Cleanroom Requirements for PCB Manufacturing Not every step of board manufacture needs a cleanroom, and the mistake most shops make is either to build one where it is unnecessary or to run a sensitive process in an open area. Particle contamination matters most where a small defect is reproduced many…

PCB Drill Defects: What Goes Wrong Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB drill defects from the perspective of a PCBA factory floor, covering preventing defects…

PCB Drill Maintenance: Keeping It Working Buyers and engineers often focus on the finished product and forget the production line behind it. In practice, most field failures can be traced back to process decisions made during assembly. Understanding PCB drill maintenance gives you a practical advantage when you choose a…

Chemical Handling Safety in PCB Manufacturing A board shop handles acids, alkalis, oxidisers, solvents and metal salts, and the risks are managed through a small number of practices that are easy to describe and easy to neglect. Chemical handling safety is not primarily a matter of rules and signs. It…

Drill Hit Count Control In PCB Fabrication A drill bit in a printed circuit board shop does not drill one hole and stop. It drills a set number of holes, is withdrawn, and is replaced or resharpened. That number is the hit count, and it is one of the most…

PCB X Ray Inspection Timing: How Long It Takes Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB X ray inspection timing from the perspective of a PCBA…

PCB X Ray Inspection Improvement: Getting Better Each Lot Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB X ray inspection improvement from the perspective of a PCBA…

PCB X Ray Inspection Environment: Where It Happens Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB X ray inspection environment from the perspective of a PCBA factory…

PCB X Ray Inspection Control: Holding It Steady Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB X ray inspection control from the perspective of a PCBA factory…

Via Plugging With Ink Versus Conductive Paste When a via has to be closed, two materials are used: a non conductive solder mask ink, and a conductive paste filled with metal or carbon. Both fill the barrel, and they behave very differently in the finished board. The choice is normally…