’t have to stop to make a small prototype batch of the next big thing. This is crucial to your efficiencies and ultimately to the health of your bottom line.
We have 22 years of experience in PCB design and outsourcing production services. Our skilled engineers work with a broad range of clients amassing real-world experience. The supply partners that we have established are closely managed by our team and are fully approved under industry-standard assessment schemes.
You’re an entrepreneur with a vision and need someone to make sense of it?
No problem, we’re all ears. As soon as you can, tell us your plans and we’ll pull your ideas together and turn them into a physical working model.
The importance of understanding the PCB Prototype Quote Process
We completely understand that the best part of the process is when our customers take delivery of their manufactured prototype. Getting the quote is all too often seen as a complex and laborious task. But, when you understand the process, and know the elements that go into it, then you may just get excited that bit earlier.
Knowing the purpose of the quote
The purpose of a quote for a PCB assembly is to establish costs, timescales, and details on what to expect when the product is completed. In contrast, the purpose of a quote for a PCB prototype is to identify the design’s manufacturability and any modifications that may be required prior to the circuit boards being mass-produced.
The three stages of the PCB prototyping quote process
When you break the process down, you’ll discover that there are three main phases: the Design Generation phase, the Design Package Evaluation phase and the Quote Generation phase.
The first two phases require collaboration from both parties as there are essential back-to-back communications to ensure the desired outcome. This is where knowledge of the process comes in handy to accelerate the process and to experience fewer challenges along the way.
- The Design Package Generation Phase: This is where you, the client, provide us with as much detail and documentation as possible. The more detailed data you have the better. Our experts can then check the feasibility of the request, ask for more information if necessary, and then start work on designing your prototype and draw up a draft.
Example data:
- Schematics, or PCB layout if they already exist.
- Footprint details of the desired finished PCB if applicable.
- Connectivity and any constraints, again if applicable.
- Approvals that must be met.
- Any RFI or other environmental considerations.
- (BOM) bill of materials.
- Will anything be free issued and how (on reels) or loose, etc.
You’ll receive preliminary plans at this stage for approval. Once approved we move onto phase 2.
- Design Package Evaluation: This stage sees us deep-diving into the feasibility of the end design. Using our team of experienced engineers and planners with industry-leading software such as CADSTAR and Autodesk our team have the tools and the skills to quickly evaluate the whole project. If there are any errors, they will be identified during this phase and be addressed. Our team can also pressure test the supply chain and costing models for your BOM.
- Quote Generation. This is the final phase.
How to get an accurate quote with less stress
- Effective communication is key. To realise your vision there must be regular communication. Plus, you’ll gain clarity during each stage of the quoting process and stay in control of your design.
- For additional clarity, all documentation is kept up to date with dates, terms and conditions, expenses and the components used.
- Gain confidence by doing some research yourself if you feel it necessary. We’re more than happy for you to do your own fact-finding to check the quality of the materials and components that we propose.
- If you need to chat through your initial requirements for PCB prototyping and see if we’re a good fit for your needs, please get in touch with us.
Want to know more about PCB Prototyping? Contact us now
Quadra Solutions | PCB Design Professionals
We specialise in PCB design software and solutions. Quadra is one of the largest PCB bureaus in the UK and helps support hundreds of businesses throughout the UK and beyond with PCB design projects. We have the knowledge that helps companies embed, enhance and extend their design flow.
Find out more about our PCB Design Services
Have you read our new eBook?
Click to download the ebook now